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Future of romance 
Post-Soviet tapestries 
Bittersweet love 
Music to expand your horizons
New music encompasses a vivid array of colours, textures and sounds. Hearing a work for the first time is a completely different experience to listening to classics of the repertoire.
Check back soon to find out more about the new music programmed from September 2009.
Archive
Future of romance
Sunday 31 May | 7.30pm | Royal Festival Hall
My Heart is on Fire is Torsten Rasch's 21st-century journey into the future of romantic music, inspired not only by the great romantic song-cycles of Mahler and Strauss but also by the lyrics of infamous rock group Rammstein.
Post-Soviet tapestries
Wednesday 22 April | 7.30pm | Royal Festival Hall
Immerse yourself in atmospheric music from Kancheli, Yusupov and Silvestrov, three composers born into the Soviet regime who blend diverse musical traditions and cultural influences to create exquisite melodic tapestries. Find out more
Why couldn't the critics agree? Review of the reviews.
Bittersweet love
Wednesday 18 February | 7pm | Royal Festival Hall
Martynov reflects music from the last six centuries through a neo-romantic prism to express the language of love – a spiritual portrayal of the bittersweet perfection and endurance depicted in Dante's Vita Nuova.
"Martynov is a cult figure in Moscow, his hometown. People either totally reject him or are completely fascinated by him. He has a similar reputation to composers such as Arvo Pärt or John Tavener in Britain, even if Martynov's music is more dramatic and diverse than theirs. Every one of his musical outings is a big thing - either a scandal or a huge success." Vladimir Jurowski in the The Guardian