Aurora Orchestra

For thousands of years the Psalms have been sung and remembered – words of sorrow, joy and hope that have travelled across generations and cultures. Aurora Orchestra’s latest collaboration with the BBC Singers brings together three composers, centuries apart, who each return to those ancient texts in their own way.

At its heart is Bach’s Magnificat – Mary’s song of praise, which itself remembers and reimagines the psalm tradition in the light of Christ. Bach’s setting summons the splendour of Lutheran Leipzig, layering centuries of sacred tradition into music bursting with colour, invention and joy. Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms recalls the sounds of his Jewish heritage with music that is tender, playful and dramatic. And in newly-composed settings of psalm texts, Nico Muhly gives these timeless words a fresh, modern voice, alive with echoes and fragments like half-remembered prayers.

The programme is co-curated and introduced by writer and artist Edmund de Waal, who reflects on the Psalms as vessels of memory, carrying human experience across centuries. Together, words and music reveal the Psalms as a living thread that binds past, present and future. This collaboration between Aurora Orchestra and Edmund de Waal is born out of Edmund’s role as a Schwarzman Centre Cultural Fellow at the University of Oxford, where he has been working with academics to explore the continuing resonance of the Psalms across the three Abrahamic faiths and beyond.

Aurora with the BBC Singers and Edmund de Waal

Kings Place

Schwarzman Centre

Saffron Hall

Get your party hats ready, something special is happening on your street! It’s time to sing, dance, play games, and discover the magical sounds of orchestral instruments.

As the postman delivers the invitations, we’ll bump into old friends and meet new neighbours. But who lives behind each door and what instrument do they play?

Find out in this lively, interactive concert for families, as we’re joined by two engaging presenters to bring the world of orchestral music to life through fun, participation, and plenty of surprises.

Meet the Instruments