BBC Radio 3 to share forgotten music from diverse composers

Forgotten music by composers from diverse ethnic backgrounds is to be featured on BBC Radio 3.

New research on the Diverse Composers scheme run by the station and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) unearthed neglected orchestral and string quartet repertoire by Joseph Bologne Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Margaret Bonds, and Ali Osman

Now, the station is all about expanding the classical canon through new commissions and unearthing those from the past that might forever be lost without a platform for audiences to discover them.

Launched in Autumn 2020 with a call out for expressions of interest from academic researchers, the scheme aims to expand the breadth and diversity of what is accepted as belonging to the classical music canon, recognising and celebrating Black, Asian and ethnically diverse composers across the centuries.

The seven researchers who were awarded funding in Spring 2021 are currently unearthing pieces of music that have been rarely performed, and at times are not commercially available as recordings.

The upcoming Afternoon Concert presents the first results of the BBC Radio 3 and AHRC collaboration, with a further concert scheduled to be broadcast in Autumn 2022.

Alan Davey, BBC Radio 3 Controller, says: “BBC Radio 3 is all about expanding the classical canon through new commissions and unearthing those from the past that might forever be lost without a platform for audiences to discover them.

“We’re grateful to the Arts and Humanities Research Council for supporting us and enabling us to take steps to ensure that unfairly forgotten figures are welcomed again into the Western classical canon for future generations.”

The programmes will be introduced by Tom McKinney and Linton Stephens.

Photo left to right from top: Researchers Dwight-Pile Gray, Dr Samantha Ege, Dr Maiko Kawabata, Ahmed Abdul Rahman, Phil Alexander, Christopher Dingle