Conductor Edward Gardner will lead a concert to raise funds for refugee children. Proceeds from the 15 January, 2018 event – titled A Child of Our Time, and hosted at Royal Festival Hall in London – will go to the Refugee Council’s Children’s Section.
“People often talk about the power of music to change lives, so it’s great to have the opportunity to put our skills on the concert stage to use for such an excellent cause,” stated Gardner. “It’s heartbreaking to consider the depth of trauma and the challenges endured by so many child refugees through no fault of their own and I’m pleased to be involved in something that may make some difference to their lives.”
The bill is comprised of artists like violinist Hilary Hahn as well as singers Sophie Bevan, Alice Coote, Toby Spence and Brindley Sherratt under the baton of Gardner. Members of the London Philharmonic Orchestra will accompany the performers. The concert has been curated by music professionals Tamzin Aitken and Libby Papakyriacou.
Michael Tippet’s A Child of Our Time – which was originally composed in response to the atrocities committed at the start of World War Two – is at the heart of the programme, proceeded by Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto in E Minor. A Child of Our Time received its world premiere in 1944, and has been lauded ever since for its message of peace and reconciliation.
More than 3,000 refugee children arrive in the UK each year. The Refugee Council’s Children Section works to protect these children and provide them with life-changing opportunities.
“A Child of Our Time promises to be a wonderful evening that showcases classical music at its finest, at the same time as raising essential funds in aid of our vital work with child refugees in the UK,” noted Maurice Wren, chief executive of the Refugee Council. “We are extremely grateful to everyone who has worked so hard and so generously to make this event possible and we are looking forward to what will surely be a singular night at the Royal Festival Hall next January.”
Tickets for the concert are now on sale, priced GBP15-GBP75 (€16-€81) and available through the Southbank Centre website or at the Royal Festival Hall Ticket Office.