BBC to Commission 25 New Works from 25 Composers

Errollyn Wallen, Anna Clyne, Stephen Hough, and Thea Musgrave are among the composers selected

The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) recently announced a number of new initiatives across the arts. In music, this includes a new set of commissions from BBC Radio 3, which will see 25 different UK composers write a new work.

Each of the selected composers will choose a year between 2000 and 2025, and compose a piece that reflects on a major world event that took place in that year. The works will then be recorded by BBC orchestras and choirs, as well as its New Generation Artists, for broadcast on Tom Service's Saturday morning program and at other times.

While the full list of composers is yet to be released, some names and years are available. Errollyn Wallen will focus on the 2012 London Olympics, Stephen Hough will commemorate the tragedy of 9/11, Thea Musgrave will reflect on the two-year anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II's death, and Anna Clyne will evoke the feeling of the new millennium in 2000.

Some of the other composers who have received commissions are Karl Jenkins, Rakhi Singh, Gavin Higgins and Nkeiru Okoye.

"We all have our own idea of what great arts and culture on the BBC looks like, and I know everyone is passionate about their own area of the arts," said Tim Davie, the BBC's Director General. "Of course everyone wants us to do more. But the BBC’s responsibility is to serve everyone, supporting the full sweep of arts and culture in this country and giving audiences the chance to discover something they love.

"Our mission will always be to inform, educate, and entertain, but we believe we can do more to respond directly to the most pressing needs of audiences now – to help strengthen our democracy, our creative economy, and our society. That’s why our plan is to focus on three essential roles in the years ahead. We want to pursue truth with no agenda, back the best homegrown storytelling and bring people together.

"I want to push back, frankly, on any sense that the BBC’s commitment to arts and culture has diminished. Or the idea we sometimes hear that we don’t care as much as we used to. The arts remain utterly central to the BBC’s mission. We want to send out a strong signal, that arts and culture matter, they matter for everyone, and they matter even more when times are tough."