James Turnbull oboe
Libby Burgess piano
Howells Oboe Sonata
Gurney Preludes
This year we are profiling the work of English composer Herbert Howells, across a number of events. His Sonata for Oboe and Piano is a hauntingly beautiful work, its soaring and almost vocal lines ideally suited to the generous acoustic of the Minster. Although the piece was written during the Second World War, it was deemed too difficult, and was in fact not premiered until 1984; only now is the work earning its deserved place in the repertoire.
Gurney and Howells were close friends and students together at the RCM. These piano preludes by Gurney are one hundred years old this year, a reflection on his own grim experience in the First World War. Performed beside the war memorial chapels of Beverley’s beautiful Minster, this free pop-up event forms the rst of our ‘moments to reflect’ during the festival.
