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Caroline Shaw

Is A Rose; The Listeners

Matthew Aucoin

The No One's Rose

George Lewis

Future Partner

New Music for Old Instruments

As a leading steward of historical legacy, Philharmonia invests in the future by commissioning new works that demonstrate the enduring influence of inspirations from the past. The goal is for audiences to hear new music balanced with the baroque and classical canon. In 2016, Philharmonia publicly launched the New Music for Old Instruments  initiative in 2016 to share new works with audiences regularly, and with composers who write so beautifully for period instruments.

PBO cherishes its long-standing relationship with Pulitzer Prize winner Caroline Shaw and has commissioned, premiered, and recorded a three-song cycle written by Shaw for mezzo-soprano Anne Sofie von Otter (Is A Rose, 2016–2020), as well as a large-scale choral and orchestral work by Shaw with contralto Avery Amereau and bass-baritone Dashon Burton inspired by the Golden Record (The Listeners, 2020).

Other contemporary works commissioned by PBO include a one-act opera To Hell and Back (2006) by Guggenheim Fellow Jake Heggie and librettist Gene Scheer, starring Isabel Bayrakdarian and Patti Lupone. Future seasons promise further inspiration and invention from Caroline ShawMason Bates, Tarik O’Regan, and George Lewis.

What’s New & H.I.P. with Tarik & Rick

Hosted by PBO Artistic Partner composer Tarik O’Regan and Music Director Richard Egarr (“Tarik & Rick”) and established during PBO’s 2020/21 virtual season, each episode of What’s New & H.I.P. features riveting interview, sharing personal insights and inspirations surrounding writing new music for old instruments — amidst lots of laughs and a whole lot of fun!
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Tarik O'Regan

Composer in Residence

Jake Heggie

To Hell and Back

Mason Bates

Untitled