BBC Philharmonic - Anthracite Fields

BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
BBC Singers
John Storgårds conductor

Julia Wolfe Anthracite Fields
Laura Bowler New Work (world premiere)

‘I guess I have a bias towards the grit.’  – Julia Wolfe

Grit courses through Julia Wolfe’s Anthracite Fields, her Pulitzer Prize-winning oratorio for choir and ensemble that serves as a musical memorial to American miners and their struggle.

Wolfe grew up in coal-rich Pennsylvania – with vast deposits of anthracite, coal’s purest form – and saw firsthand how intertwined the means of fuelling a nation were with human toil and sacrifice. Through extensive research and oral histories, Wolfe weaves together stories of labour, loss, and resistance – stories that could just as easily come from the Yorkshire pits or the South Lancashire coalfields, where mining was not just a job but a way of life.

We hear testimonies from men risking serious injury, communities remembering the fallen, the fiery words of union leader John M. Lewis, and a few voices daring to hope. Wolfe’s writing is equal parts fluid and direct, drawing from her established sources — chorales, rock music, minimalism — as she looks unsparingly at the past.

Death and danger, community and power, all delivered with Wolfe’s trademark forthrightness.

This symphonic arrangement of Anthracite Fields is a BBC Philharmonic Orchestra commission, in partnership with the Louisville Orchestra.

During the concert, you’ll also have the chance to hear the world premiere of Laura Bowler’s New Work.

Laura Bowler’s piece is a BBC Philharmonic Orchestra commission. Please note, the world premiere of Laura Bowler’s New Work has moved from its previously scheduled date of 29 November.