Written by Alexander Campkin (BSO Resound’s former Composer-in-Residence), ‘What fear we then?’ was originally due to have its world premiere performance in summer 2020; NOYO is currently working with filmmaker Justin Edgar of 104 Films on a video recording.

With NOYO centres in Birmingham, Bournemouth, Bristol and London, the National Open Youth Orchestra is the world’s first disabled-led national youth ensemble. It’s a pioneering inclusive ensemble where talented disabled and non-disabled musicians aged 11-25 rehearse and perform together. They play a wide range of traditional and electronic instruments.

Lucy Warren, Head of BSO Participate, said of the partnership, “We’re proud to work closely with NOYO and to co-commission this new work by Alexander Campkin, who has written so brilliantly for BSO Resound. We look forward to sharing this new piece and to continuing to support new composers and grow the repertoire.”

Campkin was previously commissioned to write ‘trembling, hoping, lingering, flying’ for BSO Resound. The second movement ‘hoping’ was performed by the ensemble, under the baton of James Rose, as part of its memorable BBC Proms debut in 2018.