Hannah Kendall’s kettle-infused orchestral work explores struggle and silence
Hannah Kendall’s world-premiere commission for the London Symphony Orchestra used unusual sounds and a tea kettle to create an absorbing work about struggle and the difficulty of speaking. The concert, conducted by Antonio Pappano, paired it with very different music by Liadov and Tchaikovsky.
Kendall’s piece featured scratches, whistles, piano tremolo, forceful timpani and double bass, alongside music boxes and woodwind reeds played outside their instruments. Mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron sang words by Guyanese poet Martin Carter through her hands, a harmonica and the kettle; the sounds made some lyrics hard to hear. The review also praised the LSO’s polished, high-energy performances of Liadov’s The Enchanted Lake and Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony.
In short
- Kendall’s new work made the tea kettle part of the orchestra.
- Its sounds conveyed struggle and difficulty speaking.
- Pappano led polished, exuberant performances of Liadov and Tchaikovsky.
Explained simply
Hannah Kendall is a British composer whose work often draws on history, identity and the ways people communicate. For this piece, she set words by Martin Carter, a Guyanese poet whose writing explored political and personal struggle.
The London Symphony Orchestra is one of the UK’s major orchestras, and Antonio Pappano is its conductor. Mezzo-soprano Fleur Barron is a singer whose voice sits in the lower range traditionally associated with women’s classical singing.
Kendall’s music uses familiar orchestral instruments in unusual ways, alongside everyday objects such as a kettle. The sounds can make the words difficult to hear, reflecting the piece’s interest in silence and the challenges of speaking.
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Originally published by The Guardian as “LSO/Pappano review – Kendall’s engaging new work has a tea kettle, tremolo and slam-dunks of timpani”.