Let the People Sing episode artwork

EPISODE · May 3, 2026 · 26 MIN

Let the People Sing

from The Reith Lectures · host BBC Radio 4

English composer Alexander Goehr gives his fifth Reith Lecture from the series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony'. In this lecture entitled 'Let the People Sing', Professor Goehr looks at modern composers who aim to break down the barriers between the audience, the performer and the composer. This fracture allows for composers to create a 'community' of music, but can composers adequately fulfil a social ideal and produce enduring works of art?

Episode metadata supplied by the publisher feed · Published May 3, 2026

English composer Alexander Goehr gives his fifth Reith Lecture from the series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony'. In this lecture entitled 'Let the People Sing', Professor Goehr looks at modern composers who aim to break down the barriers between the audience, the performer and the composer. This fracture allows for composers to create a 'community' of music, but can composers adequately fulfil a social ideal and produce enduring works of art?

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Let the People Sing

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English composer Alexander Goehr gives his fifth Reith Lecture from the series entitled 'The Survival of the Symphony'. In this lecture entitled 'Let the People Sing', Professor Goehr looks at modern composers who aim to break down the barriers...

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