Normally, jazz hip-hop and rap are outside of the usual BMS remit. However, British saxophonist and composer Soweto Kinch is doing some interesting work with the London Symphony Orchestra leading to the world premiere of Soundtrack to the Apocalypse at the Barbican on 19 November, as part of the EFG London Jazz Festival.
Rather than presenting apocalypse as catastrophe, Kinch reclaims its original Greek meaning – “to uncover” or “to reveal” – using music to expose uncomfortable truths while searching for the possibility of renewal.
Structured as a continuous musical journey, Soundtrack to the Apocalypse reflects the fractured pace of contemporary life while asking urgent questions about politics, technology, race and our collective future.
‘I’m not interested in music as noise to consume while ignoring the world,’ says Kinch.‘It has always been bound up with liberation, testimony and truth-telling.’
The album documents the third and final instalment of Kinch’s acclaimed trilogy of works created as part of a six-year project with the London Symphony Orchestra.
A graduate in Modern History from Oxford University, Kinch has received two MOBO Awards, a Mercury Prize nomination, and presents Round Midnight on BBC Radio 3. As a saxophonist, rapper, composer and broadcaster, he has forged a unique career spanning jazz, hip hop and contemporary classical music.
Photo: Mark Allan