Jonny Greenwood is still best known for being Radiohead’s lead guitarist, but over the past decade and a half, he’s also become a respected name in the classical music world. He’s composed works for live orchestra and piano in addition to award-winning film scores for auteurs like Paul Thomas Anderson and Lynne Ramsay. And now, he’s curated an entire evening of classical performances for the BBC Proms concert series.
Last night at the Royal Albert Hall in London, Greenwood curated a show that included selections from his own oeuvre alongside Krzysztof Penderecki’s Sinfonietta, Heinrich Biber’s Passacaglia, and Steve Reich’s Pulse, on which Greenwood himself played bass. And the night concluded with the premiere of a brand new composition from Greenwood.
Horror vacui, Greenwood’s new work for solo violin and strings, was performed by violinist Daniel Pioro accompanied by 68 strings player placed on raised platforms around the stage. The piece simulates the effect of electronic sound using only acoustic instruments. You can stream it and the rest of Greenwood’s Prom on the BBC website here.
This article originally appeared in Stereogum.
