Inspired by Rilke's letters to an aspiring poet, five leading composers write a personal letter to a young composer.
Inspired by Rilke's letters to an aspiring poet, five leading composers write a personal letter to a young composer – real or imagined – with their thoughts about their craft, their influences and the things they wish they'd known when they were starting out.
Covering themes of luck, resilience, an itinerant life and the seismic effects of Artificial Intelligence, these deeply personal essays reflect the realities of life as a leading composer.
In this Essay, Benbrick reflects on the importance of perfectionism and creative thinking - and the impending AI revolution.
Last on
Broadcast
- Wed 1 May 202421:45BBC Radio 3
Death in Trieste
A 1760s murder still informs ideas about aesthetics, a certain sort of sex, and death.
Watch: My Deaf World
Five compelling experiences of what it is like to be deaf in 21st-century Britain.
The Book that Changed Me
Five figures from the arts and science introduce books that changed their lives and work.
Podcast
![]()
The Essay
Essays from leading writers on arts, history, philosophy, science, religion and beyond.
