Never to Forget

A virtual, visual and acoustic memorial project dedicated to UK health and care workers who have died in the Covid-19 pandemic.

Composed by Howard Goodall CBE and commissioned by the London Symphony Chorus, “Never to Forget” pays tribute to 122 health and care workers who were among the first to have died from Covid-19. The text of this new piece is made up entirely of the names of these health and care workers, and when complete, “Never To Forget” will be extended to include all names of those health and care workers who have died by the time of its first live performance. Currently this stands at over 300 names.

To coincide with the anniversary of the founding of the NHS, the premiere performance will take place online Sunday 5 July at 10.00hrs BST via our Youtube page.

For full Press Release please click here

The London Symphony Chorus is one of the UK’s leading choirs and has long been renowned internationally for its concerts, recordings and awards.

The advent of Simon Rattle as Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra at the beginning of the 2017/18 season was the opening up of a "brave new world" for the London Symphony Chorus, continuing to work with the world's most celebrated conductors while exploring repertoire that was challenging in both musical style and performance.

Under the leadership of Simon Halsey, the Chorus has gone from strength to strength in recent years and his appointment as LSC Chorus Director and Choral Director of the LSO reflected the importance the Orchestra places on choral activity and on its partnership with the LSC.

The 2019/20 season includes a major European tour of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 and his seldom performed "Christ on the Mount of Olives" with the LSO conducted by Simon Rattle. The opening performances will be in London at the Barbican, followed by Paris, Hamburg, Baden-Baden and Luxembourg.

In addition to this, we are already looking forward to Janacek's "Glagolitic Mass" conducted by John Eliot Gardiner, Berlioz's "Romeo et Juliette" with Michael Tilson Thomas, the choral contribution in Bartok's "The Miraculous Mandarin" conducted by Francois Xavier Roth, and MacMillan's "St. John Passion" with Gianandrea Noseda, which the Chorus premiered under Colin Davis. We will also be giving performances of Mahler's "Symphony No. 2" with Jaap van Zweden and the New York Philharmonic, and Tippett's "A Child of Our Time" conducted by Alan Gilbert.

The London Symphony Chorus is an independent charity run by its members. It is committed to excellence, to the development of its members, to diversity and engaging in the musical life of London, to commissioning and performing new works, and to supporting the musicians of tomorrow.