We sit down with acclaimed contemporary composer and film-maker, Des Oliver ahead of our event Des Oliver and The Atchison Quartet: What Does it Mean to be a Black Composer? to discuss his top 5 songs.

1. Philip Herbert (b.1960) — Elegy: In Memoriam Stephen Lawrence, composed in 1999 (for string orchestra)

A wonderfully lyrical work for string orchestra in memory of Stephen Lawrence, a black teenager from Plumstead, who was murdered in a racially motivated attack in the early 90s.

This very expressive lament opens with a haunting melody, which fills the room like a beautiful perfume. As the music unfolds, the listener is shrouded in a cloak of rich sonorities and warm harmonies. The piece demonstrates Herbert's natural aptitude for well-crafted string writing.

Herbert's music encompasses an array of musical styles and genres, from Gospel to Spirituals and beyond. However, in this piece, he employs a quintessentially “English” sound world, akin to the music of Gerald Finzi (1901-1956), and Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958), in doing so, Herbert asks the listener to consider what it means to be black and British.

Album: Spark Catchers
Conductor: Anthony Parnther
Orchestra: Chineke!
Orchestra Composer: Philip Herbert
Label: NMC Recordings

2. Tunde Jegede (b.1972)—Cycle of Reckoning.

Cycle of Reckoning from the album Mali in Oak performed alongside the brilliant guitarist Derek Gripper. For those unfamiliar with the Kora, aka the West African Harp-lute, it is a delicate, yet majestic instrument, made all the more so by Jegede's sensitive playing.

Tunde's music is a synthesis of influences: the African Griot tradition, diasporic influences of Jazz, reggae, and soul, infused with Western classical music. His Solo Kora pieces are intimate, with intertwining melodies, not unlike the keyboard music of J.S. Bach.

His music has a meditative, dreamlike quality, and will transport you to a faraway place of unbridled beauty.

Track: Cycle of Reckoning
Album: Mali in Oak (Tunde Jegede & Derek Gripper)
Label: Globe Music

3. Juan de Araujo (1646–1712) - "Los coflades de la estleya"

Los coflades de la estleya is a joyful carol for duet and choir, by the Spanish Baroque composer Juan de Araujo.

The text is written in Spanish creole, with several words borrowed from Amerindian and African dialects, calling for everyone to come and witness the arrival of newly born baby Jesus.

The cheeky melody, sung by two female voices is refreshing and surprisingly syncopated, similar to the Latin rhythms found in Leonard Berstein's "America" from Westside Story, written some 250 years later. The lilting vocals and chorus intertwine like swans, under a bed of light percussion. It will bring joy to your heart.

Album: Convidando Está la Noche / Navidad Musical en la América Colonial
Performers: GCC-Grupo de Canto Coral.
Conductor: Néstor Andrenacci
Label: GCC Voces/ Ediciones GCC.

4. William Grant Still (1895-1978) — Afro-American Symphony (1930)

Still is an important figure in early 20th-century American classical music, as he was the first African-American composer to have a work performed by a professional orchestra in the U.S

His Afro-American Symphony has a sound world that infuses dance rhythms and scrumptious harmonies with spirituals and is as quintessentially 'American' as the music of Aaron Copland or Geroge Gershwin.

Recording: Detroit Symphony Orchestra
Still: Symphony No. 1; Ellington: Suite from "The River"
Conductor: Neeme Jarvi
Label: Chandos

5. Ayanna Witter-Johnson (b. 1980s) —Misty

British cellist and singer-songwriter Ayanna Witter-Johnson provides a freshly intimate rendition of the Jazz standard Misty written in 1954 by piano virtuoso Erroll Garner. Her haunting vocal rendition is rich, colourful and intimate. This arrangement also highlights Witter-Johnson's innovation for instrumentation. Her cello takes on the role of acoustic guitar, providing gentle percussion by tapping the body of her instrument.

Track: Misty
Album: EP Ella, Reuben & Ay
Label: Hill and Gully Records