The Great Learning

The Great Learning is a large-scale composition in seven paragraphs, based on Ezra Pound's translation of Chinese texts by Confucius. The music was written between 1968 and 1970 and is dedicated to the Scratch Orchestra, of which Cardew was one of the original founders.

The first chapter of the Confucian classic is used as a basis for a wide variety of musical and visual interpretations, and the complete work calls for a large number of trained and untrained musicians, singing, speaking, drumming, playing stones and whistles, performing actions and gestures, improvising, using conventional and unconventional instruments and other sound resources.

This performance will be led by John Lely, Michael Parsons, Dave Smith and John Tilbury, with Robert Coleridge on Organ.

If you would like to take part in the performances, all singers and drummers are invited to come to the first rehearsal in the Chapel on June 20th.

During this first rehearsal, the structure of the work will be explained and the requirements for each paragraph. Further rehearsals will be held on the 17th and 24th June, and on the 1st, 6th and 8th July: you will be supplied with a full list of rehearsal times for each paragraph on June 10th.

You may not be required for all rehearsals, but you must commit to the final runthroughs on the afternoons of the performance days and you'll be expected to attend as many rehearsals as possible.

The performance will take place over two consecutive evenings in the Chapel:
Saturday 11 July: Paragraphs 1 – 4
Sunday 12 July: Paragraphs 5 – 7