Nobody thought that King Charles would sit back and let someone else choose all the music for his big day. The list of 12 composers he has commissioned to write new pieces – chosen himself, we are told – does indeed bear a personal stamp. Nor will anyone be surprised that he has played things safe, leaning on composers who have written for royal occasions before, and with the central new anthem assigned to Andrew Lloyd Webber.
What those choices do suggest is that he understands the importance of representation. For one thing, nearly half the composers who have written new music for Saturday’s service are women – contrast this with his mother’s coronation in 1953, when all the commissions went to men. That’s quite a sea change in itself, one that you could argue was put in motion by the royal appointment nearly a decade ago of Judith Weir, now the Master of the King’s Music. Weir’s short overture Brighter Visions Shine Afar aims, she says, to set a tone of optimism and renewal – which is about as much as she or anyone else involved has been allowed to reveal in advance. We also know that this will be the first of presumably many moments spotlighting the horns of the Coronation Orchestra – expect the brass section to be working hard for the conductor Antonio Pappano.
