Judith Howarth, one of the most sought-after sopranos in Europe, features in the achingly beautiful Four Last Songs of Richard Strauss. Written in the sunset of his years, these songs provide the final chapter of the composer’s life-long love affair with the soprano voice, and contrast perfectly with the swagger of his earlier, thinly-veiled autobiographical depiction of a hero’s life – replete with a vicious dismissal of music critics!

Sponsored by Celia and Andrew Curran