Southampton musicologist’s work on underrepresented composer culminates in album launch

Southampton musicologist’s work on underrepresented composer culminates in album launch

Dr Samantha Ege , Department of Music, has recently brought a project examining the work of an underrepresented Black composer to fruition by celebrating the launch of the first album devoted entirely to the music of Avril Coleridge-Taylor.

Avril Coleridge-Taylor (8 March 1903 to 21 December 1998) was the British-born daughter of Sierra Leonean-English composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor who, despite being one of the most famous composers of his time, died in poverty.

In an article published earlier this year , and more recently in this piece penned for The Guardian , Samantha described the initial challenges she faced in securing funding for the project: the irony of which was not lost on Samantha, whose interest lies in bringing focus to underrepresented voices in classical music.

Despite these setbacks, Samantha remained firm in her belief in the project and, with support from the Faculty of Arts and Humanities, she travelled to BBC studios in MediaCityUK in early 2025 to record the world premiere of Avril's 1936 Piano Concerto with conductor John Andrews and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra.

The music celebrates Avril's diverse Britishness, from the influence of Edward Elgar to her own father, while also confronting the more complex stories of identity, imperialism and post colonialism in the performance history of Avril’s work. This included a period of success and fame during the 1940s, to an ugly episode in apartheid South Africa where an offer to perform was rescinded once her African heritage was revealed.

The album, entitled Avril Coleridge-Taylor: Piano Concerto and Orchestra Works (Resonus), was officially launched in late November at an event in St Pancras Clock Tower and features Samantha on piano alongside the BBC Philharmonic conducted by John Andrews.

The launch event featured the descendants of Coleridge-Taylor as well as several prominent guests, such as author Kadiatu Kanneh Mason, composer Shirley Thompson OBE, and other esteemed industry names.

Samantha made several media appearances in the lead up to the launch, including on the Gramophone Magazine podcast , and a live performance on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune (interview with Samantha and performance starts at 17 minutes in).

Reflecting on her work, the project, and the launch event, Samantha said: "This project would have been a dream come true for Avril Coleridge-Taylor because she often sent her work to the BBC but received many rejections and was branded 'difficult' because she was so persistent.

“So, in joining forces with the BBC Philharmonic, we have created a new chapter in her posthumous story. Her compositions give us a window into what wartime and mid-century Britain looked and sounded like through the lens of a woman of colour – who is both at the heart of British music, but in some ways on the periphery due to her race and gender. There is something very contemporary about her story that speaks to our current climate. And it was wonderful to mark this moment with a celebration of all that she was and all that she achieved despite innumerable barriers."