Anna Meredith: Nautilus - Single

With Anna Meredith’s rhythmically propulsive Nautilus, Finnish conductor Dalia Stasevska launches her 10-track voyage to discover what the future holds for the symphony orchestra. Performed by the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the tracks that will eventually make up Dalia’s Mixtape are being released as a series of singles throughout 2024. In September, the collection will be complete and released as an album showcasing all 10 thrilling contemporary and 20th-century orchestral works. “The orchestra is one of the greatest instruments ever created,” Stasevska tells Apple Music Classical, “but what does its future sound like, and how will it develop? We have an incredible history in classical music, but it’s also really important to discover new things, to listen to our surroundings and respond to them. And it’s important for me to challenge myself, as an artist. “Anna Meredith’s Nautilus is very, very energising,” says Stasevska. “It’s trance-like and hypnotises you completely. I heard the piece when Anna was performing with her band in Helsinki around four years ago. And I immediately thought that it would work fantastically for symphony orchestra. “You need a different kind of attitude to play it,” she adds. “You can’t just play the notes—you have to feel like a rock musician. It’s very industrial and very powerful.”