Richard Causton's 'Twenty-Seven Heavens'

Richard Causton's 'Twenty-Seven Heavens' is a concerto for orchestra scored for around 120 players and conducted by Gianandrea Noseda. The title comes from Blake's 'Jerusalem', in which the poet parallels aspects of his mythological world with various districts of London, including areas such as Hackney, Bow and Stratford – now part of the Olympics site, close to the composer's home. The twenty-seven heavens are layers of obscurity that the individual must penetrate to see the vision of Eternity -– an idea which has resonance for both the artist and the athlete.