All at ETO were saddened to hear of the death of Alexander Goehr on 25 August. Sandy was an accomplished composer, an inspiring teacher, a generous colleague, and a brilliant, witty, loyal friend.
Sandy Goehr chose ETO to give the premiere of his final opera, Promised End, setting text from King Lear chosen by the composer and his friend, the eminent critic Frank Kermode. The production and tour of this chamber opera, conducted by Ryan Wigglesworth, directed by James Conway and designed by Adam Wiltshire, was one of ETO’s proudest achievements. Goehr had an unerring sense of duration and of dramatic possibility, like the finest opera composers; each scene was exactly the right length, and led seamlessly to the next. He also made room in the score for the much-respected interpreters, which in this production enabled nuanced performances. It was, he explained, an unsentimental opera about old age, wherein lyricism is to be discovered. There are rumours that the BBC recording may be released as a CD.

Goehr composed until very recently, when he found that he could no longer hear. During lockdown he followed ETO’s on-line productions avidly, and he was convinced that the dramatisations of work by Machaut, Josquin, Bach and Shostakovich had created a new genre. He had no interest in fashionability, and an inclination to rigour as well as occasional playfulness. A man of profound culture and deep learning, he was also a charmer and a vivid raconteur. His association with ETO elevated the company, and he will be much missed.