Never Such Innocence

One hundred years after the devastating events of the First World War, and with Europe again facing a time of uncertainty, Christopher Kent and Gamal Khamis look back at the writing and music that emerged from the period, juxtaposing the words of writers such as Wilfred Owen, Edward Thomas, Siegfried Sassoon and Vera Brittain with piano music by composers including Elgar, Ravel, Debussy, Schoenberg, and Ivor Gurney. In a moving and thought-provoking sequence, they also trace the individual story of nineteen-year-old conscript Private Percy O’Key through his real-life letters and diaries. It is a compelling journey from innocence to loss, told with unflinching clarity and compassion.