By Alan McGuire
In the history of British classical music, few figures embody a commitment to working-class culture like Alan Bush. Composer, teacher, Marxist, and advocate for music’s social mission, Bush’s political opinions often cost him prominence – from being blacklisted by the BBC to being neglected by major concert halls. However, his legacy endures thanks to organisations like the Workers’ Music Association (WMA), which he helped to found in the 1930s.
125 years after his birth, the WMA is hosting a series of events to celebrate Bush’s life, music, and socialist politics. Thanks to support from Arts Council England and the Alan Bush Music Trust, the WMA has organised four major events across the UK, reclaiming Bush not only as a modernist, but as a prominent cultural figure of the labour movement – as someone who believed that music belongs in the concert hall, but just as much on the picket line, in the community centre, and at the heart of community life.
“As so few in the ‘mainstream’ classical institutions are celebrating the music of such an important teacher and composer, it is our responsibility as the Workers’ Music Association to make sure he is celebrated,” claims Ben Lunn, composer and secretary of the WMA. “Many composers, musicians, and other artists are looking for ways to use their art to be more politically conscious but are unaware of the incredible work done by Alan Bush. It is our hope these events will shine a light on the incredible work he did in his lifetime.”
Radical Chamber Music: WMA Summer School
The celebrations begin in August at the WMA’s annual Summer School at Ingestre Hall, Staffordshire, where the Fidelio Trio will perform works by Bush alongside music by similarly radical composers: Aaron Copland, Elizabeth Maconchy, Michael Nyman, Sofia Gubaidulina, and a new piano trio by WMA President David Martin.
“Fidelio Trio are really looking forward to bringing some radical music to the WMA Summer School,” says violinist Darragh Morgan. “Performing rarely heard chamber music for strings and piano by Alan Bush and other like-minded composers is always a thrill. It’s essential to maintain the performance lives and presence of these unique compositional voices.”
Theory and Struggle: Marx Memorial Library
In September, Lunn will lead a day of lectures and discussions at the Marx Memorial Library & Workers’ School, where Bush’s music and politics will be placed in the wider context of 20th-century revolutionary culture. The event Alan Bush: An Introduction to a Radical Composer will highlight the composer’s commitment to Marxist aesthetics, musical education, and the use of form as a political tool.
“This anniversary is a wonderful opportunity to celebrate Alan Bush’s work,” says Meirian Jump, Director of the MML. “The Library — the leading research and education centre on Marxism and socialist history — is the ideal venue. We can’t wait to develop a fitting display from our archives to accompany Ben’s exploration of Bush’s legacy.”
Sound and Resistance: Rolf Hind Recital
In October, pianist Rolf Hind will perform a selection of Bush’s 24 Preludes at the Anthony Burgess Centre in Manchester. Hind’s approach promises a recital that provokes as well as entertains.
The concert highlights how Bush’s radicalism was not only thematic but formal: his music challenged the assumptions of bourgeois taste just as his politics challenged the structures of capital.
Choral Solidarity: Birmingham Clarion Singers
The programme concludes in November in Birmingham, where the Clarion Singers — founded with Bush’s support in 1940 — will dedicate their Winter Concert to him at All Saints Church, Kings Heath.
“Alan was a strong, loyal friend and mentor to Birmingham Clarion Singers from our formation in 1940, succeeding Paul Robeson as our president in 1976,” says choir conductor Jane Scott. “We have celebrated his life and work on many occasions and are delighted to be organising this concert in his honour on November 29th.”
The concert includes a rare performance of Bush’s cantata The Winter Journey, featuring Grace Maria Wain, winner of the 2023 Carole Rees Prize.
Reclaiming Bush for the Left
In a Britain where classical music is increasingly detached from its radical roots, where public funding is minimal and working-class voices often have nowhere to go, Bush stands as a reminder of what politically engaged art can be: exciting, inventive, and unapologetically political.
The WMA’s program is not just a celebration of the past; it’s a challenge to the present, and an invitation to the future.
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Event Listings
🟥 WMA Summer School
📍 15–21 August 2025, Ingestre Hall, Stafford
🎻 Fidelio Trio recital for summer school attendees
🟥 Alan Bush: An Introduction to a Radical Composer
📍 20 September 2025, Marx Memorial Library, London
📚 Talks and archive exhibition with Ben Lunn and MML staff
🟥 Rolf Hind Performs Alan Bush
📍 4 October 2025, Anthony Burgess Centre, Manchester
🎹 Performance of Bush’s Preludes and works by other radical composers
🟥 Birmingham Clarion Singers Celebrate Alan Bush
📍 29 November 2025, All Saints Church, Kings Heath, Birmingham
🎶 Featuring Grace Maria Wain and Tayo Aluko, with Bush’s The Winter Journey
