The shock of the old

New Yorker music critic Alex Ross published The Rest Is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century five years ago, earning himself the Guardian First Book Award and a finalist citation for the Pulitzer Prize. Now London’s Southbank Centre is turning the book into a year of concerts, talks, film screenings, exhibitions and even a three-part BBC4 documentary series in celebration of 20th-century classical music.

The festival marks the centenary of Stravinsky’s Rite of Spring, though Ross plays down the significance of the work’s riotous première in his book: it seems Paris audiences would faire la révolte for just about anything in those days. Less volatile Londoners can look forward to three Rites during the festival, including a jazz interpretation and an official anniversary performance in May by the Philharmonia Orchestra under Esa-Pekka Salonen. Stravinsky’s chamber works will be showcased in a concert on 10 February directed by the Canadian soprano Barbara Hannigan (above), which promises to be an early highlight.