“A London hospital has celebrated the National Health Service’s 73rd birthday with a special performance of a new piece of classical music composed by a six-year-old boy in tribute to health workers and scientists,” writes Lucy Campbell in Monday’s (7/5) Guardian (U.K.). “Apollo Premadasa first emailed St. Bart’s hospital in the City of London last year during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic to tell them he had written the piece, Pandemia, as a ‘thank you’ to health workers everywhere. The piece, written for a string quartet in C minor, has three movements—‘Survival,’ ‘Hope’ and ‘Fight.’ … As Monday marked the first opportunity for a public performance of the piece and its world premiere, the six-year-old, who studies multiple instruments including cello and trombone at Junior Guildhall, said finally hearing it played by musicians in real-life was ‘amazing.’ His piece was played by four Barts Health medical staff from Newham hospital and the Royal London hospital, with the concert taking place in the Great Hall of St. Bartholomew’s hospital.…. On Monday, the Queen awarded the prestigious George Cross to the health service … in recognition of ‘acts of the greatest heroism or of the most courage in circumstances of extreme danger.’ ”
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