Celebrated in an episode of BBC Radio 3’s Music Matters, and championed by The Guardian who, upon reviewing the showcase recital in 2023 commented that “the buzz was electric…world-class”, this marrying of composer, poet, singer, pianist, audience and subject matter is unique.

The third addition of the Composers and Poets Forum takes place during the Leeds Song Festival in April 2025. Following an initial meet-up day where 10 student composers present a snapshot of their work, and the 10 local poets do the same, we paired up one composer with one poet to write a brand-new song about a living person in Leeds, under the title “A Leeds Songbook”.