Naresh Sohal (18 September 1939–30 April 2018) was one of the most distinctive musical voices of his generation. Born in pre-Partition India in 1939, he lived most of his life in the UK. He was a versatile and prolific composer who, over the course of a lifetime, produced over eighty works, ranging from immense orchestral works to innovative chamber pieces while also encompassing the genres of music theatre, TV documentary, feature films and ballet.

His music was performed by artists and orchestras of international standing, including the BBC Symphony, the New York Philharmonic, the Israel Philharmonic and the Berlin Staatskapelle orchestras. He received at least seven commissions from the BBC, two of which were for major Proms pieces. In 1987, the Indian government awarded him a Padma Shree (Order of the Lotus) for his services to Western music.

In Asht Prahar (composed in 1965) we hear a young man boldly expressing his unique cultural perceptions through the language of the Western avantgarde. In The Wanderer (composed 1981) the composer, in his growing maturity, shows us his ability to marshal vast forces to create sweeping soundscapes in his exploration of the ultimate question: ‘What is the nature of this universe and our place in it?’ The soloist in Asht Prahar, Jane Manning, is her inimitable and excellent self as the soloist, while David Wilson-Johnson brings gravitas and great plangency to the role of the narrator in ‘The Wanderer’. As a display of twentieth-century British musical talent, these truly are landmark recordings that demonstrate, apart from anything else, the significant role played by (Sir) Andrew Davis in his advocacy of twentieth-century British music.

Asht Prahar received two live performances. The Wanderer has not been performed since its premiere. While it is regrettable that these two impressive works have been neglected, it makes this CD all the more collectable.