MAKING HISTORY IN THE SISTINE CHAPEL
Britten Sinfonia and The Sixteen, conducted by Harry Christophers, gave the first ever premiere of a concert work at the Vatican's iconic chapel.
On Sunday 22 March 2026, Harry Christophers, The Sixteen and Britten Sinfonia made history by giving the first ever world premiere of a concert work in the Sistine Chapel, performing James MacMillan's Angels Unawares, with a text by Robert Willis.
The concert was presented by the Genesis Foundation with the permission of the Vatican. The concert was recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3 on Sunday 29 March at 7.30pm and was filmed by Ad Lib Productions.
Concerts are rare in the Sistine Chapel, but The Sixteen and Britten Sinfonia returned there for a historic second time — their first visit was in 2018 to perform James MacMillan’s Stabat mater, a Genesis Foundation commission now regarded as a modern masterpiece. That performance was the first concert ever live streamed from the Sistine Chapel, reaching millions worldwide.
Angels Unawares, a profoundly moving oratorio filled with angelic encounters and expressions of fear and hope, sets poetry by the late Robert Willis, former Dean of Canterbury Cathedral, who died in 2024. Dedicated to his memory, Angels Unawares is an appeal to treat strangers with dignity and compassion, to embrace kindness as a spiritual discipline. James MacMillan’s faith is fundamental to his art, and in theological terms Angels Unawares evokes and explores the numinous as manifest in encounters with angelic presences in the Old and New Testaments. Its scope is visionary, with both words and music standing to resonate with a wide audience as a vigorous, contemporary expression of faith.
The private concert on 22 March was attended by Vatican clergy and distinguished guests by invitation of the Genesis Foundation and its Founder & Chairman, John Studzinski, KSG, CBE. Following this historical world premiere, Angels Unawares will have its first UK performance on 2 June at Cadogan Hall in London.Â
This programme is one of a triptych of Britten Sinfonia projects focused on MacMillan's music in the approach to Good Friday. Â
