A heady mash up of jazz, poetry and live soundscapes exploring the themes of the cosmos, human advancement and Darwinism, originally commissioned by Southbank Centre for their July 2010 Festival of Science and Arts: See Further celebrating 350 years of the Royal Society.

The poetry is written and performed by Southbank Centre Artist in Residence, Lemn Sissay MBE, accompanied by music composed by Peter Edwards and performed by members of Nu Civilisation Orchestra. It’s where an eclectic mix of acoustic jazz soundscapes link, complement and explore each poem, plus the acclaimed What If and live soundscapes mixed by renowned dub artist and producer, Dennis Bovell.

Following the success of ‘What If’, a powerful poem by Lemn about Darwin performed with Gary Crosby and pianist Peter Edwards broadcast on Channel 4, and exhibited at the Royal Academy, the Natural History Museum and all over the world, Lemn Sissay was given full access to the Royal Society archive. Delving deeply into the collection, Lemn emerged with six additional poems about the dynamic relationship between arts and science.