A NEW choral work celebrating the life of Alan Turing who cracked the German Enigma codes during World War Two has been given a mention in the House of Lords.

The Hertfordshire Chorus got the unexpected promotion for the world premiere of the work commissioned from James McCarthy during a debate on a Bill to pardon Turing, whose pioneering computer work put Bletchley Park on the map.

Lord Sharkey, the proposer of the Bill, was talking about how Turing and his work were being recognised in many different ways, and said that next year at the Barbican, The Hertfordshire Chorus would be performing the world premiere of a new choral work celebrating his life.

The concert will take place on Saturday, April 26, and Nigel McNaught of the Chorus said: “We are pleased to see that our innovative approach to commissioning new works has been recognised in the Lords.

“Alan Turing’s life is the subject of considerable interest at the moment and we believe this commission will be a major musical event. Turing is considered to be one of the most influential scientists of the 20th Century, not just for his work at Bletchley Park but in many other fields, including computing and artificial intelligence.

“He was also homosexual and in 1954, following conviction for an offence and subsequent hormone treatment as an alternative to prison, he committed suicide at the age of 41. His brilliant mind was, therefore, lost to the world at an early age.”

The choir is looking for sponsors for the Codebreaker commission and world premiere. Companies interested in being involved should contact the chorus at www.hertfordshirechorus.org.uk