It was composed shortly after the blitz on Coventry on 14th – 15th November 1940. Mr Tausky was one of the Free Czech soldiers sent in from their base at Leamington with Field Ambulances to help clear up after the raid. "… we were sent to Coventry but there was no Coventry. Everywhere you looked there was only the tower of the old cathedral standing out against the night sky. With bodies lying around and the burning it was only the tower which seemed to offer a symbol of hope…"
Vilém Tauský (1910-2004) was born in Přerov to a Jewish family. In 1938 he left for France and later, during the war, for Great Britain which became his new homeland. He was a renowned conductor, composer and promoter of Czech music abroad.
The performance of "Coventry" was accompanied by the presentation of a book on Vilém Tauský, which was published, by the Dvořák Society for Czech and Slovak Music, Great Britain.