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The annual Elgar Festival is a live celebration of the life and music of Sir Edward Elgar (1857–1934). The programme features Elgar and other composers: Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Ethel Smyth, Ruth Gipps, Rebecca Clarke, Ian Venables, Vaughan Williams, Tippett and Holst. There are others. Venues for orchestral and other concerts are held in venues rich in … Read more
The 16th International Malcolm Arnold Festival – Online – 16-17 October 2021
One hundred years ago Sir Malcolm Arnold (1921-2006) was born in Northampton. For the 16th year Director Paul Harris presides over this landmark Festival which celebrates his music. As was the case with last year, the 16th Festival is a livestreamed and free-to-view event and can be found by clicking here.
The Hallé is back with stunning Autumn and Christmas seasons
The Hallé has just launched its Bridgewater Hall Autumn and Christmas 2021 seasons with an inspirational collection of masterpieces and stellar guest artists and composers. Alongside a packed Hallé Bridgewater Hall season is a brand-new series of lunchtime chamber concerts at the awardwinning Hallé St Peter’s in Ancoats.
Multi-award-winning Icelandic artist Víkingur Ólafsson (Iceland Symphony Orchestra’s Artist in Residence) performs piano concertos conducted by their composers, Thomas Adès, Daníel Bjarnason and John Adams
Anyone seeking good news about classical music should look to Iceland. The Nordic island nation’s commitment to music education continues to produce composers and performers with international reach and an enthusiastic audience for their work. The Iceland Symphony Orchestra is set to celebrate the artistry and creative enterprise of one of Iceland’s best-known musicians, Víkingur Ólafsson, at Harpa in their home city of Reykjavík. The critically acclaimed pianist’s run as Artist in Residence, part of the orchestra’s compelling 2021-22 season, reflects his vision of classical music as a vibrant, living artform.
Round-up of the George Enescu Festival 2021
In recent years a biennial event, the George Enescu Festival has been lucky with the coronavirus pandemic: the last festival was held in 2019, six months before the first lockdown. The 25th edition of the festival, held in September 2021, then came along as the vaccines have offered a light at the end of the tunnel, at least for the world’s richest countries. Even with some of these countries being among the most vaccine-hesitant (Romania has the second-lowest vaccination rate in the EU), the festival was able to go ahead with nearly full halls, thanks to a safety concept that mandated the EU digital COVID certificate for entry and the wearing of masks during performances. With these measures in place, the festival ran for four weeks – the longest duration in its history – and saw 78 concerts performed by 3,500 artists in Bucharest, including 32 orchestras from 14 countries.
Memories of the Cumbria Opera Festival 2021 The Cumbria Opera Group has existed since 2016, with the aim of bringing high-quality opera, classical music, and music education to the fantastic county of Cumbria. For a week in September this year they presented Cumbria’s first ever Opera Festival. It will return in 2023 (26 August to … Read more
Fulham Opera’s Die Ägyptische Helena – 19 – 30 October 2021 at St John’s Church, Fulham, London
The Bath Festival Orchestra presents a vibrant London debut, joined by Julian Bliss
From Imprisoned Suffragettes of the twentieth-century to Scottish composers of today’s world, the spirited players of the newly revived orchestra share virtuosic work from across the centuries.