Folk Music from the well known local Fiddle and Melodeon duo.

The Fringe is a chance for local performers and especially young musicians to take part in the Festival and to raise funds for a local charitable cause. This year's charity is Family Care. Family Care are a small Nottingham-based charity who are passionate about positively shaping children’s futures. They are an independent adoption agency and also offer support regarding domestic abuse and safeguarding. www.familycare-nottingham.org.uk

No advance booking or tickets
Where necessary, entry will be subject to availability.

Johann Sebastian Bach:
Prelude and Fugue in D major BWV 532
Trio super ‘Allein Gott in der Höh sei Ehr’ BWV 662
Concerto in A minor after Vivaldi BWV 593
Schmücke dich, o liebe Seele BWV 654
Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor BWV 582

Johann Sebastian Bach! A towering genius of western music who continues to inspire composers and performers in many genres. He in turn was inspired by his forebears: as a young man he made a 300-mile round trip on foot across north Germany to hear and study the music of the leading composer of his time, Dietrich Buxtehude. The fruits of this famous pilgrimage can be found in the large body of Bach’s organ works which, in their scale, range and profundity, provide an inexhaustible treasure trove of technical fascination and musical delight. This first Festival recital on the Minster’s fine Quire organ will be given by Rector Chori (Director of Music) Paul Provost. The organ was designed by his predecessor Paul Hale.

Tickets £5, 18 years and under £2.50

Book online at TRCH site

Supported by a private sponsor

The Mass in B minor is the summation of its composer’s work, the ultimate expression of his faith, and one of the supreme creations of western classical music. This monumental setting of the Ordinary of the Catholic Mass reached its final form towards the end of Bach’s life: in it he reworks earlier compositions and draws on many musical styles, old and new.

The Mass is also remarkable in being a Catholic Mass written by a Lutheran composer: in a work of infinite variety Bach combines the glory of the former with the austerity of the latter to create a work of profound spiritual and emotional impact. In this chamber performance on period instruments the solo and chorus parts will be sung by nine members of the Festival Voices and Artistic Director Marcus Farnsworth.

Tickets £30 £20 £10, 18 years and under £15 £10 £5

Book online at TRCH site

Supported by a private sponsor

The Festival continues its fruitful association with the biennial Nottingham Young Musician of the Year competition and with the remarkable Kanneh-Mason family – hosting a recital by the most recent competition winner and the third member of the family to appear at the Festival. 17-year-old Konya attends Trinity Catholic School in Nottingham and The Royal Academy of Music Junior Academy in London where she studies piano and violin. Konya achieved Grade 8 Distinction on the piano at 11, and Grade 8 Distinction on violin at 12.

Tickets £12, 18 years and under £5Book online at TRCH site

Jointly sponsored by Barbara Barker and Dan & Gill Bardsley

Tickets £25, 18 years and under £12Book online at TRCH site

A plated meal, included in the ticket price, is served at your seat at the interval and the bar is open throughout.

Book early to avoid disappointment.

Sponsored by Doug & Vicki Black

Tickets £25, 18 years and under £10Book online at TRCH site

Supported by a private sponsor

Last year the Festival began a project to support the development of emerging singers and players, and this concert will be a showcase for the youngest members of the 2018 ensemble. The young string players will be some of the most talented undergraduates from leading UK conservatoires while the singers will be graduates of The Sixteen’s Genesis programme: this opportunity to sing alongside some of the UK’s most experienced consort singers is the result of an initiative with our Patron Harry Christophers. Mendelssohn’s sublime Octet was the first work to be played at the inaugural Festival. This performance to mark the Festival’s fifth anniversary will be given by four string apprentices and four professional players.

Programme to include:
Felix Mendelssohn Octet in E flat, Op. 20

Admission free with retiring collection
No advance booking

Composer and conductor Martin Bussey will examine this seminal piece of 20th century chamber music..

Admission free No advance booking
Entry subject to availability

Singer/songwriters (and familiar Festival faces) Hannah Turner and Guy Turner perform their own songs

Admission free No advance booking
Entry subject to availability

In the appeasement crisis of the late 1930s Neville Chamberlain infamously described Czechoslovakia as ‘a far away country of which we know nothing’. Happily the wonders of Czech culture are better known to us now, and this concert celebrates it in music by two of the country’s greatest composers. Dvořák’s easy-going lyricism is in marked contrast to the spirit of the dramatic song cycle The Diary of One who Disappeared – a musical setting of anonymous poems published in a local paper about a farmer who falls for and runs off with a gypsy girl. Janáček’s passionate music expresses his feelings for his muse Kamila Stösslová – a much younger woman and another man’s wife: in quasi-operatic fashion the cycle captures all the drama of the text.

Tickets £25 18 years and under £10

Book online at TRCH site

Informality, intimacy, wit and good humour are the hallmarks of our concerts in this 18th century theatre. One audience member has said: “We really valued the introduction to each piece and enjoyed being able to witness the interaction between players”. The programme showcases our virtuoso players and singers, including a chance to get ‘up close and personal’ with the Principal Flute of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Principal Trombone of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Close harmony after the interval comes courtesy of one of the UK’s leading arrangers, and Festival regular, Jim Clements.
Tickets £25 18 years and under £12

Book online at TRCH site

A plated meal, included in the ticket price, is served at your seat at the interval and the bar is open throughout.

Book early to avoid disappointment.

Sponsored by Jenny Farr

The Family Concert, suitable for all children of primary school age, is based on Vivaldi’s popular Four Seasons violin concertos. Members of the Southwell Festival Sinfonia will take you on a journey through some of the most famous and best-loved music of all time. Come early to meet the musicians before the concert starts and take part in a banner-making workshop to create the backdrop for the orchestra. The concert is devised and presented by Ruth Rosales, who runs family concerts with leading orchestras and venues across the UK.

Tickets Free for people aged 12 and under. Everyone else £8
All tickets may be booked in advance. Seats booked on free tickets and not claimed by 10.30 on the day of the performance may be released. Unaccompanied adults are welcome to attend this concert

 Sponsored by Hockerwood Park

A fun and relaxed event for all the family. Bring cushions.

A unique opportunity for local young musicians to be tutored by visiting professionals of national and international standing. As well as benefiting the performers, the Masterclass provides a fascinating insight into the process of classical music making. If you are a young musician aged 19 or under, are at least Grade 8 standard and would be interested in taking part, please contact info@southwellmusicfestival.com by 28th May with details of your instrument/voice type. Places are limited.

Admission free
No advance booking or tickets

Supported by a private sponsor

 
Acclaimed by The Telegraph as a pianist of “amazing power and panache”, Clare Hammond is recognised for the virtuosity and authority of her performances and has developed a “reputation for brilliantly imaginative concert programmes” (BBC Music Magazine, ‘Rising Star’). In 2016, she won the Royal Philharmonic Society’s Young Artist Award in recognition of her outstanding achievements. Clare was brought up in Nottingham and played the oboe in the Nottingham Youth Orchestra where she met the trumpeter Marcus Farnsworth. In 2015 Clare made her film debut as the younger version of Maggie Smith’s character Miss Shepherd in the Alan Bennett film adaptation The Lady in the Van

Tickets £20 £10 £5; 18 years and under £5

Book online at TRCH site

Summer Serenade with the Palace Chamber Choir Madrigals, folksongs and close harmony performed by distinguished local choral singers

The Fringe is a chance for local performers and especially young musicians to take part in the Festival and to raise funds for a local charitable cause. This year's charity is Family Care. Family Care are a small Nottingham-based charity who are passionate about positively shaping children’s futures. They are an independent adoption agency and also offer support regarding domestic abuse and safeguarding. www.familycare-nottingham.org.uk

Admission free No advance booking
Entry subject to availability

Following his sell-out solo recital last year, the Festival is proud to present the brilliant Sheku Kanneh-Mason playing the most famous concerto in the cello repertoire.

Michael Tippett, a confirmed pacifist who was to become one of Britain’s leading composers of the 20th century, began writing A Child of Our Time on 3 September 1939 – the day Britain declared war on Germany. It was a response to fascism and European disunity – an attack on racial prejudice, bigotry and xenophobia whose message is as relevant today as it was nearly 80 years ago. In a work of originality and great beauty, for which the composer wrote both words and music, Tippett uses five spirituals to underline his message: these 19th-century American slave songs transcend time and place to express the two extremes of the human condition – desolation and hope, and remind us of our common humanity.

Direct from London’s world-famous jazz club and combining world-class live jazz, narration and rare archive images and footage, The Ronnie Scott’s All Stars take to the stage to celebrate ‘The Ronnie Scott’s Soho Songbook’. Since its humble beginnings as a basement music bar where musicians would jam, through to the  internationally acclaimed music venue it is today, Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club has showcased the music of some of the world’s greatest and most influential Artists. Hosting landmark performances from the likes of Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Miles Davis, Dave Brubeck and Michael Bublé – and not forgetting surprise appearances by the likes of Jamie Cullum and Stevie Wonder! Featuring classic music from the jazz greats who have performed at Ronnie Scott’s, alongside narration and projected archive images and rare footage from the club, ‘The Ronnie Scott’s Songbook’ is a glimpse into this unique world and its incredible musical history. Hosted and performed by the award-winning Ronnie Scott’s All Stars, led by the club’s Musical Director, this is a unique evening celebrating the music and history of Ronnie Scott’s and is a must for any music fan.

Tickets £20 (£19)

Missa Salve Regina by Jean Langlais is the setting for Festival Eucharist: the joyful music of this 20th-century French organist and composer expresses his profound religious belief while respecting and reinventing his musical heritage. An appropriate choice for a Festival celebrating J.S. Bach.

Informality, intimacy, wit and good humour are the hallmarks of our concerts in this 18th century theatre. One audience member has said: “We really valued the introduction to each piece and enjoyed being able to witness the interaction between players”. The programme showcases our virtuoso players and singers, including a chance to get ‘up close and personal’ with the Principal Flute of the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra and the Principal Trombone of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Close harmony after the interval comes courtesy of one of the UK’s leading arrangers, and Festival regular, Jim Clements. 

Tickets £25  18 years and under £12

Book online at TRCH site

A plated meal, included in the ticket price, is served at your seat at the interval and the bar is open throughout.

Book early to avoid disappointment.

Supported by a private sponsor

“Offer the Ram of Pride instead of him.
But the old man would not so, but slew his son,
And half the seed of Europe, one by one.”

The pity, brutality and senselessness of war is summed up in Wilfred Owen’s reworking of the bible story of Abraham and Isaac and provides the theme for the first half of this concert. To mark another centenary the second half comprises a narrated performance of Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale: this prototype of 20th-century music-theatre was first performed in 1918. Accompanied by a septet of instruments, it is based on Russian folk tale The Runaway Soldier and the Devil – the parable of a soldier who sells his fiddle to the devil in return for unlimited financial gain.

Tickets £25 £17 £10;  18 years and under £12.50 £8.50 £5

Book online at TRCH site

“Offer the Ram of Pride instead of him.
But the old man would not so, but slew his son,
And half the seed of Europe, one by one.”

The pity, brutality and senselessness of war is summed up in Wilfred Owen’s reworking of the bible story of Abraham and Isaac and provides the theme for the first half of this concert. To mark another centenary the second half comprises a narrated performance of Stravinsky’s The Soldier’s Tale: this prototype of 20th-century music-theatre was first performed in 1918. Accompanied by a septet of instruments, it is based on Russian folk tale The Runaway Soldier and the Devil – the parable of a soldier who sells his fiddle to the devil in return for unlimited financial gain.

Tickets £25 £17 £10;  18 years and under £12.50 £8.50 £5

Book online at TRCH site

The theme of spirituals at the 2018 Festival – from Tippett’s A Child of our Time to our late night jazz
programme – is extended to the Come and Sing with a focus on John Rutter’s Feel the Spirit. This cycle of seven familiar spirituals comprises ‘Joshua fit the battle of Jericho’, ‘Steal away’, ‘I got a robe’, ‘Sometimes I feel like a motherless child’, ‘Ev’ry time I feel the spirit’, ‘Deep river’, and ‘When the saints go marching in’, all arranged in John Rutter’s approachable and effective style. Come and Sing is the chance for amateur singers to be part of the Festival and to perform in Southwell Minster under the direction of Artistic Director Marcus Farnsworth. The music will be rehearsed in the morning and then given an informal afternoon performance.

Participant fee £15
18 years and under £5

Book online at TRCH site

Rehearsal 10.00am-1pm
Informal performance 2.00pm

Copies available at no extra cost
Pre-booking essential: no performer tickets available on the door
Informal performance: free attendance with retiring collection. No advance booking or tickets.

The Fringe is a chance for local performers and especially young musicians to take part in the Festival and to raise funds for a local charitable cause. This year's charity is Family Care. Family Care are a small Nottingham-based charity who are passionate about positively shaping children’s futures. They are an independent adoption agency and also offer support regarding domestic abuse and safeguarding. www.familycare-nottingham.org.uk

Talented local young string players perform chamber music under the direction of Derek Williams

Admission free No advance booking
Entry subject to availability

.A Centenary Tribute to Hubert Parry

Composer, teacher and music historian Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, 1st Baronet, died in 1918. Today his music, which epitomised late Victorian and Edwardian England, is best known from his setting of Blake’s poem ‘Jerusalem’, the coronation anthem I was glad, the choral and orchestral ode Blest Pair of Sirens, and the tune Repton for the hymn ‘Dear Lord and Father of Mankind’. This recital to mark his centenary comprises music, in addition to Parry’s own, by colleagues, friends and pupils, much of which appeared in A Little Organ Book in Memory of Hubert Parry.

Admission free with retiring collection
No advance booking or tickets

Part of the Southwell Minster Organ Recitals series

Participant fee £15
18 years and under £5

Book online at TRCH site

Rehearsal 10.00am-1pm
Informal performance 2.00pm

Copies available at no extra cost
Pre-booking essential: no performer tickets available on the door
Informal performance: free attendance with retiring collection. No advance booking or tickets.