Cheltenham Music Festival 2018

Cheltenham Music Festival 2018

4th to 15th July
 
2018

Cheltenham enjoys a central place in the musical heartlands of England's south-west: many of the big names in British classical music have close local connections. The Gustav Holst Birthplace Museum is in Cheltenham, and Elgar's Birthplace Museum is a 40 minute drive north at Broadheath (his beloved Malverns are even closer). The family home of Hubert Parry, composer of Jerusalem, is at Highnam, near Gloucester, Poet/composer Ivor Gurney was from Gloucester, his great friend Herbert Howells was from Lydney in the Forest of Dean, and Ralph Vaughan Williams was born 20 miles south of Cheltenham in Down Ampney.

Festival Director Meurig Bowen said: “We want to celebrate the sheer range of music a festival like this can offer: a showcase for big names and emerging talent alike, a hothouse for new music as much as a banquet of beloved, familiar repertoire. Weekenders can submerge themselves with musical excellence from 11 in the morning to evening Prom concerts as well as late-night after-concert chats at the Festival bar.  There’s entertainment for all the family with puppetry concerts, toddler concerts and award-winning children’s books brought to life with music.”

Four concerts in next summer’s Music Festival Cheltenham Town Hall Proms will go on sale from December 2017. They are:

Sir Mark Elder conducts The Hallé on Wednesday 4 July – also featuring Louise Alder, finalist in this year’s BBC Cardiff Singer of the World

One of the violin greats of all time – Maxim Vengerov on Thursday 5 July

Martyn Brabbins conducts the BBC National Orchestra of Wales and 2016 BBC Young Musician of the Year winner Sheku Kanneh-Mason in Elgar’s Cello Concerto on Friday 6 July.

Pianist and conductor Sir András Schiff performs with the Choir and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment on Sunday 8 July
And on Saturday 30 June & Sunday 1 July, world-famous mezzo soprano Dame Sarah Connolly joins harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani for a weekend of music at Syde Manor, in homage to J S Bach’s favourite Leipzig coffee house in the 1720s, the Café Zimmermann.

Tickets for the Music Festival Proms go on sale to Cheltenham Festivals Members at 1pm on 6 December and to the general public at 1pm on 8 December.

A special pop-up box office will operate in Chapel Arts between Wednesday 6 and Friday 8 December from 10am to 4pm. Here, Music Festival fans can try out the new improved temporary tiered seating which the Festival will bring into the Town Hall next July.

Visit cheltenhamfestivals.com/music for full information.