Three Choirs Festival 2023 | Booking Brochure by Three Choirs Festival

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WELCOME

Welcome to the 295th Three Choirs Festival! This year we will be offering an exciting mixture of innovative and traditional festival concerts.

The principal focus of the week will be on the work of one of Gloucestershire’s most famous composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams. Some of the compositions are frequently performed, such as the Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (p22, p33), and some rarely heard, such as his operatic masterpiece The Pilgrim’s Progress (p14). We will be opening the festival with arguably Vaughan Williams’ finest oratorio, Sancta Civitas (p8). This vivid work, dating from 1925, is a setting of words from Revelation, and is part mystical and part wild, as the colourful text demands.

No Three Choirs Festival would be complete without a significant contribution from the pen of Edward Elgar. This year, two of his most significant masterpieces will be performed: his Violin Concerto (p8) –first played by Billy Reed at a private party during the Three Choirs Festival in 1910, with Elgar at the piano – and his greatest oratorio, in terms of scale and force of imagination, The Apostles (p36).

The soloist in the concerto is a great friend of the festival, the co-leader of the Philharmonia, Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay.

All details, programmes and artists published in this brochure are correct at the time of going to press but may be subject to alteration.

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The Three Choirs Festival has always been a forward-thinking festival, and this year it continues this proud tradition of first performances.

The opening concert (p8) will begin with one of three festival commissions, a choral-orchestral work by the Jamaican-born composer Eleanor Alberga, who now lives in Herefordshire. The Sunday evening concert will feature the first performance of a song cycle by Ronald Corp sung by Roderick Williams, accompanied by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. Also in this concert is a recent work by the Gloucestershireborn composer Gavin Higgins, The Faerie Bride (p11).

The backbone of every Three Choirs Festival is the Festival Chorus, an assembly of auditioned amateur singers from the three Cathedral cities. In order to be able to offer more singers a chance to experience the thrill of singing in the Three Choirs Festival, we have established the Festival Voices, a new chorus requiring no audition and a reduced time commitment. This year, they will be performing Graham Fitkin’s innovative cantata The Age of Aspiration and Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs (p33).

I do hope that you will join us for Gloucester 2023, for an exciting festival which looks both forwards and backwards!

Adrian Partington Artistic Director

ABOUT US

Three Choirs Festival

The Three Choirs Festival is a week of outstanding music-making and community participation, rotating each summer between the beautiful cathedral cities of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester. Events take place throughout the day: discover something new about the historic host city, then enjoy a family event with children and grandchildren, or take in an exhibition. Next, attend a free cathedral rehearsal, get on a coach for an afternoon concert in the surrounding countryside, and be back in time for evensong. Finish your day by listening to an awe-inspiring choral and orchestral performance in a glorious cathedral setting, followed by some jazz or folk music and a drink at one of our more informal late-night events. With so much on offer, there really is something for everyone! Our concerts feature internationally recognised soloists and orchestras and combine classical choral favourites with the best new music of our time.

The Three Choirs Festival has a fantastic history and celebrated its 300th anniversary in 2015. Our aim is to share music-making opportunities and the finest musical experiences with everybody. We look forward to welcoming you to the festival and hope that you will see for yourself why so many people come back to us year after year.

Featured Ensembles

Philharmonia Orchestra

Founded chiefly as a recording orchestra in 1945, the Philharmonia continues to work in the studio – recording movie scores and game soundtracks, and a broad range of classical and commercial projects. When the orchestra is not at home in Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall in London, it can be found resident at Bedford Corn Exchange, De Montfort Hall in Leicester, The Marlowe in Canterbury, Anvil Arts in Basingstoke, and Garsington Opera.

Flowers Band

Formed as a result of the disbandment of the Royal Gloucester Hussars (Territorial Army) Brass Band, Gloucester-based Flowers Band is now in its 54th year. They have had great success over the years and been crowned the West of England Champions thirteen times, six of these achieved under current conductor Paul Holland. The band regularly records for BBC Radio 2 programme Listen to the Band, has appeared on Songs of Praise, and in 2022 they were awarded fourth place at the National Championships.

Flowers Band supported by Gloucester BID

FESTIVAL HIGHLIGHTS

Welcome to the latest exciting festival edition. This year’s festival weaves together many threads that all have one thing in common: the pursuit of new ideas and innovation.

We celebrate scientific pursuits, marking the bicentenary of the death of local vaccination pioneer Edward Jenner (p15), innovations in music therapy (p29) and the life of inventor Humphrey Davy through a choral work by fellow Cornishman Graham Fitkin (p33). We introduce our own small innovation in a reimagined opening celebration (p6) and discover John Squire, a Victorian trailblazer for amateur singing (p34).

Clare Hammond shines a light on pioneering composer and pianist Hélène de Montgeroult (p12); families can explore the workings of a string instrument in Stringtastic (p16); and we welcome an all-female group of cathedral singers, the Lady Clerks (p7), for their debut performance in the latenight series.

Other late nights include Marcus Davidson’s Standing Waves (p33), a multimedia fusion of recorded natural sounds and music from East and West, and music inspired by migration. Ruth Wall’s multi-harp recital showcases music from the Scottish Highlands (p28)

and folk-group Coracle perform music from their recent album inspired by migrating flocks of birds (p23).

One composer who brought many new works to the Three Choirs Festival was Gloucestershire-born Ralph Vaughan Williams, widely celebrated throughout 2022 to mark his 150th anniversary. This year’s festival is the end of coordinated national celebrations – ‘A Year of Vaughan Williams’ – and features a host of rarely heard and well-known works:

• English Folk Song Suite (p35)

• Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (p33)

• Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis (for unaccompanied choir arr. Greg Murray) premiere (p22)

• Five Mystical Songs (p33)

• Flos Campi (p11)

• Mass in G minor (p9)

• O clap your hands (p6)

• O how amiable (p24)

• O taste and see (p9)

• Sancta Civitas (p8)

• Suite for Viola and Piano (p24)

• The Lark Ascending (p20)

• The Pilgrim’s Progress (p14)

• Valiant for truth (p24)

• Wassail Song (p24)

Just as it did at the premiere of Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia 113 years ago, the festival continues to resound with music fresh from the page and champion the music of composers with a connection to the Three Choirs counties. This year, you can catch twenty-one premiere performances as well as the revival of our 1999 festival commission, A Song on the End of the World by Francis Pott (p23), which won our ‘premieres league’ contest during lockdown.

Here’s what to look out for:

• Nilufar Habibian’s new work for Mahan Esfahani and Carolyn Sampson (p6)

• Eleanor Alberga’s setting of Blake, Rise Up, O Sun! for the Festival Chorus on opening night (p8)

• Promising young composers in the ORA Singers Young Composers Showcase (p10) and Monday’s Choral Evensong featuring the Sanders Society Competition Winner (p13)

• Ronald Corp’s Hail and Farewell for Roderick Williams (p11)

• Matthew Clark, John Merrick and Eleanor Kercher setting the poetry of Edward Thomas (p15)

• Jennifer Watson’s Rhapsody and Joseph Phibbs’ Night Paths for saxophone and piano (p17)

• A new song cycle for mixed choirs by Gloucestershire composer Liz Lane (p20)

• The UK premiere of Randall Svane’s Quantum Flight in a rare festival visit from the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (p18)

SATURDAY

Opening Celebration

10 – 11.30 am

Gloucester city centre and Cathedral

FREE (no ticket required)

A reimagined opening event, welcoming the city into the festival and cathedral. Three separate processions, featuring Gloucester Cathedral Choir, the Flowers Band with the Festival Chorus, and the Nethra Academy of Performing Arts, will move through the streets of Gloucester before joining together on Westgate Street, followed by a short indoor service led by the Bishop of Gloucester. Music will include Vaughan Williams' O clap your hands and Holst’s Short Festival Te Deum

Join us as the processions move through the centre, gather in the festival village for a welcome, or take a seat in the cathedral and await their arrival. Processions begin at 10 am with the service beginning at 11 am. See the website for further details.

Supported by DG Albright Charitable Trust, and Gloucester BID

ELGAR SOCIETY PRESENTS Improvising Elgar

12.30 – 1.30 pm Chapter House

£13

There will be few Elgarians who are unfamiliar with the work of pianist and lecturer David Owen Norris. Many will remember his numerous radio and television broadcasts, in particular his delightful insight into Elgar in John Bridcut’s film The Man Behind the Mask. For the Elgar Society lecture this year, David will be recreating some of Elgar’s historical improvisations on the piano, and will speak about creating new ones.

For Anna Magdalena

2.30 – 4.30 pm Holy Trinity Church

£35, £27, £12, under 25s FREE

Mahan Esfahani harpsichord

Carolyn Sampson soprano

JS Bach Chorale in F ‘Gib dich zufrieden und sei stille’ 2'

Petzold Two Minuets in G 5'

JS Bach Aria ‘So oft ich meine Tobackspfeife’; Aria ‘Gedenke doch, mein Geist, zurücke’ 5'

Couperin Rondeau in B flat minor (Les Bergeries, 6e Ordre) 4'

JS Bach Aria ‘Willst du dein Herz mir schenken’ (Aria di Giovannini) 2'

Nilufar Habibian new work 16' premiere

CPE Bach Solo per il cembalo in E flat 4'

CPE Bach Two Polonaises in G minor 4'

JS Bach Musette in G 2'

JS Bach Cantata ‘Ich habe genung’ (in the version transmitted in the AMB, 1725) 21'

Two stellar performers take to the stage for a concert of works featured in the Anna Magdalena Notebook.

The famous music book was gifted by Johann Sebastian Bach to his wife, who noted down pieces composed by Bach and others. Award-winning harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani and renowned soprano Carolyn Sampson perform these works, alongside a new commission of settings of Persian poetry by Iranian composer Nilufar Habibian.

£7

Coach departs 1.50 pm; returns by approx. 5.05 pm

Supported by an anonymous donor Nilufar Habibian commission supported by Penny Wright and Andrew Neubauer

Dream Journeys

3.30 – 4.30 pm Chapter House

£10 adults, £8 children, under 5s FREE (ideal for all ages)

Build a journey through your dreams with the help of live piano, an enormous patchwork quilt, physical theatre and some of Shakespeare’s best-loved words from A Midsummer Night’s Dream. Join us for this interactive and inclusive workshop led by actor, musician and poet Edward Derbyshire. You will be delighted and surprised by your destination!

Choral Evensong

5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

St Cecilia Singers

James Mitchell organ Jonathan Hope conductor

Humphrey Clucas Responses Stainer Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis in B flat Elgar Great is the Lord

The Holy City

7.30 – 9.45 pm Gloucester Cathedral

See following page for more information

Wine, Women and Song!

10.30 – 11.30 pm Chapter House

£22

Grab a drink from the Festival Bar and enjoy the debut public performance of the Lady Clerks: six female Lay Clerks and Choral Scholars from our Three Cathedral Choirs. They will be performing a range of sacred and secular works by female composers across the ages. From plainchant to pop, this evening promises to provide an eclectic mix of music for unaccompanied upper voices.

The Holy City

7.30 – 9.45 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£60, £58, £55, £36, £25, £15

Roderick Williams baritone

Ruairi Bowen tenor

Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay violin

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

Gloucester Cathedral Choristers

Gloucester Cathedral Youth Choir

Philharmonia Orchestra

Adrian Partington conductor

Eleanor Alberga Rise up, O Sun! 7' premiere

Vaughan Williams Sancta Civitas 30'

Elgar Violin Concerto 55'

Vaughan Williams’ Sancta Civitas (The Holy City) was strongly influenced by the horrors of the First World War. The music portrays the dreadful annihilation of Babylon’s armies and mourns the destruction of the city, before the beautiful violin solo introduces the holy city and unites all in peace and love for ever. The piece ends in quiet longing for an end to earthly wars and conflict. Continuing the yearning tones of the violin, Elgar’s Violin Concerto is a sweeping romance loved by audiences since it was first heard at a private party before the Three Choirs Festival in 1910. Thrilling and emotional, the piece will be brought to life by superb violinist and Philharmonia co-leader, Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay. The concert opens with a setting by Eleanor Alberga of words from William Blake’s Vala, or The Four Zoas, depicting a pastoral paradise with glorious imagery.

Sancta Civitas supported by The American Friends of the Three Choirs Festival

Zsolt-Tihamér Visontay supported by The Richard Hall Charitable Trust

Eleanor Alberga commission supported by the Three Choirs Commissioning Circle

Roderick Williams © Theo Williams

23 JULY SUNDAY

Festival Eucharist

10.15 – 11.45 am Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

Gloucester Cathedral Choir

Jonathan Hope organ Adrian Partington conductor

Vaughan Williams Mass in G minor

Vaughan Williams O taste and see I Holst A Hymne to Christ

Magic and Mischief

1 – 2 pm Bacon Theatre, Cheltenham

£15/£10 adults, £10/£5 children (ideal for ages 5+)

James Mayhew Flowers Band

Dukas arr. Derek Bourgeois

The Sorcerer’s Apprentice 11' Rimsky-Korsakov arr. Drake Rimmer Scheherazade 14' Mussorgsky arr. Elgar Howarth Baba Yaga from Pictures at an Exhibition 10' Stravinsky arr. Ray Farr excerpts from The Firebird Suite 8'

Art, music and storytelling come together in this enchanting event, perfect for all the family. Witness magic turn to chaos in The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, disappear to far-off worlds during Scheherazade, stumble upon the fearsome Baba Yaga in Pictures at an Exhibition and experience the magnificence of the Firebird. Captivating storyteller and illustrator James Mayhew will introduce the tale behind each of the pieces and paint live to the dramatic music performed by the Flowers Band.

Coach departs 12.10 pm; returns by approx. 2.45 pm

ORA Singers Young Composers

3 – 5 pm Chapter House £15, under 25s FREE

Celebrate the future of choral music, with this final concert of the 2023 ORA Singers Young Composers Showcase programme. In this new partnership with the Three Choirs Festival, ten young musicians have received one-toone mentoring from a professional composer, helping them to write a brand-new choral work. The captivating ORA Singers will now take to the stage to perform these exciting new pieces from the talented young composers.

Choral Evensong

5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir

Jonathan Hope organ

Geraint Bowen conductor

Sumsion Responses

Brewer Evening Canticles in D SS Wesley Blessed be the God and Father

Bottom between the Sheets

10.15 – 11.25 pm Chapter House £15

Finally taking the centre stage he so desires, Bottom cuts free from A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and entertains with stories and music. Created and performed by teacher, actor and Gloucestershire local Edward Derbyshire, this one-person show is part of his ‘Shakespeare between the Sheets’ project. Each show takes a deep dive into one of Shakespeare’s timeless characters and interweaves their story with live piano music. An outdoor version of this show takes place on Friday 28 July (please see p30 for details)

The Faerie Bride

7.30 – 9.40 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£60, £55, £50, £36, £25, £15

Roderick Williams baritone

Marta Fontanals-Simmons mezzo-soprano

Rebecca Jones viola

BBC National Orchestra of Wales

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

Martyn Brabbins conductor

Ronald Corp Hail and Farewell 18' premiere

Vaughan Williams Flos Campi 18'

Gavin Higgins The Faerie Bride 40' on a libretto by Francesca Simon

“Sometimes I think I hear her voice, when the wind whispers over the water…”

The ancient Welsh legend and tragic love story of the Lady of the Lake is brought to life in Gloucestershire-born composer Gavin Higgins’ spellbinding cantata, The Faerie Bride, written for outstanding soloists Roderick Williams and Marta Fontanals-Simmons. The theme of love continues in Vaughan Williams’ rich and sensuous Flos Campi (Flower of the Field), inspired by the Song of Solomon. Oriental flavours are interwoven with an English pastoral idyll to create a lush dance between viola, oboe and chorus. Alongside these works is Ronald Corp’s new song cycle in memory of Carolyn Pascall, a much-missed friend of the festival.

This concert will be recorded for future broadcast

Supported by Michael Guittard and Harry Prince

Hail and Farewell commissioned and supported by John Hammond in memory of Carolyn Pascall and further supported by Jeremy Wilding and Sue Vaughan

SUNDAY

Music Publishing: A History

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

Oxford University Press is one of the world’s largest and oldest academic publishing houses. Simon Wright (Head of Rights and Contracts in OUP’s Music Department) reflects on the people, the places and the publications that have made OUP a leading and world-class publisher of classical, contemporary and educational music. Simon looks in particular at some of the composers from OUP who have worked with the Three Choirs Festival.

Discovering William Hine

11.30 am – 12.30 pm Chapter House

£15

Arguably the founder of the Three Choirs Festival, William Hine’s musical activities have remained relatively unsung over the intervening three centuries since he became Informator Choristarum at Gloucester. Warwick Cole discusses Hine’s career and the music that he introduced to the Cathedral, with the Perfect Family Ensemble on hand to sing works by Pelham Humphrey, Purcell and Hine.

Sanders Society Lunch

12.30 – 2.30 pm St Mary de Crypt

£35 includes two-course meal and glass of wine

The Sanders Society hosts a lunch with renowned composer and choral conductor Bob Chilcott as guest speaker. All are welcome and the lunch will include a presentation to this year’s winner of the John Sanders Memorial Competition for Young Composers, whose piece will be premiered at today’s Evensong.

Clare Hammond: Piano Pioneers

2.30 – 4.30 pm Holy Trinity Church

£35, £27, £12, under 25s FREE

Clare Hammond piano

Montgeroult Études Nos 62, 66, 67, 103, 82, 104, 101, 107 18'

Ravel Miroirs 30'

Beethoven Sonata No 8 in C minor Op. 13 ‘Pathétique’ 20'

Coleridge-Taylor Thata Nabandji, Deep River, The Bamboula from 24 Negro Melodies 10' Albéniz Cádiz (El Puerto), Evocación, Triana from Iberia 15'

Pianist Clare Hammond presents a recital of musical pioneers who advanced the music of their time. Eight years younger than Mozart, Hélène de Montgeroult established a style that paved the way for the music of the Romantic generation and has been described as ‘the missing link between Mozart and Chopin’. Beethoven’s Sonata ‘Pathétique’, a key work in the development of the early Romantic style, complements her vision. In 24 Negro Melodies, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor drew from the traditional African music of his heritage and combined it with the classical tradition. Isaac Albéniz does the same in Iberia, a musical picture of his native Spain, echoes of which can also be heard in Ravel’s beautiful and evocative Miroirs.

£7

Coach departs 1.50 pm; returns by approx. 5.05 pm

Ralph Vaughan Williams Society Tea and Talk

2.30 – 5 pm Cooke Room, St Mary de Crypt £15 includes wine and cake

Caroline Davison gives a talk entitled ‘Something new yet familiar: Vaughan Williams and folk music’, drawing on her book The Captain’s Apprentice: Ralph Vaughan Williams and the Story of a Folk Song. The RVW Society (www.rvwsociety.com) warmly invite you to join them for the talk and refreshments.

Choral Evensong

5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

Three Cathedral Choirs

Jonathan Hope organ

Samuel Hudson conductor

Sanders Responses

Gipps Evening Service

Sanders Society Competition Winner new work

The Pilgrimʼs Progress

7.30 – 10.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral

See following page for more information

Lay Clerks in Concert

10.45 – 11.45 pm Chapter House

£22

A festival favourite – the Lay Clerks of Gloucester Cathedral will give their traditional late-night concert. Appealing to the light and the dark, this will be a programme of contrasts, with sacred music from the past 500 years, alongside plenty of lighter offerings.

*The Cathedral Archivist, Rebecca Phillips, is giving library tours featuring Hine’s original part books. For more information, please visit the cathedral website.

The Pilgrimʼs Progress

7.30 – 10.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£65, £60, £55, £36, £25, £15

Issy Bridgeman soprano

Charlotte Jane Kennedy soprano

Angelina Dorlin-Barlow mezzo-soprano

Lydia Shariff mezzo-soprano

Henry Ross tenor

Gabriel Seawright tenor

Zihua Zhang tenor

Ross Cumming baritone (Pilgrim)

Jia Huang baritone

Emyr Lloyd Jones baritone

Armand Rabot bass-baritone

British Youth Opera

Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Will Kerley director

Charlotte Corderoy conductor

Vaughan Williams The Pilgrim’s Progress 132'

A gripping story, moving words, dramatic imagery: The Pilgrim’s Progress has it all. Vaughan Williams’ incredible opera brings the diverse characters and settings to life – Vanity Fair, the Delectable Mountains, the Celestial City. Featuring a host of characters that Pilgrim encounters on his journey, the work is very rarely performed, so this is a wonderful opportunity to hear a masterpiece from one of England’s best-loved composers. This semistaged joint production with British Youth Opera sees the festival’s Youth Choir take on the role of operatic chorus, and is conducted by Festival Youth Choir alumna Charlotte Corderoy.

Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir supported by Fr Michael Thomas

Charlotte Corderoy supported by Pamela White

Charlotte Corderoy

ThE WuLSTAN ATkINS LECTuRE

The Life and Work of Edward Jenner

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

Composer and Berkeley resident Liz Lane explores the life and work of one of the village’s most famous inhabitants, Edward Jenner, inventor of the smallpox vaccine. 2023 marks the 200th anniversary of the death of this scientific pioneer, whose statue stands at the west end of Gloucester Cathedral. Liz explores Jenner’s legacy, the resonance of his work in recent times, and how local residents have marked this notable anniversary.

Supported by Katharine O’Carroll and Robert and Sherill Atkins

SABRINENSIS PRESENTS

Edward Thomas: The Impossibility of Serenity

11.15 am – 12.30 pm

All Saints Church, Cheltenham

£20, £15

Sabrinensis

Matthew Romain reader

James MacDowall-Scott piano

Judith Sheridan conductor

Matthew Clark The path that light breaks 5' premiere

Michael Hurd Will you come? Will you ride so late at my side?, I have come to the borders of sleep from Night Songs of Edward Thomas 6'

Eleanor Kercher I built myself a house of glass 2' premiere

Geraint Lewis Adlestrop 9'

John Merrick The Household Poems 14' premiere

Gurney arr. Ian Harold Bright Clouds, The Trumpet from Lights Out; Cock Crow; The Cherry Trees; In Memoriam; Snow 15'

Celebrated poet, Edward Thomas, joined the Dymock poets in 1914 before his untimely death in the First World War. This concert by chamber choir Sabrinensis explores his time in Gloucestershire through readings and settings of his poetry. The concert includes new works by Matthew Clark, John Merrick (whose Bee Carol won the BBC carol competition in 2018) and Eleanor Kercher, as well as settings by Gloucester-born composers Ivor Gurney and Michael Hurd.

£9

Coach departs 10.20 am; returns by approx. 1.20 pm

FESTIVAL PLAYERS PRESENT Twelfth Night

1.30 – 3.30 pm

Old Bishop's Palace Garden £17 adults, £10 children

This great romantic comedy has all the ingredients for another engaging Shakespeare performance from the Festival Players, the UK’s leading allmale touring company. It is a colourful, costumed staging, brought to you with the Players’ customary energy, clarity and humour. Featuring the pursuit of love, mistaken identity and a great deal of boisterous and hilarious trickery, this tale is certain to entertain.

This is an outdoor performance. It will be relocated only in the event of severely adverse weather conditions.

Dymock Church © Kenneth Mays

TUESDAY

Polina Sosnina Organ Recital

2.30 – 3.30 pm All Saints Church, Cheltenham £15, under 25s FREE

Polina Sosnina organ

JS Bach Komm, Gott, Schöpfer, heiliger Geist 2'

Duruflé Choral varié sur le Veni Creator 6'

Mendelssohn Organ Sonata No 5 in D 9'

Franck Chorale No 2 in B minor 15' Shostakovich Passacaglia from Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk 7'

JS Bach Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor, BWV 582 14'

In the first recital of our series showcasing talented young performers from the Royal College of Organists, Polina Sosnina presents a varied programme of works including important and well-known organ pieces such as Bach’s Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor and Mendelssohn’s Organ Sonata No 5 in D.

Supported by Fr Michael Thomas

£9

Coach departs 1.35 pm; returns by approx. 4.20 pm

Stringtastic

2.30 – 3.30 pm Chapter House

£8, under 5s FREE (ideal for babies, toddlers and siblings)

Join festival regulars the Lilliput Duo for an adventure into the wonderful world of stringed instruments. Marvel at the ridiculous array of sounds that can be drawn from a wooden box, some wire and a horse’s tail! Dance and sing along with favourite tunes and have a go on their junk instruments and miniature violins.

Huw Wiggin and John Lenehan © Liz Isles

Saxophone Rhapsodies

2.30 – 4.15 pm Holy Trinity Church

£30, £25, £12, under 25s FREE

Huw Wiggin saxophone

John Lenehan piano

Debussy Rhapsody for saxophone and piano 10'

Jennifer Watson Rhapsody 11' premiere

Debussy La Soirée dans Grenade from Estampes 6'

Joseph Phibbs Night Paths 11' premiere

Iain Farrington Paganini Patterns 11'

Coates Saxo-Rhapsody 10'

Ireland Summer Evening 4'

Liszt arr. Iain Farrington Hungarian Rhapsody No 2 9'

Saxophone and piano: a perfect pairing to demonstrate the rhapsodic form. Featuring lyrical music from Debussy, Ireland and Liszt, alongside the more light-hearted Eric Coates. To complete the programme, new works by Joseph Phibbs, Jennifer Watson and Iain Farrington have been recently commissioned by Huw Wiggin, showcasing the colours and moods of saxophone and piano.

£7

TUESDAY

Coach departs 1.50 pm; returns by approx. 4.50 pm

Choral Evensong

5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral

FREE (no ticket required)

Three Cathedral Choirs

Jonathan Hope organ

Geraint Bowen conductor

Byrd Responses

Tomkins Second Service

Byrd Laudibus in sanctis

A Song on the End of the World

7.30 – 9.50 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£60, £55, £50, £36, £25, £15

April Fredrick soprano

Clare Presland mezzo-soprano

Marcus Farnsworth baritone

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

Adrian Partington conductor

Randall Svane Quantum Flight 5' UK premiere

Gustav Holst Ode to Death 13'

Arnold Bax Tintagel 15'

Francis Pott A Song on the End of the World 70'

A concert of stirring music and emotion. Full of powerful imagery, Francis Pott’s 1999 Three Choirs Festival commission, A Song on the End of the World, tells of the horrors of violence and war in thrilling music and poignant poetry, setting texts from the Requiem Mass alongside poets such as William Blake, Czeslaw Milosz and Charles Causley. Holst’s Ode to Death is a haunting memorial to his friends killed in the First World War. Considered by many to be his most beautiful choral work, the piece is full of mystery and moments of pure tranquillity. Alongside these is Bax’s Tintagel, a dramatic work which brings the force and beauty of nature to life in its depiction of the Cornish cliffs, and the UK premiere of Randall Svane’s colourful orchestral whirl, Quantum Flight.

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra players © Ben Wright

A Feast of Slavic Music

10.30 – 11.40 pm Chapter House £22, under 25s FREE

Saint Cecilia Singers

Muzika Lyra

Jonathan Hope director

Bortniansky Cherubic Hymn No 7 4'

Bortniansky Let My Prayer Arise 7'

Lyatoshinsky Pamir Melody & Dance from 3 Songs on Tajik Themes, Op. 25 6'

Smetana From My Homeland 6'

Trad. The Songbird; The Mayday Tree 5'

Paweł Łukaszewski Two Lenten Motets 8'

Bortkiewicz Prelude in F sharp, Op. 33 No 7 4'

Kosenko Nocturne-Fantasia in C sharp minor, Op. 4 8'

Dvořák Songs My Mother Taught Me 5'

Feldman The Coachman 4'

Kharito Chrysanthemums 3'

Trad. Nese Galyu vodu; Ti zh menia pidmanula 6'

Gloucester chamber choir Saint Cecilia Singers joins forces with violin, voice/ guitar and piano trio Muzika Lyra to celebrate the richness and beauty of Eastern Europe’s sacred and secular music. The programme draws together some lesser-known Slavic composers whose music shares the sumptuous harmonic language and glorious sonorities of more familiar names such as Rachmaninov, Pärt and Tchaikovsky. This beautiful concert concludes with the two groups coming together to perform arrangements of Ukrainian folk songs.

Membersʼ Outing:

The Old Rectory, Quenington

9 am – 1 pm

£25 to include travel and refreshments

Festival members can spend a morning in Quenington visiting the Old Rectory, which is home to the Fresh Air sculpture trail. Enjoy a guided tour of the gardens and unwind with tea and cake. Tranquillity can be found along the banks of the River Coln, and the wooden bridge that spans the river encapsulates the quirky spirit of fun, creativity and history that comes together at Quenington.

Coach departs 9 am; returns by approx. 1 pm

Old Rectory, Quenington © Kristian Pettifor

Exploring

Vaughan Williamsʼ Tallis Fantasia

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

British music expert, Dr Jonathan Clinch (Royal Academy of Music), revisits Ralph Vaughan Williams’ iconic Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, written for the 1910 Three Choirs Festival in Gloucester. He explores what we learn from the Academy’s original manuscript and what the piece means today.

What the Lark Saw

11 am – 12.30 pm, Gloucester Cathedral £10, £5, under 25s FREE

Hannah Roper violin

Cheltenham Youth Choir

Cheltenham Children’s Choirs

The Severnside Singers

Rachel Bowen conductor

Programme includes:

Liz Lane What the Lark Saw 15' premiere Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending 15'

Featuring a performance of Vaughan Williams’ ever-popular The Lark Ascending and the world premiere of a new commissioned work by Gloucestershire composer Liz Lane, 2023’s What the Lark Saw community project brings together the contributions of around 300 individuals from eleven different schools and community groups in a showcase concert and exhibition. This innovative and exciting musical portrait of the Gloucester community includes original work by community members from dance to electroacoustic soundscape. Liz Lane’s song cycle will be sung by a massed intergenerational choir including around 100 Gloucestershire children. Artwork will also be on display.

What the Lark Saw supported by the Vaughan Williams Foundation

FESTIVAL PLAYERS PRESENT

Twelfth Night

1 – 3 pm Old Bishop's Palace Garden £17 adults, £10 children

This great romantic comedy has all the ingredients for another engaging Shakespeare performance from the Festival Players, the UK’s leading all-male touring company. It is a colourful, costumed staging, brought to you with the Players’ customary energy, clarity and humour. Featuring the pursuit of love, mistaken identity and a great deal of boisterous and hilarious trickery, this tale is certain to entertain.

This is an outdoor performance. It will be relocated only in the event of severely adverse weather conditions.

The Fidelio Trio

1.30 – 3 pm Holy Trinity Church

£35, £27, £12, under 25s FREE

The Fidelio Trio

Trimble Phantasy Trio 11’

Beach Piano Trio in A minor 15’

Anna Clyne A Thousand Mornings 18’

Ravel Piano Trio in A minor 27’

The Fidelio Trio showcase three innovative female composers before concluding with Ravel’s wonderfully emotive Piano Trio. Amy Beach was the first American woman to compose and publish a symphony; her dramatic Piano Trio dates from 1938, just two years before Irish composer Joan Trimble – a student of Vaughan Williams –won the 1940 Cobbett Prize with her quietly beautiful Phantasy Trio. Transporting us back to the present day with impressive vigour and energy, Anna Clyne’s A Thousand Mornings was commissioned for the Fidelio Trio in 2021.

£7

Coach departs 12.50 pm; returns by approx. 3.35 pm

The Fidelio Trio © Christopher Baines

Choral Evensong

4 – 5 pm Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

Three Cathedral Choirs

Jonathan Hope organ

Adrian Partington conductor

Randall Svane Responses

Finzi Magnificat

David Bednall Gloria after Finzi’s Magnificat; Nunc Dimittis

Judith Bingham The Pilgrimes Travels

This service will be broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. Please be seated by 3.45 pm

ORA Singers: A Choral Fantasia

7.30 – 9.30 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£50, £45, £35, £25, £20, £15

ORA Singers

Oriel Singers

Suzi Digby conductor

Byrd Ave Verum Corpus 5'

Tallis Spem in Alium 10'

Byrd Ad Dominum Cum Tribularer 10'

Roxanna Panufnik Kyrie after Byrd 4'

Vaughan Williams arr. Greg Murray

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis 18' version premiere

Byrd Laudibus in Sanctis 6'

James MacMillan Lux Aeterna 4'

Hildegard of Bingen O Viridissima Virga 4'

Janet Wheeler Alleluia, I heard a voice 4'

Roderick Williams Ave Verum Corpus Re-imagined 6'

ORA Singers © Nick Rutter

Forty voices weave masterfully together in Tallis’ sublime Spem in Alium, with Gloucestershire chamber choir the Oriel Singers joining the award-winning ORA Singers for this performance. In a special premiere, they will then perform a choral arrangement of Vaughan Williams’ evocative Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, which received its original premiere in this same building. Influenced by William Byrd, whose music will also feature, Roderick Williams and Roxanna Panufnik have both composed pieces to pay homage and respond to Byrd’s Renaissance masterpieces. An evening of peace, tranquillity and ethereal beauty.

Supported by the Chair’s Circle Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis supported by Mr and Mrs David Ball Ave Verum Corpus Re-Imagined supported by Joanna Brickell

Coracle

10.15 – 11.15 pm Lady Chapel £22, under 25s FREE

Imagination, creativity and improvisation: Coracle thrives by exploring new influences while keeping the British folk tradition at their heart. This performance comes hot on the heels of their most recent album, Murmuration, inspired by the flights of birds. Voice, clarinet, accordion, cello and hurdy-gurdy come together, with eddies of contemporary classical and splashes of early music. No two evenings are ever the same with Paul Hutchinson, Karen Wimhurst and Anna Tam – expect an exhilarating journey of exploration and enjoyment.

Right: Coracle © Head Girl Photography

A Passion to Rival Bach’s?

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

Dr Paul Ellison will examine the two passion settings featured this week. The first, well known to audiences since its Three Choirs Festival premiere at the 1929 Worcester Festival, is JS Bach’s great Johannes-Passion, to be performed by the Three Cathedral Choirs this evening. The second is Gottfried Heinrich Stölzel’s little-known Die leidende und am Creutz sterbende Liebe Jesu, to be heard tomorrow afternoon. Does Stölzel’s setting match up? Is it indeed a passion to rival Bach’s?

Be sure to join him to find out!

From Pub to Pulpit

11.30 am – 1 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£20, £18, £15, £10

Broomdasher

Coracle

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

Nicholas Freestone organ

Samuel Hudson conductor

Celebrate Vaughan Williams’ 150th birthday with this final performance in the RVW150 From Pub to Pulpit tour featuring Wassail Song, O how amiable and Valiant for truth. Vaughan Williams was a collector of folk songs, and he borrowed these tunes for some of the best-loved hymns in the 1906 English Hymnal. Join folk groups Broomdasher and Coracle, along with the Three Choirs Festival Chorus, to hear the journey of the music from secular tune to sacred song, with a rousing finale that encourages some audience participation!

Seeking Utopia

2.30 – 4.30 pm Holy Trinity Church

£30, £25, £12, under 25s FREE

Jessica Duchen author/narrator

Shiry Rashkovsky viola

Viv McLean piano

Holst Lyric Movement 12'

Vaughan Williams Suite for Viola and Piano 26'

Clarke Passacaglia on an Old English Tune 5'

Delius arr. Tertis Serenade from Hassan 2'

Bloch Rhapsody from Suite Hébraïque 7'

Korngold arr. Tertis Hornpipe from Much Ado About Nothing Suite 2'

A marriage of words and music celebrating the friendship between Vaughan Williams and violist Lionel Tertis, written by award-winning author and librettist Jessica Duchen. Through the music itself, alongside reflections on the world of those who created it, this narrated concert is an impassioned plea for unity and acceptance in our own time.

£7

Coach departs 1.50 pm; returns by approx. 5.05 pm

Folk Singing Workshop

3 – 4.15 pm Chapter House

£13 (£10 when purchased with a From Pub to Pulpit concert ticket)

Come and learn one of the folksongs performed in the From Pub to Pulpit concert. Folk group Broomdasher are offering an engaging workshop in which attendees will learn harmony parts before coming back together to sing as a group.

Miriam Reveley Organ Recital

5.15 – 6.15 pm St Peter's Catholic Church

£15, under 25s FREE

Miriam Reveley organ

JS Bach Prelude and Fugue in G 9'

Franck Prelude, Fugue and Variation 12'

Mendelssohn Sonata No 3 in A 11'

Price Adoration 3'

Boëllmann Suite Gothique 14'

Whitlock Scherzetto from Organ Sonata in C minor 4'

Vierne Carillon de Longpont 4'

In the second recital of our series showcasing talented young performers from the Royal College of Organists, Miriam Reveley plays works by a range of well-known and rediscovered composers, from JS Bach and César Franck to Florence Price, the first Black woman to have her symphony performed by a major American orchestra.

Evening Prayer will be said today at 6 pm in the Cathedral Thomas Chapel

Bach’s St John Passion

7.30 – 10 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£60, £55, £50, £36, £25, £15

James Gilchrist Evangelist

Gareth Brynmor John Christus

Rebecca Hardwick soprano

Ciara Hendrick mezzo-soprano

Anthony Gregory tenor

Matthew Brook bass-baritone

Three Cathedral Choirs

Corelli Orchestra

Geraint Bowen conductor

JS Bach Johannes-Passion 118'

The drama of Christ’s crucifixion unfolds in the compelling music of JS Bach, told through the powerful words of St John’s gospel. It is a musical exploration of turmoil and betrayal, of suffering and redemption. The cathedral choirs of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester perform one of the supreme masterpieces of sacred music.

Supported by Lee Bolton Monier-Williams, and The Perry Family Charitable Trust

THURSDAY

James Gilchrist © Patrick Allen

SATURDAY 22 JULY

Opening Celebration 10 – 11.30 am

WHAT ’ S ON GUIDE

p6 Improvising Elgar 12.30 – 1.30 pm

House p6 For Anna Magdalena 2.30 – 4.30 pm

Trinity Church p6 Dream Journeys 3.30 – 4.30 pm

– 6.15 pm

SUNDAY 23 JULY

Festival Eucharist 10.15 – 11.45 am

Cathedral p9 Magic and Mischief 1 – 2 pm

Theatre, Cheltenham p9 ORA Singers Young 3 – 5 pm Chapter House p10 Composers Showcase

– 6.15 pm

MONDAY 24 JULY

Music Publishing: A History 9.30 – 10.30 am

– 10.15 pm

– 11.45 pm

TUESDAY 25 JULY The Life and Work 9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House p15 of Edward Jenner

Edward Thomas: 11.15 am – 12.30 pm All Saints Church, Cheltenham p15 The Impossibility of Serenity

Twelfth Night 1.30 – 3.30 pm Old Bishop’s Palace Garden p15

Polina Sosnina Organ Recital 2.30 – 3.30 pm

Saints Church, Cheltenham p16 Stringtastic 2.30 – 3.30 pm

Saxophone Rhapsodies 2.30 – 4.15 pm

Choral Evensong 5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral p17 A Song on the End of the World 7.30 – 9.50 pm Gloucester Cathedral p18

A Feast of Slavic Music 10.30 – 11.40 pm Chapter House p19

WEDNESDAY 26 JULY

FRIDAY 28 JULY

Mindsong: The

SATURDAY 29 JULY

WHAT ’ S ON GUIDE

Ruth Wall: Migrations

10.30 – 11.30 pm Gloucester Guildhall £22, under 25s FREE

A mesmerising concert from renowned harpist Ruth Wall, who performs the sitar-like Renaissance bray harp, the beautiful medieval Gaelic wire harp (clàrsach) and the Scottish lever harp. Ruth and composer Graham Fitkin have taken old Gaelic songs and tunes from bagpipe and fiddle books to explore the theme of migration through words and music. An exquisite end to the day.

Ruth Wall © Lottie Davies

Mindsong: The Therapeutic Power of Music

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

Mindsong supports people living with dementia across Gloucestershire through music therapy. We hear from Director of Music Therapy, Maggie Grady, about their innovative new service established in 2016 to support people with complex or advanced dementia in their own homes. This talk will focus on its conception and growth, highlighting the unique aspects of the work, and looking at how and why it has grown so successfully. Some case study examples will also demonstrate outcomes of the work and show how music can be used in a creative and tailored way to support people with dementia and their families.

François Cloete Organ Recital

11 am – 12 pm Cirencester Parish Church

£15, under 25s FREE

François Cloete organ

JS Bach Fantasia and Fugue in G minor, BWV542 12'

Merkel Organ Sonata No 5 in D minor, Op. 118 15'

Duruflé Scherzo, Op. 2 6'

Jonathan Dove The Dancing Pipes 10'

Reger Choralfantasie ‘Hallelujah! Gott zu loben‘, Op. 52 No 3 16'

In the third recital of our series showcasing talented young performers from the Royal College of Organists, former Hereford organ scholar François Cloete presents an exciting programme of new and old works. Featuring the playful and energetic The Dancing Pipes, composed by Jonathan Dove in 2014 for the 250th anniversary of the Snetzler organ at St Laurence’s Church in Ludlow, Shropshire.

Supported by Fr Michael Thomas

£10

Coach departs 10 am; returns by approx. 12.55 pm

François Cloete

The Happy Princess

11 am – 12.15 pm

Gloucester Cathedral

£26, £22, £18, £12 (ideal for ages 7+)

Willow Burden Princess

Lauren Tribe Swallow Philharmonia Orchestra Ensemble Singers from Gloucester Cathedral choirs and local schools

Nia Llewelyn Jones director

Paul Fincham The Happy Princess On a libretto by Jessica Duchen

The golden statue of the Happy Princess stands above the wintery city. A swallow, left behind during migration, shelters by her feet. The Princess tells the bird that she longs to help her suffering people…

Based on the timeless story by Oscar Wilde, The Happy Princess is an opera written especially for young people and is performed here by children from schools around Gloucestershire, alongside members of the Philharmonia Orchestra. Come along and be moved by this poignant story, with its beautiful music and show-stealing young performers.

Members’ Lunch

12.30 – 2.30 pm

Stratton House Hotel, Cirencester

£36

Festival members can enjoy a delicious lunch at Stratton House Hotel with renowned tenor James Gilchrist as guest speaker. A familiar face at the festival, James will also be performing in Shipwreck! and St John Passion this week.

Coach departs 11.50 am; returns by approx. 3.10 pm

Bottom between the Sheets

1.30 – 2.40 pm Old Bishop’s Palace Garden

£15 adults, £8 children

This is an outdoor performance. It will be relocated only in the event of severely adverse weather conditions

An indoor, late-night performance of this show also takes place on Sunday 23 July (see p10 for details).

The Happy Princess

Stratton House Hotel, Cirencester

The Happy Princess

£10

Stölzel’s Passion

2.45 – 5 pm Cirencester Parish Church £35, £30, £12, under 25s FREE

Selene Consort

Corelli Orchestra

Warwick Cole director

Stölzel Die leidende und am Creutz sterbende Liebe Jesu 110'

A rare chance to hear this reflective and unique setting of the Passion, revived through research and a new edition by Corelli Orchestra director Warwick Cole. Widely performed in early eighteenthcentury Germany, Stölzel’s Passion setting features poetry written by the composer himself and avoids any named characters or direct quotations from the bible. It was performed by JS Bach in 1734 and influenced the compositional structure of his Christmas Oratorio.

Coach departs 1.45 pm; returns by approx. 5.50 pm

What Our Lord Saw from the Cross –James Tissot

£10

Mavron Quartet Family Concert

4 – 5 pm Chapter House £8, under 5s FREE (ideal for ages 5+)

Join the Mavron Quartet for a fun and interactive concert exploring the art of chamber music. Including dramatic works by Shostakovich and Dvořák, this innovative and entertaining workshop is led by the four charismatic members of the Mavron Quartet.

Supported by the Cavatina Chamber Music Trust

Evening Prayer will be said today at 6 pm in the Cathedral Thomas Chapel

FRIDAY

James Hall © Andrew Staples

Mavron Quartet

The Age of Aspiration

7.30 – 9.30 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£60, £55, £50, £36, £25, £15

James Hall countertenor

James Newby baritone

Samuel West narrator*

Worcester Cathedral Choristers

Three Choirs Festival Voices

Philharmonia Orchestra

Samuel Hudson conductor

Vaughan Williams Five Mystical Songs 20'

Vaughan Williams Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis 18'

Graham Fitkin The Age of Aspiration 38'

The Three Choirs Festival Voices open their debut concert with Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs, a setting of George Herbert’s poems which showcases both the baritone soloist and the full might of the choir. Premiered at the Three Choirs Festival in 1910, Gloucester Cathedral is once again filled with the glorious sounds of Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis. The first Industrial Revolution is then brought to life in Graham Fitkin’s The Age of Aspiration, a musical exploration of the Cornish chemist Humphrey Davy’s work, and the philosophy and culture of the time. Featuring acclaimed actor Samuel West* and countertenor James Hall, who bring Davy’s story to life.

*Professional engagements permitting Three Choirs Festival Voices supported by donations to the Big Give 2022

Supported by The Friends of Gloucester Three Choirs Festival

Narrator supported by Joanna Brickell

Standing Waves

10 – 11 pm Gloucester Guildhall £22, under 25s FREE

A feast for the ears and a musical experience that transports you through nature and the universe itself. Beginning life in Norway, Standing Waves was conceived and written by Roger Huckle and Marcus Davidson, and is world fusion music, using eastern, western, jazz, classical, folk, electronic, acoustic and film. They are joined by Kat Kleve and Edward Leaker for a performance that promises to open your mind and leave you entranced.

A Portrait of John Squire

9.30 – 10.30 am Chapter House

£13

A banker, painter and keen amateur musician who spent a portion of his life in nearby Ross on Wye, John Squire was a man of many talents. John Hugh Thomas, drawing on his recent biography, The Best in Sound and Form and Hue, sheds light on the influence Squire had on musicmaking in Victorian Britain, and gives a fascinating insight into the broader social context surrounding his life.

Three Little Mammoths

11.30 am – 12.30 pm

St Mary de Crypt

£10 adults, £8 children, under 5s FREE (ideal for ages 5-11)

Shipwreck!

Coach departs 10.50 am; returns by approx. 1.35 pm SATURDAY 29

‘Once upon a time, at the very beginning of time, there was a big BANG! Then, there were stars. Around the stars spun planets. And one of the planets was called ‘Earth’. Don’t believe me? You’re sitting on it right now. And if you’re not sitting, then sit down immediately, because the story is about to begin. This is the story of the Three Little Mammoths…’

Hear the story brought to life by the Marsyas Trio, with music by Robin Haigh and text by acclaimed children’s author Eoin McLaughlin, as the three little mammoths migrate to far-off lands.

11.30 am – 1 pm Holy Trinity Church

£35, £27, £12, under 25s FREE

Héloïse Bernard soprano

James Gilchrist tenor

Linarol Consort

The Linarol Consort of viols tell the story of a truly dramatic event: a shipwreck that led to a chance meeting between Henry VII of England and Philip the Handsome of Burgundy. They are joined by celebrated tenor James Gilchrist and soprano Héloïse Bernard to perform a programme following the story of the adventure and including music by three composers who were on the voyage with Philip (Pierre de la Rue, Marbrianus de Orto and Johannes de Stokem) as well as Josquin des Prez and Henry VIII.

Supported by Tom Barkes in memory of Elspeth Barkes

£7

Flowers Band: Fanfares and Love Songs

2 – 4 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£30, £25, £20, £15, £12

Flowers Band

Michael Fowles conductor

Paul Lovatt-Cooper Home of Legends 4'

Vaughan Williams English Folk Song Suite 12'

Jan van der Roost Canterbury Chorale 5'

McCabe Cloudcatcher Fells 18'

Gavin Higgins Fanfares and Love Songs 13'

Elgar arr. Denis Wright Nimrod from Enigma Variations 4'

Liz Lane Tide and Time 13'

Elgar arr. J. Ord Hume Pomp and Circumstance March No 1 5'

A rousing display of the brass band at its most impressive and a love song to the British landscape, the awardwinning Flowers Band deliver a dazzling programme featuring Vaughan Williams’ English Folk Song Suite, alongside newer works. Starting serene and dreamy,

Cloudcatcher Fells builds to a dramatic and spectacular sound, showing the full force of the band. The two alternating moods found in Cloudcatcher Fells are echoed in the contrasting force of Home of Legends and the quietly stirring Canterbury Chorale. The second half of the concert showcases the works of Gloucestershire composers Liz Lane and Gavin Higgins, alongside the everpopular Elgar, whose Pomp and Circumstance closes the performance.

Flowers Band supported by Gloucester BID

Choral Evensong

5.30 – 6.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral FREE (no ticket required)

Gloucester Cathedral Choir

Jonathan Hope organ Adrian Partington conductor

Richard Ayleward Responses

Howells Collegium Regale

Parry Hear my words, ye people

The Apostles

7.30 – 9.45 pm Gloucester Cathedral

£65, £60, £55, £36, £25, £15

Philippa Boyle Virgin Mary

Martha McLorinan Mary Magdalene

Michael Bell John

John Savournin Judas

James Geidt Peter

Dingle Yandell Jesus

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

Philharmonia Orchestra

Adrian Partington conductor

Elgar The Apostles 100'

‘In His love and in His pity he redeemed them. Alleluia!’

The haunting call of a shofar; the drama of Judas’ descent into Hell; the despair

of Christ’s crucifixion; the climax of the Ascension – beauty and drama leading to one of the most moving finales in the whole of the classical repertoire. The Apostles shows composer Edward Elgar at the height of his musical powers and is considered by many to be his finest choral work. The piece tells the story of the early disciples of Jesus as ordinary men and women, who faced serious doubts about their faith, just as Elgar did, and shows their part in the extraordinary events of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection. Powerful, beautiful and highly moving.

Supported by Penny Moore

The role of Virgin Mary is supported by Prof Jeremy and Alison Dibble in memory of Alison’s late mother, Mollie Manning

Comunione Degli Apostoli, 1512 by Luca Signorelli

FOOD AND DRINK

Friends Café

Open daily

Located in the heart of the Festival Village, visit the Friends Café for coffee and cakes, teas, sandwiches and soft drinks. Not quite open all hours, but there when you need mid-morning refreshments, afternoon teas, evening snacks and hot drinks in the interval or after the main evening concert. See our information board, situated in the Festival Village for daily information about opening hours.

Festival Bar

Open daily

Take advantage of our fully stocked festival bar with a fine selection of cask ales, ciders, wines and spirits, courtesy of our friends at The Pelican Inn.

Pre-concert Dining

King’s School Dining Hall, 6 pm daily

Pre-book a two-course dinner, served in the Dining Hall at 6 pm on every evening of the festival. Priced at £27 per person, all menus include a main course and dessert, a glass of wine (except on Monday, price reduced to £24) or soft drink, and tea or coffee. Please inform the ticket office of any special dietary requirements when booking.

Surplus To Purpose

Three Choirs Festival are proud to be partnering with Surplus To Purpose as part of our commitment to creating a more sustainable festival. 17% of all food produced in the UK does not make it from farm to plate and we’re helping to reduce that figure during festival week. The street food and vegetarian preconcert dining options will be provided by Surplus To Purpose and will make use of food from the local area which would otherwise have been wasted.

Pre-concert Dinner Menu

Saturday 22 July

Oven-baked salmon with a prawn bisque sauce

Sunday 23 July

Braised beef steak with a red wine and wild mushroom jus

Monday 24 July

Stuffed turkey escalope with tomato and herb sauce

Tuesday 25 July

Pan-fried chicken fillet with redcurrant and mint jus

Wednesday 26 July

Rolled pork fillet with apple and sage compote

Thursday 27 July

Salmon and herb fishcakes with dressed herb salad

Friday 28 July

Cod with crushed pea and mint

Saturday 29 July

Butter poached chicken with cream and tarragon sauce

The vegetarian option for each meal will be supplied by Surplus To Purpose and will be confirmed each day

WHAT THE LARK SAW

Celebrating the 150th birthday of Ralph Vaughan Williams, the festival is engaging with community organisations and schools from across the region to take part in an ambitious creative arts project throughout the spring and summer of 2023. Taking inspiration from Vaughan Williams’ most famous work, The Lark Ascending, our aim is to bring together contributions from a wide range of schools and community groups. They will use various art forms to create a lark's eye view of our region today, guided by creative experts from the three counties of Gloucestershire, Herefordshire and Worcestershire.

All the contributions will be brought together for a grand showcase in Gloucester Cathedral on Wednesday 26th July at 11 am. The core of this will be a new commission of four songs by Gloucestershire composer Liz Lane, performed by a massed choir, including about 100 children from the local area. Additionally, Liz will draw ideas from the products of the workshops, creating a performance which represents all of the participating community members. Visual artworks created during the workshops will also be on display.

See page 20 for more details

Each group project will focus on an artistic discipline: live music, spoken word, textile, dance and electronic music, and will produce original art work as a portrait of their community.

A Tapestry of Sound

Kate Gathercole and Mark Waters will work with members of the St Briavels Memory Café community (Forest of Dean) to create an original piece of electroacoustic music as a soundscape. Working alongside the cafe’s existing visiting volunteer musicians, participants will make audio recordings during relaxed sessions, each themed around a particular aspect of the community.

A Journey through Movement

Dancer Marie-Louise Flexen and The Open Arms Collective (Cheltenham), a community hub for people living with dementia, will explore bird movement through spontaneous choreography, creating a group dance inspired by the music of The Lark Ascending.

A Treasury of Words

Actor and poet Edward Derbyshire will work with Inclusion Gloucester’s four different community hubs across Gloucester, Cheltenham and the Forest of Dean to collect stories, poems, conversations and community narratives inspired by the music of The Lark Ascending.

A Flight of Song

Timothy Keasley’s workshops will educate and encourage primary school pupils to create their own song lyrics and melodies, composing a group song to be shared within their school community and with their families.

What the Lark Saw supported by the Vaughan Williams Foundation

A Community of Colours

Worcestershire-based textile artist Joy Pollock will be working with two community hubs at Inclusion Gloucester to produce handmade batik panels illustrating the journey of a lark over the community.

A Meeting of Worlds

British-Indian artist J9 (Judge Singh) will lead a songwriting fusion project working with The Severnside Singers to create an original song incorporating not only traditional British folk style but also Indian elements.

FAMILIES AND YOUNG PEOPLE

Saturday 22 July

Dream Journeys

3.30 – 4.30 pm Chapter House £10 adults, £8 children, under 5s FREE (ideal for all ages)

Sunday 23 July

Magic and Mischief

1 – 2 pm Bacon Theatre, Cheltenham £15/10 adults, £10/£5 children (ideal for ages 5+)

£9

Coach departs 12.10 pm; returns by approx. 2.45 pm

Tuesday 25 July

Stringtastic

2.30 – 3.30 pm Chapter House £8, under 5s FREE (ideal for babies, toddlers and siblings)

Friday 28 July

The Happy Princess

11 am – 12.15 pm Gloucester Cathedral £26, £22, £18, £12 (ideal for ages 7+)

Did you know? Anyone under 25 can book free tickets to our chamber music concerts thanks to the support of the Cavatina Chamber Music Trust. We also offer half-price tickets for families on Universal Credit. Multibuy Offer Book three or more family events and get 20% off your tickets.

Friday 28 July

Mavron Quartet Family Concert

4 – 5 pm Chapter House £8, under 5s FREE (ideal for ages 5+)

Supported by the Cavatina Chamber Music Trust

Saturday 29 July

Three Little Mammoths

11.30 am – 12.30 pm St Mary de Crypt £10 adults, £8 children, under 5s FREE (ideal for ages 5-11)

Hear the story brought to life by the Marsyas Trio, with music by Robin Haigh and text by acclaimed children’s author Eoin McLaughlin, as the three little mammoths migrate to far-off lands.

GET INVOLVED

Whether youʼre completely new to what we do or a regular attender who wants to get more involved, there are plenty of ways to explore and enjoy the festival from a different perspective.

Volunteer

Each year, our team of dedicated volunteers plays a crucial role in the running of the festival, and we couldn’t manage without them. If you’re friendly, self-motivated and enthusiastic we would love to hear from you. Find out more and register your interest at 3choirs.org/volunteer

Three Choirs Festival Youth Choir

If you’re a keen singer aged 14-25, why not join our Youth Choir? There is no charge to participate and no audition required. This year, the Youth Choir will sing their first Choral Evensong, and work alongside British Youth Opera to present Vaughan Williams’ rarely performed masterpiece, The Pilgrim’s Progress. Find full details and how to apply at 3choirs.org/join-in/youth-choir

Community Bandstand

Our Community Bandstand is at the heart of the Festival Village and is a platform on which we celebrate musicmaking and creativity in our host city. We are looking for local performers of any age and any discipline – everyone is welcome! If you are interested in performing or would like further information, please contact bandstand@3choirs.org

YOUR VISIT

Festival Village

The social heart of the festival lies in the Festival Village. Open all day and evening, and situated just outside the cathedral, the village is the perfect place to relax, meet with friends and get to know other people who also love the festival. Why not take advantage of our catering outlets and bar, whilst enjoying a performance on the community bandstand? While you’re visiting, listen out for the cathedral’s chimes, which will be playing a variety of special tunes for the festival.

Guilds of Craftsmen

Members of the Herefordshire, Cotswold and Worcester Guilds will be exhibiting their latest collection of work – the perfect opportunity to buy a festival gift from a highly skilled maker working within the Three Counties.

Ticket Office, Shop and Information Point

There will be a ticket office and shop located in the Festival Village during festival week. The ticket office team and our friendly volunteers will be happy to help with any enquiries or needs you may have.

Cathedral Rehearsals

Want to get a taste of the incredible festival music for free? Then dip into our cathedral rehearsals. You can come in at any point, no ticket needed, and stay for as long or short a time as you would like. There will also be activities for any children who come along. Full details of rehearsal times will be online at 3choirs.org/your-visit nearer the festival.

Festival Village

1. Festival Bar

2. Friends Café

3. Guilds of Craftsmen

4. Community Bandstand

5. Ticket Office, Shop and Information Point

6. Monk’s Kitchen Coffee Shop

7. Cathedral Shop

8. Chapter House

9. Old Bishop’s Palace Garden

10. Lady Chapel

Cathedral Entrances

a. West Door

b. South Porch

c. Pilgrim Door

d. Cloister Door (queue here for Evensong)

e. West Slype

Coaches to outlying venues will collect from and return to Westgate Street, outside Janes Pantry

FESTIVAL VILLAGE

School Dining Hall

what3words information giving precise door and venue locations can be found on the website = Entrance

Gloucester City Venues

Full details of seating areas and venue accessibility can be found online at 3choirs.org/your-visit

5. St Mary de Crypt GL1 1TP

6. St Peter’s Catholic Church GL1 3EX

Coaches to outlying venues will collect from and return to Westgate Street, outside Janes Pantry

Further Afield

Cirencester Parish Church GL7 2NX

All Saints Church, Cheltenham GL52 2hG

Bacon Theatre, Cheltenham GL51 6EP

Holy Trinity Church, Gloucester GL2 0AJ

The Old Rectory, Quenington GL7 5BN

Stratton House Hotel, Cirencester GL7 2LE

Afternoon

Selected

Easter

Lunchtime

8–15 July 2023

Box O ce

01242 850270

cheltenhamfestivals.com/music #CheltMusicFest

Featuring:

Dunedin Consort

Mark Simpson

Doric Quartet

The Carice Singers

City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra

Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha

Laura van der Heijden

Manchester Collective

Scottish Ensemble

James Newby and many more...

EX CATHEDRA

Inspiring singing

Summer Music

Shrewsbury

Tue 13 Jun, 8pm

Hereford Cathedral

Wed 14 Jun, 8pm

Wolverhampton

Thu 15 Jun, 8pm

Birmingham

20-21 Jun, 8pm

London

Tue 27 Jun, 8pm

EX CATHEDRA

Sarah Latto conductor

Unwind and enjoy an evening of enchanting music from across the ages, in celebration of sunshine, sea and summer holidays

Book online at www.excathedra.co.uk

BOOKING INFORMATION

Booking Dates

Patrons from 20 March

Gold Members from 3 April

Silver Members from 12 April

Bronze Members from 19 April

General Public from 26 April

Booking Fees and Dispatch

A £2.50 transaction fee applies to each order. You can choose to have your tickets emailed to you to show on the door on your phone or print them off at home. Alternatively, tickets can be posted out for £1. If you have not received your tickets by 8 July, please contact the ticket office.

Please do use the e-ticket option wherever possible to help reduce the amount we print.

Ticket concessions are available for disabled visitors, and on selected events for young people and families on low incomes. Visit 3choirs.org/bookinginformation for full details.

Transport

We’re working hard to support sustainable local travel. We put on coaches to all our venues outside Gloucester city centre, and you can find out about transport options across the city by visiting

Accessibility

We welcome all visitors to the festival, and aim to assist with access requirements wherever possible. A detailed fact sheet is available at 3choirs.org/your-visit/accessibility, giving full details of access to all venues.

If you have any access requirements, please contact the ticket office directly, prior to booking your tickets. Once we have recorded your access needs, you will then be able to book online or over the phone. For some venues, a very limited number of car parking spaces are available for drivers with a blue badge, which will be allocated on a first come, first served basis.

Souvenir Programme Book

Our beautifully produced programme book contains full details of every concert programme alongside song texts, notes, articles and much more.

Pre-order your programme book to pick up at the festival for a discounted rate of £15 (£20 if purchased during the festival) and receive a digital copy in July to browse before the festival.

Adopt a Piece of History

www.worcestercathedral.co.uk/three-choirs-festival-adopt-a-piece-of-history

Cathedral Seating Plan

You can view seating plans and select your own seats for all reserved venues by booking online. Please note that there is no longer tiered seating in the cathedral and all seating will be on the flat.

Nave (Zones A, B and C) - Seats will be split into three price bands by sightline with the best tickets at top price and seats towards the rear having a view of a TV monitor.

Side Aisles (Zones C and D) – Seats will have varying levels of restricted view due to pillars. Almost all will have a view of a TV monitor.

Transepts (Zone E) and Quire and Presbytery (Zone F) – Seats will have no direct view of the stage but all will have a view of a TV monitor. In these areas some sound imbalance may also be experienced due to being behind the performance area.

No audio enhancement is in place in any part of the cathedral.

Please pay attention to the door indicated on your ticket as this will provide the easiest route to your seat.

Full details of venue accessibility can be found at 3choirs.org/your-visit/ accessibility or please contact our ticket office for more information.

Pilgrim Door

North Transept

South Transept

Organ Screen

Quire, Presbytery and Ambulatories (Unreserved seating)

Sponsors and Supporters

The Three Choirs Festival is grateful to the following organisations and individuals for their generous support:

In Partnership

Friends Organisations ◆ American Friends of the Three Choirs Festival Friends of Gloucester Three Choirs Festival ◆ Three Choirs Membership Scheme

Trusts and Foundations ◆ Cavatina Chamber Music Trust ◆ Richard Hall Charitable Trust

The Perry Family Charitable Trust ◆ The Reed Foundation ◆ DG Albright Charitable Trust

Hawthorne Charitable Trust ◆ Jacqueline & Michael Gee Charitable Trust Limoges Charitable Trust ◆ Vaughan Williams Foundation

Individual Supporters ◆ Richard Arenschieldt ◆ Robert & Sherill Atkins

Mr & Mrs David Ball ◆ Tom Barkes ◆ Joanna Brickell ◆ Professor & Mrs Jeremy Dibble

Michael Guittard & Harry Prince ◆ John Hammond ◆ Bruce Maza ◆ Penny Moore

Katharine O’Carroll ◆ Fr Michael Thomas ◆ Pamela White ◆ Jeremy Wilding & Sue Vaughan

Penny Wright & Andrew Neubauer ◆ Anonymous supporters

Patrons ◆ Adrian Adams & Terence Roberts ◆ Phoebe Ashton ◆ Francis & Elizabeth Byrne

Lady Curtis ◆ Stephen Glover ◆ David Green ◆ Richard Hall ◆ Mr & Mrs M Hosking

Paul Kelly ◆ Mr & Mrs John Malin ◆ David Martin ◆ Penny Moore ◆ Katharine Wedgbury Anonymous patron

Commissioning Circle ◆ Adrian Adams & Terence Roberts ◆ Mr & Mrs Alex Bailey

Mr & Mrs Peter Beesley ◆ Mr Stephen Cottam ◆ Dr Anthony Jeans ◆ Dr Janet Lugg

The Rev Canon Ian Macrea Michael ◆ Mr & Mrs Colin Senior ◆ Mrs Angela Thomson

Chair’s Circle ◆ Miss Enid Castle ◆ Lady Curtis ◆ Professor & Mrs Jeremy Dibble

David Green ◆ Mr Michael Hurst ◆ Sir Michael McWilliam ◆ Mrs Penny Moore

Katharine OʼCarroll ◆ Sir Michael & Lady Perry ◆ Mr Allen Prior ◆ Mr & Mrs Andrew Sanders

Big Give Donors ◆ Thank you to all those who supported us in the Big Give to raise funds for the Three Choirs Festival Voices.

There are a number of ways you can support the work of the Three Choirs Festival. If you are interested in finding out more, please contact our Development Manager, Rachael Hall: rachael.hall@3choirs.org | 01452 768933