Welcome
The 2025 Bath Music Festival has something for everyone.
At its core are two concerts of fabulous Renaissance choral music by Palestrina and Byrd from Stile Antico and The Marian Consort performed in Bath’s great Abbey. Our chamber music from the Marmen and Fibonacci String Quartets offers music by Mozart, Smetana, Haydn and Beethoven among others. We also have three terrific soloists. Artist in Residence Sean Shibe gives three performances, Guy Johnston performs all of Bach’s unforgettable cello suites over three lunchtime concerts and the Forum hosts a star piano recital by Jeneba Kanneh-Mason. Add to this a performance of Mendelssohn’s stunning effervescent Octet and Elena Urioste and Tom Poster’s charming and quirky Juke Box and beautiful baroque music from Ensemble Molière and we have a programme of fabulous musicmaking performed by great artists.
We look forward to seeing you in May.
James Waters
Bath Music Festival Artistic Director
MUSICAL DISCOVERY
Opportunity to hear live music with professional musicians, and experience the instruments up close
St Swithin’s Church, Walcot | 45 minutes
• Sat 5 April, 2.30pm. Strings, for children 4-11+
• Sat 17 May, 10:30am. Baby-friendly (£5.50 adults, £4.50 children)
• Sat 24 May, 2:30pm. Brass, for children 4-11+
Tickets available from musicforminiatures.co.uk Adults -
Saturday 17 may
WILLIAM BYRD: SINGING IN SECRET
7:30–9pm | Bath Abbey | £45 / £35 / £20 | £10 conc.* | BFM1
The Marian Consort, with director Rory McCleery. Music by William Byrd including his Mass in 4 parts.
William Byrd, a master of English Renaissance music, composed extensively for the Catholic liturgy despite the dangers of living as a Catholic in England. This programme features his renowned four-part mass, performed by The Marian Consort, one of today’s leading choral ensembles.
‘Singing one person to a part, The Marian Consort gives sublimely refined, spacious and impeccably tuned performances.’ The Sunday Times
Sunday 18 may
MARMEN STRING QUARTET
2:30–4:15pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM2
Monday 19 may
Haydn String Quartet Op 33 No 2 in E flat ‘Joke’ Mozart String Quartet in C major K465 ‘Dissonance’ Ravel String Quartet
Three timeless masterpieces of the string quartet repertoire are performed by this dynamic young ensemble. Haydn’s playful ‘Joke’ quartet is followed by Mozart’s exquisite quartet dedicated to Haydn. The programme is completed by utterly gorgeous music by Ravel in his 150th anniversary year.
GUY JOHNSTON PLAYS THE BACH CELLO SUITES I
1–2pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 unreserved | £10 conc.* | BFM3
Suite No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007
Suite No. 5 in C minor, BWV 1011
Bach’s Cello Suites are among his very finest compositions. The achievement of creating a huge variety of emotions and virtuoso techniques on one solo instrument is quite extraordinary. One of today’s leading cellists Guy Johnston will play all six suites over three concerts on 19, 21 and 23 May, taking us on a wonderful musical journey.
‘Guy Johnston gives a towering performance that responds to the score’s every shift in mood with complete assurance.’ BBC Music Magazine
* Excluding fees
Monday 19 may
7.30–9pm | Upstairs at Bath Pizza Co | £35 | £10 conc* | BFM4
Sean Shibe, guitar Ben Johnson, tenor
Raucous drinking songs and heartbreak blend in lively lute-song and folk arrangements. Elizabethan lutenist-composers demonstrate vocal melody and laconic affect, while 20th and 21st-century composers allude to Baroque masters with homage and spectacle, culminating in Adès’s beautiful rendition of Purcell’s Evening Hymn.
‘Shibe’s music-making is masterful, beautiful and convincing in every way.’
The Times
This concert is kindly sponsored by William and Wera Hobhouse. NB Please be aware this event is not wheelchair accessible.
tuesday 20 may
SEAN SHIBE IN RECITAL BAWDY SONG: SEAN SHIBE AND BEN JOHNSON
1–2pm | St Mary’s Church, Bathwick | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM5
Bach Suite BWV 1012
Frank Martin Quatre pièces brèves Adès Forgotten Dances
One of the world’s major guitarists performs three suites that explore relationships to baroque dance, each ‘forgotten’ in its time. Martin’s Quatre pièces brèves went un-played until Julian Bream championed the suite in the 1960s, Bach’s Cello Suites were recorded a century after they were likely written and Adès’s Forgotten Dances invokes a range of past composers. Bach is at his most futuristic, while the modern composers allude to Baroque masters offering both homage and spectacle. This concert is kindly sponsored by Evelyn Strasburger.
JUKE BOX with ELENA URIOSTE and TOM POSTER
7.30–9:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM6
Mozart Violin Sonata in A major, K. 305
Lekeu Violin Sonata in G major, and Selections from UriPoste JukeBox
Juke Box was the self-isolation brainchild of these two fabulous musicians, devised to keep their minds sharp, their fingers busy and the online community smiling during the first pandemic lockdown. They posted a new performance each day, which included music ranging from Fauré to Cole Porter, and from the Baroque to Jerome Kern and Mark Simpson. Their eclectic, barrier-breaking choice of music, including new commissions, lives on.
wednesday 21 may
GUY JOHNSTON PLAYS THE BACH CELLO SUITES II
1-2pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £20 unreserved | £10 conc* | BFM7
The second of Guy Johnston’s traversal of Bach’s great cello suites.
Suite No. 3 in C major, BWV 1009
Suite No. 4 in E flat major, BWV 1010
‘Each day I must begin again. For the past 80 years I have started each day in the same manner. When we play an unaccompanied Bach suite, we may compare ourselves to an actor in Shakespeare’s day, creating scenery which did not exist at all, through the power of declamation and suggestion. So, in Bach!’ Pablo Casals
STILE ANTICO: PALESTRINA, THE PRINCE OF MUSIC
7.30–9:15pm | Bath Abbey | £45 / £35 / £20 / £10 | £10 conc.* | BFM8
Music by Palestrina including his timeless ‘Papae Marcelli’ mass, with works by Victoria, Josquin, Arcadelt and Lassus.
Stile Antico make a welcome return to Bath after last year’s stellar performance, this time exploring the sumptuous music of Renaissance composer Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina. This programme explores the music he would have sung at the Sistine Chapel and his influence on his successors.
This concert is kindly sponsored by Heritage Events Ltd.
Thursday 22 may
MENDELSSOHN’S OCTET
4:30–6:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM9
Hildegard von Bingen: O Virtus Sapientiae (arr. Jackie Shave)
Glass: String Quartet No 2 ‘Company’
Brahms: String Sextet No 1 in B flat Op 18
Mendelssohn: Octet in E flat major Op 20
Elena Urioste, violin Chamber Orchestra of the West Jackie Shave, director
Mendelssohn’s Octet is a piece of sparkling charm and virtuosity written when the composer was only 16 years old. Brahms’s B flat Sextet is quite simply one of the most irresistible of all chamber works.
* Excluding fees
Saturday 24 may
FIBONACCI STRING QUARTET
7:30-9:30pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM13
Haydn: String Quartet in B flat, Op.76 No.4 ‘Sunrise’
Smetana: String Quartet in E minor, ‘From My Life’
Beethoven: String Quartet No. 14 in C sharp minor, Op. 131
It is hard to imagine a richer quartet programme. Haydn’s great ‘Sunrise’ quartet is coupled with the unashamed Bohemian romanticism of Smetana’s ‘From My Life’ and Beethoven’s Op 131 quartet is simply unforgettable. Schumann said of Beethoven’s late quartets, ‘They seem to me to stand...on the extreme boundary of all that has hitherto been attained by human art and imagination.’
This concert is kindly sponsored by Jimmy and Hiroko Sherwin.
Sunday 25 may
Baroque
at its best:
ENSEMBLE MOLIERE – THE DANCING STAR
3–4:45pm | St Swithin’s Church, The Paragon | £35 / £25 / £15 | £10 conc.* | BFM14
Campra: Ouverture from Tancrède
Handel: Entrée des songes from Alcina
Rameau: Suites from Dardanus
Handel: Suites from Terpsicore
Rameau: Les Fleurs Suites from Les Indes Galantes
Rebel: Les Caractères de la danse
Ensemble Molière, a brilliant period ensemble who have been BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists, bring a delectable programme of dance music by two very different geniuses, Handel and Rameau, with some treats from Campra and Rebel. The juxtaposition of German and French high Baroque music with a bit of Italian music thrown in for good measure means that the festival will end in toe-tapping style.
Celebrate Bath Phil’s 25th Anniversary at a gala concert full of orchestral classics and celebrity fizz. www.bathphil.co.uk
Thursday 22 May 2025
The Forum, 7.30pm
Bath Box Office: 01225 463362 bathfestivals.org.uk
Box Office Counter 1a Forum Buildings, St James’ Parade, BA1 1UG
Monday–Friday, 10am–5pm
You’re invited to join Bath’s biggest FREE party
as the city centre bursts into life for one night only on Friday 16 May. Join the fun and follow the Party in the City trail from park to pub, from church to museum, to hear the best from the local creative scene.
Musicians, poets, bands and choirs will perform in over 40 venues across the city including Bath Abbey, Komedia, Green Park Station and Parade Gardens. Help us keep it green by bringing your own reusable cups, bowls and cutlery, and make use of the recycling available on site!
This year we end the festival with a fundraising afterparty in Komedia on Bank Holiday Monday 26th May, featuring Reverend and the Makers, The Ramona Flowers plus Alex Lipinski and The Crown Electric. Tickets from www.komediabath.co.uk.
The full programme of events will be available online, and you’ll be able to pick up a programme flyer in venues across the city. Look out for our Party in the City app!
KEEP PARTY IN THE CITY FREE
Help us keep Party in The City free by looking out for donation pots during the night - or donate online at bathfestivals.org.uk/support/make-a-donation/
THANK YOU
A big thank you to all the venues who take part in Party in the City and to all the musicians, singers and performers who give their time and talent. Generously supported by
A Story of Destruction and Rebuilding
Monday 19 May
Tuesday 20 May
Wednesday 21 May
Saturday 24 May 10am–12pm 2–4pm 5–7pm 5–7pm
Around 2 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT2
Start: Orange Grove, by the obelisk (BA1 1LP)
Finish: Bath War Memorial, entrance to Royal Victoria Park, Queen’s Parade (BA1 2NJ)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Bath suffered from devastating air raids in World War Two. On two nights in April 1942, over 400 people lost their lives and thousands of buildings were damaged. Join this walk led by an expert Blue Badge-qualified guide to discover why the city was targeted by the Luftwaffe. See reconstructed and restored buildings, bomb craters and shrapnel damage, and learn about now-vanished churches, air raid shelters and evacuees.
Delivered by Sulis Guides (sulisguides.com) and organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
"well, here we are at Bath"
Saturday 17 May
Sunday 18 May
Tuesday 20 May
Thursday 22 May
Saturday 24 May
Celebrating the 250th anniversary of Jane Austen's Birth
Sunday 25 May 10am–12pm 5–7pm 5–7pm 10am–12pm 2–4pm 2–4pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT3
Start: Centre of Queen Square by obelisk (BA1 2HA)
Finish: Trim Street (BA1 1HD)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Jane Austen’s five years in Bath shaped her writing for life. Where are the locations that really matter and what do they tell us about her characters? Did Austen genuinely dislike Bath? Why do thousands of readers flock here to walk in her footsteps and what would she have thought about it? Using Jane’s own words, explore all this and more on a walking tour of the city with a qualified Blue Badge tour guide.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Less Discovered Bath
Five Georgian Crescents
Saturday 17 May
Monday 19 May
Friday 23 May
Sunday 25 May 5–7pm 5–7pm 10am–12pm 10am–12pm
Around 2 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT4
Start: in the centre of The Circus, near the trees (BA1 2ET)Finish: outside Bath Assembly Rooms (BA1 2QH) Not suitable for wheelchair users.
2025 marks the 250th anniversary of the completion of The Royal Crescent, Bath’s most famous Georgian landmark, but the city has other less well-known crescents to discover. This mostly off-the-beaten-tourist-track walk around Bath’s beautiful northern slopes, led by a qualified Blue Badge tour guide, takes in five crescents. Expect eye-catching architectural details, memorable views, and stories about significant former residents who were collectors, artists and writers. Note: the walk involves a steep climb.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Bath’s rich musical heritage: the venues and the people
Saturday 17 May
Sunday 18 May
Tuesday 20 May
Thursday 22 May
Saturday 24 May
Sunday 25 May 2–4pm 10am–12pm 10am–12pm 2–4pm 10am–12pm 5–7pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT6
Start: outside No1 Royal Crescent (BA1 2LR)
Finish: outside the Holburne Museum (BA2 4DB)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
When Bath was the most fashionable resort in England in the 18th century, music formed a key part of the entertainment on offer. This walking tour will focus on the places where music filled the air in the city’s Georgian heyday and highlight superstar performers from the era. Led by a qualified Blue Badge tour guide, the tour will also cover contemporary music, including famous venues and household-name musicians with local connections.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
* Excluding fees
Monday 19 May
Wednesday 21 May
Friday 23 May 2–4pm 2–4pm 2–4pm
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT5
Start: Abbey Churchyard (BA1 1LY), in front of the big doors of Bath Abbey
Finish: Bath Abbey
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
This walking tour explores Bath’s ties to Britain’s 18th-century slave economy, highlighting its transformation from spa town to fashionable city. It examines how wealthy entrepreneurs like James Brydges and Sir William Johnstone Pulteney, who were linked to the Transatlantic Slave Trade, profited from constructing lodgings for affluent visitors. Delivered by qualified Blue Badge tour guide, Rob Collin.
Organised by Fred Mawer Tours.
Bath urban Treescape Walk
250 Years of the Bath urban Treescape
Around 1.5 miles | Two hours | £20* | WT7
Start: Orange Grove (BA1 2LP)
Finish: Royal Avenue (BA1 2DS)
Suitable for wheelchair users. Gentle-paced walking, on pavements, with frequent stops.
Wednesday 21 May 10am–12pm There were trees in Jane Austen’s Bath, but not always in the places we see them today. This walk will reveal the history of the city’s trees and green spaces, the ways they have been appreciated, and how the planting or removal of trees in Bath has excited the passions of its citizens - conkers, student protests, chimney sweeps and women carrying concealed billhooks all play a part in the story of Bath’s trees. Led by Bath’s own urban tree specialists, there will be time to learn about the types of tree that have proved popular in Bath’s streets and the mistakes that were made along the way.
Organised by The Bath Urban Treescape.
to book
tickets are subject to a fee of 10% All orders are subject to a booking
Pre-Festival book events
Walking Tours
Literature Music
MONDAY 19 MAY
WT: Bath Blitz
Turner & Constable
Guy Johnston: Bach Cello Suite 1
WT: Slave Economy Walk
WT: Five Georgian Crescents
Emma Gannon
Alan Johnson
William Hanson
Bawdy Song: Sean Shibe & Ben Johnson
TUESDAY 20 MAY
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
The Island We Call Home
Sean Shibe in Recital
WT: Bath Blitz
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Philippa Forrester
Martin Clunes
Kit de Waal
Katherine Webber
Juke Box. Elena Urioste & Tom Poster
WEDNESDAY 21 MAY
WT: Bath Urban Treescape Myth, Memoir & Meaning of Home
Guy Johnston: Bach Cello Suite 2
WT: Slave Economy Walk
WT: Bath Blitz
Robert Macfarlane
Jeremy Vine
The Good, The Bad & The Rugby
Stile Antico: Palestrina
Prince of Music
Diary of events
Young Adult book events
10am–12pm
1–2pm
1–2pm
2–4pm
5–7pm
7–8pm
7–8pm
7:30–8:30pm
7:30–9pm
10am–12pm
1–2pm
1–2pm
2–4pm
5–7pm
6–7pm
7–8pm
7–8pm
7–8pm
7:30–9:30pm
10am-12pm 1–2pm
1–2pm
2–4pm
5–7pm
7–8pm
7–8pm
7:30–8:30pm
7:30–9:15pm
Orange Grove - at the obelisk
The Mission Theatre
St. Swithin’s Church
Bath Abbey
The Circus
The Mission Theatre
Waterstones
Guildhall - Banqueting
Upstairs at Bath Pizza Co.
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
The Mission Theatre
St Mary's Church, Bathwick
Orange Grove - at the obelisk
Queen's Square by obelisk
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
Waterstones (downstairs)
St. Swithin’s Church
Orange Grove BA12LP
The Mission Theatre
St. Swithin’s Church
Bath Abbey
Orange Grove - at the obelisk
Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
The Forum
Bath Abbey
Diary of events
Pre-Festival book events
Walking Tours
THURSDAY 22 MAY
WT3
BFF1
WT6
BFM9
WT1
BFF2
BFF3
BFF4
BFF5
WT: Jane Austen Walk
The Radical Science of Susceptible Minds
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
Mendelssohn's Octet
WT: Bath on Screen
Max Hastings
Mike Berners-Lee
Jason Reynolds
Donna Ashworth
FRIDAY 23 MAY
WT4
BFG1
BFM10
WT5
WT1
BFG2
BFG3
BFG4
WT: Five Georgian Crescents
The Wonder of George Orwell
Guy Johnston: Bach Cello Suite 3
WT: Slave Economy Walk
WT: Bath on Screen
JoJo Moyes
Katy Birchall
David Baddiel
Literature Music
Young Adult book events
Code Title Time Venue 10am–12pm 1–2pm 2–4pm 4:30–6:30pm 5–7pm 5–6pm 7–8pm 7–8pm 7:30–8:30pm 10am–12pm 1–2pm 1–2pm 2–4pm 5–7pm 7–8pm 6:30–7:30pm 7–8pm 7.30–9.30pm
Queen's Square by obelisk
The Mission Theatre
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
St. Swithin’s Church
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Waterstones
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Circus
The Mission Theatre
St. Swithin’s Church
Bath Abbey
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
The Mission Theatre
Waterstones
Guildhall - Banqueting
BFM11
Jeneba Kanneh-Mason
Piano Recital
The Forum
Diary of events
Pre-Festival book events
Walking Tours
Literature Music
Young Adult book events
SATURDAY 24 MAY
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
Sayeeda Warsi
Daniel Kehlman
Carol Klein
Ivo Graham
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Steve Reich Counterpoints
Susie Dent
Lionel Shriver
WT: Bath Blitz
Chris Chibnall
Madeleine Thien
Ruth Jones
Fibonacci String Quartet
SUNDAY 25 MAY
WT: Five Georgian Crescents
Holly Smale
Nicki Chapman
Michelle de Kretser
WT: Jane Austen Walk
Ensemble Moliere -
The Dancing Star
Richard Coles
Geoff Dyer
WT: Bath Rich Musical Heritage, the Venues & the People
Callie Hart
Emma Barnett
Stuart Maconie
MONDAY 26 MAY
Joanne Harris Code Title
10am–12pm 11am–12pm 12–1pm 1:30–2:30pm 2–3pm
2–4pm 3–4:45pm
4–5pm
5–6pm
5–7pm 6:30–7:30pm 7–8pm
7:30–8:30pm 7:30–9:30pm
10am–12pm 12–1pm 1:30–2:30pm
2–3pm
2–4pm
3–4:45pm
4–5pm
4–5pm 5–7pm
6:30–7:30pm 6:30–7:30pm 6:30–7:30pm
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
Christchurch
Queen's Square by obelisk St Mary's Church, Bathwick
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Orange Grove - at the obelisk Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
The Forum
St. Swithin’s Church
The Circus
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
Queen's Square by obelisk
St. Swithin’s Church
Guildhall - Banqueting
The Mission Theatre
No 1 Royal Crescent (outside)
The Mission Theatre
Guildhall - Banqueting
Waterstones
