Festival: Cheltenham Music Festival

July 4th - 15th, 2018

Established in 1945, Cheltenham Music Festival boasts an outstanding reputation for high calibre performances, inventive programming and a growing schools and family strand. It takes place in a range of first-class venues in the beautiful Regency town of Cheltenham and across the Cotswolds in cathedrals, abbeys, country houses and churches.

From hands-on family concerts to world premieres by the world’s finest performers, Cheltenham Music Festival promises two weeks of sublime and surprising musical adventures for all ages. Expect orchestral concerts by world-class orchestras and soloists in the fine acoustic of Cheltenham Town Hall, superb chamber music concerts in the Pittville Pump Rooms set in beautiful parkland and choral concerts in the glorious spaces of Gloucester Cathedral and Tewkesbury Abbey. Mixed in to this are film, dance, drama, early music and world music in a range of venues in Cheltenham and beyond such as Cheltenham Ladies’ College Parabola Arts Centre; Everyman Theatre; Dean Close School Chapel and St Swithin’s, Quenington.

Impressive past performers have included Nicola Benedetti, with whom the festival has had a long association, the Halle, the CBSO, Bryn Terfel, Steven Isserlis, Alfie Boe, Milos and Evelyn Glennie. The Festival is proud to offer a platform for emerging performers, including BBC New Generation Artists, BBC Young Musician winners and local young musicians from Gloucestershire. 

The inaugural festival saw Benjamin Britten conducting the first performances of his Interludes and Dances from Peter Grimes and a strong focus on British contemporary music continues to this day. The Festival’s Composer Academy, now in its 6th year, gives emerging composers the opportunity to have their compositions workshopped, performed and recorded, as well career advice from industry professionals.

The Festival offers inspirational and interactive opportunities for over 3000 local school children to make, enjoy and appreciate classical music and has recently appointed Alison Balsom, one of classical music’s great ambassadors, as Artistic Director, reflecting the Festival’s continued commitment to make the arts accessible to new audiences.

For full information, visit the Cheltenham Music Festival website.