Returning music festival aims to bring Elgar to everyone - The Worcester Observer

Returning music festival aims to bring Elgar to everyone

Worcester Editorial 23rd Apr, 2022   0

A CELEBRATION of the life and music of Worcestershire’s most famous composer will return to the county in early summer.

Organisers of The Elgar Festival have announced the dates for the 2022 Platinum Jubilee event, which will take place between Friday, June 3 and Sunday, June 5.

The festival – which was launched in 2018 – was established by decree of Worcester City Council and is traditionally held on the weekend closest to Elgar’s birthday, June 2 1857.

This year’s festival will combine orchestral, chamber, vocal and choral concerts with exhibits and lectures to celebrate the life and music of Sir Edward Elgar at various venues in Worcestershire.




Entitled ‘Elgar for Everyone’, the festival brings together an array of internationally renowned guest artists, placing the music of Worcester’s most famous son alongside that of his contemporaries and some of today’s leading composers and arrangers.

Kenneth Woods, artistic director of the Elgar Festival said: “We are thrilled to announce the dates for this year’s Elgar Festival. And what better way to commemorate the Platinum Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen, than with a weekend of the best of British music, played in the heart of Elgar country.


“From the soulful resonance of a great string orchestra to the purity of a professional chamber choir, from the intimacy of a song recital to the grandeur of a gala, from tangos to tea parties, the 2022 Jubilee Elgar Festival promises to be a once in a lifetime celebration of both music and monarch. We look forward to welcoming you!”

Some of the highlights for 2022 include the Royal Platinum Jubilee Gala Concert at Worcester Cathedral on June 4 at 7.30pm and the yearly ‘Elgar’s Strings’ concert on June 3 at 7pm at Worcester’s Guildhall which features the English String Orchestra in Elgar’s Introduction and Allegro.

A celebratory tea party with musical entertainment at The Royal Porcelain Works will be held on June 5 at 1pm and throughout the festival, the Guildhall will have an exhibition on display of Elgar memorabilia on loan from prestigious private collections.

Since it began in 2018 – lauded as ‘Critic’s Pick’ in both The Guardian and The Times – the festival has doubled in size and scale and championed Sir Edward to as wide an audience as possible.

“It’s a little known fact that in 1930, Elgar dedicated one of his final compositions to Princess Elizabeth, her newborn sister Margaret and their mother, then Duchess of York. It is therefore very fitting that we will be celebrating both Elgar’s music and the Queen’s Jubilee on the same weekend,” Kenneth added.

Visit www.elgarfestival.org for more.

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