Bath Festival 2024

[mopsus]

Just got my brochure for the 2024 Bath Festival today. Oh dear.... With less than one concert per day (7 professional performances, plus local amateur groups in the opening Party in the City, during the 10 days of the festival) music is being squeezed out. What's on – The Bath Festival : The Bath Festival (bathfestivals.org.uk)

[Lordgeous]

Its sadly a dim shadow of its former glory.

[gurnemanz]

Its sadly a dim shadow of its former glory.

Indeed. A lot of book plugging. We live not too far away but haven't been tempted for years. Memories from yesteryear which come immediately to mind are a punk-period Nigel Kennedy in a not large church venue, Brigitte Fassbaender in The Assembly Rooms, Mikhail Pletnev in The Guldhall.

[mopsus]

Indeed. A lot of book plugging. We live not too far away but haven't been tempted for years. Memories from yesteryear which come immediately to mind are a punk-period Nigel Kennedy in a not large church venue, Brigitte Fassbaender in The Assembly Rooms, Mikhail Pletnev in The Guldhall.

It merged with the Bath:Literature Festival in 2017 although 'was absorbed by' might be a better description. ACE Cultural Tours organise trips to the February Bachfest and the November Mozartfest here, but I can't see their coaches rolling up in May. It is fair to say that in its original form the Festival encompassed much more than classical music and has always had a turbulent history (those interested can read about this in 'Fifty Festivals' by Tim Bullamore, available second-hand), but since Joanna McGregor departed in 2012 the classical music content has dwindled. The 'revived' Bath Festival Orchestra and Chorus (though with the latter now comprised of early-career professional singers rather than good local amateurs) seems to be inactive.

We do still have concerts in the Bachfest weekend (Tenebrae visited this year) and the week-long Mozartfest, the latter run by the Bath Festival's former director Amelia Freedman. The programming for these tends to be conservative, though I did hear the Vienna String Sextet performing Verklärte Nacht at the Mozartfest one year.

[Serial_Apologist]

The programming for these tends to be conservative, though I did hear the Vienna String Sextet performing Verklärte Nacht at the Mozartfest one year.

That seems now to be about as far as any promoter is prepared to go as regards programming Schoenberg.

[mopsus]

indeed. The Vienna String Sextet were on their farewell tour and gave two concerts in Bath. (Review: Vienna String Sextet | Classical music | The Guardian). A number of people had come over from Bristol specifically to hear them play the Schoenberg.