Classical Preview: Outstanding line-up for Early Music Festival

Walk through the door of Beverley Minster and you are surrounded by the antiquity that wraps itself around many of the concerts in the annual Early Music Festival.

This year ranks among its finest array of outstanding musicians, opening with the celebrated world-ranking choral group, The Tallis Scholars. In a programme devised around the word, Magnificat, they include works by Palestrina, Tallis, Allegri and Preatorius, and contrast those sounds with sacred music of our time from the Estonian, Arvo Part, including the haunting Sieben Magnificat-Antiphonen.

The following evening the instrumental group, Academy of Ancient Music, directed by David Watkin, play mainly concertos by Wassenaer, Corelli, Handel and Vivaldi.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Saturday lunchtime features the immensely gifted recorder virtuoso, Pamela Thorby, in the company of Susanna Heinrich’s viola da gamba, and harpsichordist, Peter Seymour, with works by Bach, Abel and Telemann.

Later in the day we move to the beautiful acoustics of the Toll Gavel Methodist Church, for that outgoing sextet, The Burning Bush. You will be expected to stamp and clap with their ear-catching melodies taken from the traditional and old Jewish world. The festival also includes the Beverley Early Music Festival Schools’ Chorus singing two major works by Mozart; Joglaresa taking you on a musical journey to South Asia and Eastern Europe, and finally in the church at Werter Fay Newton and an instrumental group perform songs by Morley, Jones and Campion.

Beverley and East Riding Early Music Festival, May 26-29, 01904 658338.