Enjoy Celebrity Radio’s 2016 Barnes Music Festival Highlights by Gyles Brandreth….
The Barnes Music Festival is back from March 5-th – 20th 2016! This year the theme is ‘Handel and the composers of Barnes’.
It is impossible to overstate the influence of composer George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) on classical music in general and on London musical life in particular.
Barnes was the first place he resided in 1711 when he arrived in London and he was to stay in the capital for most of the rest of his celebrated life.
Artistic Director, tenor Daniel Turner and Festival Chairman Andrew Summers have devised a packed programme of over twenty-five events at leading venues across Barnes.
This rapidly expanding Festival is now in its fourth year and welcomes distinguished international artists as well as emerging talent and enjoys the warm support of the local community in an area that is extremely proud of its musical heritage, as strikingly reflected in this year’s events.
The festival is organised by the Barnes Music Society, the Barnes Choir and the Friends of St Mary’s Barnes. It is also supported by Chestertons, the Barnes Community Association and other local businesses.
Find out more HERE!
Here’s Gyles in conversation with Alex Belfield….
There will be a special scene-setting pre-Festival event on 12th Feb with Lars Tharp: ‘Strumpets & Nightingales: Pleasure’s Progress from Barn Elms to Vauxhall Gardens’ which paints a theatrical picture in words, images, objects and music of 18th century London, to which you are most welcome.
Festival highlights include:-
~ the opening concert on 5th March which showcases both Howard Goodall’s ‘Eternal Light’ and Roxanna Panufnik’s ‘The Audience’ in the presence of both of these popular local composers
~ an eagerly anticipated performance of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ on 6th March
~ a talk on 8th March by acclaimed singer, James Bowman on the art of the counter-tenor, introduced by Chris Patten
~ the world premiere of Jim Parker’s Sonata for Oboe & Piano on 10th March;
~ ‘Singing Shakespeare’ on 11th March
~ a guitar recital by the celebrated Craig Ogden on 12th March
~ an evening devoted to the works of Erik Satie by Alistair McGowan on 14th March
~ the Barnes Choir in a performance of Handel’s ‘Israel in Egypt’ on 19th March
plus the launch of a new book on Barnes and its composers together with an ambitious photography exhibition that takes as its theme ‘Visions of Handel’s Messiah’.
Additionally there will be jazz at the famous Bull’s Head; exciting community events plus the screening of Tony Palmer’s film on Handel: ‘Got Rot Tunbridge Wells’.
Performances are given in several local venues including St Mary’s Barnes, St Michael’s Barnes, the OSO Arts Centre, Olympic Studios and The Bull’s Head.
Interview by Alex Belfield for Celebrity Radio 5th March 2016.
Leave a Reply