Preview events to suit all ahead of Cambridge Summer Music Festival
The countdown to the 40th annual Cambridge Summer Music Festival has begun!
Tickets are selling fast for Cambridge Summer Music Festival 2018 and it’s easy to see why.
Events in the first week alone feature all kinds of classical music from baroque to contemporary (and everything in between); solo recitals to a full symphony orchestra with chorus; a smattering of world music; an outdoor concert; and even a silent movie.
The festival proper kicks off on July 5 with an appropriately celebratory programme featuring Mozart’s 40th Symphony, the Fauré Requiem and Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms (Thursday, July 5, 8pm, King’s College Chapel) performed by The Bach Choir and Orpheus Sinfonia. But if you can’t wait until then, there are three exciting pre-festival events to keep you going.
Firstly, the Schubert Ensemble return to Cambridge for their final season, marking the close of a long and hugely successful musical partnership. Alongside Vaughan Williams’ richly romantic Piano Quintet (a recently discovered early work) and Dvorák’s exuberant Piano Quartet in E Flat, they will perform their 50th and final major commission, a piano quintet by Judith Weir. This tender, witty piece reimagines Schubert’s famous song of farewell, Abschied (Saturday, June 23, 7.30pm, Fitzwilliam College auditorium).
Secondly, the Master of Pembroke College and former culture secretary Chris Smith will reflect on The State of the Arts, reviewing the past 20 years of arts achievement and policy in Britain, and the challenges and issues that lie ahead (Monday, July 2, 6pm, Old Library, Pembroke College).
Finally there’s a preview of Cambridge Summer Music’s hugely popular Sounds Green open air concerts, held in the university’s Botanic Garden. This light-hearted, easy-going evening offers the delicious experience of relaxing under the trees listening to the talented Cambridge-based band Prime Brass (Wednesday, July 4, 6.15pm, Cambridge University Botanic Garden).
For more information and to book tickets, visit cambridgesummermusic.co.uk or cambridgelivetrust.co.uk/tickets or call 01223 356851.
Tickets are also available from the Cambridge Live box office, Wheeler Street, Cambridge, CB2 3QB (Monday–Friday 12pm–6pm; Saturday 10am–6pm).
