Newbury Spring Festival announces replacement of Russian orchestra finale
On Wednesday – the day public booking opened for the 2022 Newbury Spring Festival and the programme was launched at The Post at Snelsmore House – director Mark Eynon announced the replacement of Russian Symphony Orchestra with distinguished British orchestra Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra.
The orchestra will perform the same programme as originally scheduled, on the final night of the festival, Saturday, May 21. British violinist Chloe Hanslip will still make her festival debut in the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto. The orchestra will be conducted by their founder and music director Marios Papadopoulos.
Mark Eynon also reassured festival-goers that Ukrainian pianist Vadym Kholodenko, star winner of the prestigious Van Cliburn Competition, is now based in Luxembourg and confirmed that he will be performing Beethoven’s Emperor Concerto with BBC Symphony Orchestra as originally planned on Saturday, May 14, under conductor Ryan Wigglesworth.
Following a cancelled 2020 festival and a reduced capacity 2021 festival, put back to to the autumn, Mark announced the return of Newbury Spring Festival to its traditional two weeks in May (7-21), visiting again some of its best loved rural venues, for an exciting programme of world-class music.
This year, as we celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee, the festival opens to the long awaited performance of Mozart’s Coronation Mass performed by Newbury’s own festival chorus, finally back in full force, with London Mozart Players under the direction of Stephen Barlow.
The same stellar cast of young soloists including soprano Sophie Bevan and rising star Ema Nikolovska , all previously scheduled for May 2020, will finally perform, as will many other musicians who were cancelled in 2020 and unable to appear in the 2021 Autumn Festival.
The festival also celebrates the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams, with a series of events including a broadcast performance by BBC Symphony Orchestra of his Fourth Symphony and an afternoon of his major works for brass band performed by the Tredegar Town Band.
Other highlights include the return of VOCES8 celebrating their 15th anniversary and England’s greatest lutenist Elizabeth Kenny, for A Taste of England at The Vineyard.
The festival also welcomes three great British Dames: Janet Baker, who gives a rare interview at Englefield House, Imogen Cooper for a Sunday afternoon recital at the Corn Exchange and Jane Glover, who will be talking about her passion for Mozart.
Introducing little ones to the magic of music, CBeebie's favourite YolanDa’s Band Jam, featuring YolanDa Brown and her Bandjaminals, will take the series to the Corn Exchange, and there's a return to Sheepdrove for Sound Beginnings, a special family-friendly performance of A Midsummer Night’s Dream with music from Weber and Mendelssohn, arranged for two pianos.
This is supported by an education programme full of opportunities for young people to attend performances, workshops and master classes free of charge, building the audiences and artists of the future, a highlight of which will be Tasmin Little’s long-awaited violin masterclass with local students, postponed from the 2020 festival.
Among its many beautiful locations, the festival returns to Englefield House, for an immersive performance of Jonathan Dove’s opera Mansfield Park, to Highclere Castle, for an intimate evening of Bach Cello Suites, by Tchaikovsky Prize Winner Andrei Ionita and to Douai Abbey for The Sixteen’s Choral Pilgrimage under Harry Christophers.
And for. the first time, there will also be performances at Church of the Ascension, Burghclere and St John’s Church, Newbury.
Festival director Mark Eynon said: "I am excited to be able to welcome so many world-class legendary musicians to the festival, along with some brilliant young stars of the future.
"I am also delighted that we’ve been able to honour many of the performances that sadly had to be cancelled in 2020.
"We’d also like to thank all our donors and supporters without which this fantastic festival would not be possible. We cannot wait to welcome back our regular festival attendees and we also look forward to welcoming newcomers to this year's varied programme of events."
The full festival programme can be found at www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk
Full event list for the 2022 festival:
Saturday 7
London Mozart Players
St Nicolas Church, Newbury
7.30pm
Bollywood Brass
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Sunday 8
A Musical Mural
Kennet Shopping centre, Newbury
10am-3pm
Festival Service
St John's Church, Newbury
10am
Sound Beginnings
Sheepdrove Eco Centre
11am and 3pm
Imogen Cooper
Corn Exchange, Newbury
3pm
4 Girls 4 Harps
St Mary’s Church, Kintbury
7.30pm
Monday 9
Ensemble Moliere
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
Andrei Ioniță
Highclere Castle, Highclere
7.30pm
Tuesday 10
Dame Janet Baker
Englefield House, Theale
3pm
Flook
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Kinsky Trio
Church of the Ascension, Burghclere
7.30pm
Wednesday 11
Connaught Brass
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
London Tango Quintet
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Mansfield Park Opera
Englefield House
7.30pm
Thursday 12
Vaughan Williams and the New English Hymnal
St George’s Church, Wash Common
11am
Young Frankenstein
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Rant
Donnington Priory, Newbury
7.30pm
Friday 13
Trio Doyenne
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
duo
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Words, Spoken & Sung
Holy Cross Church, Ramsbury
7.30pm
Sheepdrove Recital
Sheepdrove Eco Centre, Lambourn
8pm
Saturday 14
duo
Parkway Shopping, Newbury
10am
Tasmin Little
Corn Exchange, Newbury
10am
YolanDa’s Band Jam
Corn Exchange, Newbury
3pm
YolanDa Brown
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
BBC Symphony Orchestra
St Nicolas Church, Newbury
7.30pm
Sunday 15
Tredegar Town Band
Victoria Park Bandstand, Newbury
12noon
Piano Competition Final
Sheepdrove Eco Centre, Lambourn
3pm
Tredegar Town Band
Corn Exchange, Newbury
3pm
Cabaret at Combe
Combe Manor, Combe
8pm
Monday 16
Piano Competition Winner
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
A Taste of England
The Vineyard, Stockcross
7.30pm
Tuesday 17
Liz Robertson talks to Edward Seckerson
The Chapel, Sydmonton Court
11.30am
Kakatsitsi
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Northern Chords
St Mary’s Church, Shaw
7.30pm
Wednesday 18
Deschanel Gordon
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
My Fair Lady
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Voces 8
St Martin's Church, East Woodhay
7.30pm
Thursday 19
Dame Jane Glover
Shaw House, Newbury
3pm
Ballet Central
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
Oculi Ensemble
St Lawrence Church, Hungerford
7.30pm
Friday 20
Echea Quratet
Corn Exchange, Newbury
12.30pm
Julian Joseph Trio
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
The Sixteen
Douai Abbey, Woolhampton
7.30pm
Saturday 21
Julian Joseph Academy
Corn Exchange, Newbury
10am
Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra
St Nicolas Church, Newbury
7.30pm
Rainer Hirsch
Corn Exchange, Newbury
7.30pm
