Conflict and peace inspire Hertfordshire Festival of Music events
The Hertfordshire Festival of Music returns to Hertford for a week from Saturday (June 7).
This year’s theme is “From Shadows to Light: Musical Journeys in Conflict & Peace”. The festival explores how music serves as a medium to document personal and collective struggles while also illuminating paths towards renewal.
This year’s programme includes a special concert to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the end of the Second World War, with the world premiere of a new work entitled From Shadows Hope Shall Rise.
It was especially written for the occasion by composer and festival artistic director James Francis Brown, and will be performed alongside popular works linked to the wartime era.
On the opening day, prize-winning young ensemble Brompton String Quartet will perform music by Beethoven and Haydn at the historic Friends Meeting House – a building Haydn almost certainly visited during his stay in Hertingfordbury in 1791.
Other festival highlights include an evening of 1940s jazz, a festival church service and an illustrated talk on war artist Paul Nash, alongside an original composition inspired by his work.
The popular Soundbites lunchtime concert will feature music that blends past and present, including the world premiere of a new work.
The festival will culminate in a chamber orchestra concert featuring Benjamin Britten’s Serenade for Tenor, Horn and Strings, a work written in the wartime year of 1943. It will be performed by young tenor Guy Elliott and horn player Chloe Harrison, highlighting the festival’s commitment to nurturing future artists.
There are also education and outreach projects, plus the Music in Mind programme. Now in its fifth year, it brings live sessions to residents living with dementia, their carers and families in care homes, demonstrating music’s enduring power to soothe, uplift and connect.
The festival is supported by Longmores Solicitors, Azets, Hertfordshire County Council, East Herts Council and Hertford Town Council.
For tickets and more information, see https://www.hertsmusicfest.org.uk/.
