Ryedale Festival returns next month for a season of inspiring, world-class performances in historic locations

The summer festival programme features a line up of artists-in-residence, world premieres and legendary performers from Friday, July 15.

Six world premieres take centre stage at the festival. Julian Philips marks the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams with Looking West, a major new work inspired by the ancient stories and landscapes of northern England. Roxanna Panufnik’s Babylonia goes on an imaginative journey to the Middle East, while Errollyn Wallen and Tarik O’Regan explore the myth of creation in their co-composed work Ancestor, which will be premiered by Philharmonia Baroque. Joseph Howard’s community song cycle Seven Mercies celebrates the heritage and local talent of Pickering, Robert Balanas will be debuting an ABBA medley for solo violin, and Callum Au is bringing a new work co-commissioned with Spitalfields Festival.

A strong line up of Artists in Residence will be delighting audiences throughout the festival. Roderick Williams leads two of the four concerts marking the 150th anniversary of the birth of Ralph Vaughan Williams with Christopher Glynn and fellow artists in residence the Maxwell Quartet, and will also lead a singing masterclass with talented young artists. The Gesualdo Six will perform two vibrant programmes in Ampleforth Abbey and Castle Howard.

An unmissable collaboration between the festival’s two ensembles in residence, National Youth Choir of Great Britain and San Francisco’s Philharmonia Baroque (in their first UK tour for over a decade) will present one of Handel’s Dixit Dominus, a tour-de-force of vocal and instrumental virtuosity that bubbles with the energy and exuberance of youth.

There is also a strong focus on Ryedale Festival Young Artists. Violinist Roberts Balanas performs a late-night candlelit concert, while the spellbinding Scottish accordionist Ryan Corbett sets out on a ‘troubadour trail’ across Ryedale, bringing music – from the grandeur of Bach to the romance of Tchaikovsky – to beautiful and little-known churches across the region.

Other highlights include the London Mozart Players with pianist/conductor Martin James Bartlett, The National Youth Choir of Great Britain performing a captivating programme on the theme of environment, Pete Long and Friends performing 100 Years of Jazz in 99 Minutes, and some of today’s fastest-rising soloists, including violinist Johan Dalene, cellist Bruno Phillipe, trumpeter Lucienne Renaudin Vary, harpsichordist Richard Egarr, and pianists Rebeca Omordia and Alim Beisembayev.

First-time ticket-buyers can come to selected events for only £10. Under 18s for only £5. And all are invited to enjoy the additional content that will be shared free-to-view on the Festival’s digital platform RyeStream.

Christopher Glynn, Artistic Director of the Ryedale Festival, said: “From legendary artists like Dame Janet Baker to stars of the new generation like the Kanneh-Masons, we’ve brought together a line-up of international quality to perform in stunning locations across the beautiful area of Ryedale in North Yorkshire, from historic old churches to magnificent stately homes.

"As always, the festival is a celebration of music and place, and how they can enhance each other. I’m especially pleased that we are working with the Richard Shephard Music Foundation to bring musical opportunities to primary school children across Yorkshire and that hundreds of tickets will be available from as little as £5 for Under 18s and first-time attenders. We look forward to welcoming music-lovers from far and wide to Ryedale this summer."

For more information go to https://ryedalefestival.com