Buxton International Festival Opera & Music brochure 2018 by Buxton International Festival

BUXTON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL Opera.Music.Books

Opera & Music

6–22 JULY

Box Office: 01298 72190 www.buxtonfestival.co.uk

Supporters Buxton International Festival and artists are very grateful for the support of the followingÂ organisations: Funders The European Agricultural FundÂ for Rural Development: Europe investing in rural areas

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Welcome

Every summer since 1979 Buxton has opened its arms in warm welcome as it becomes the annual meeting place for tens of thousands of like-minded people from all over the country and abroad, along with an overflow of visiting writers and artists of all persuasions and skills. Buxton celebrates its role as host for artistic diversity in all its naturalness where those making the journey find shared interests, coming together with curiosity and anticipation, looking for magic and informal education to a high degree, and enthusiastically seeking the pleasure lyric and musical arts and literature combined with thought and comment engender. As you look through these packed pages of opera productions and concerts, your eye will light upon artists with worldwide reputations alongside those who will be new to you but already wear the shining mantle of promise. The Festival prides itself on the closest and warmest relationships with artists who visit time and again, bringing programmes of music of especial meaning to them. Festival audiences in return, with their broad-church curiosity, concentration and warmth are an indelible attraction to all the artists, so many of whom refer specifically to the quality of the listening our audiences give so readily.

For those looking for themes, never so often prevalent at Buxton, there are threads nonetheless. Schubert, quite visibly this year glides gently but powerfully through our concerts, and Brahms is never far, and there are others for those to find, all leavened with particular programme mixes to surprise or perhaps to confirm connections the music lover always looks for. Our aim, with the unique blend of books, concerts and opera, is to provide perhaps what you might not know, to give you much to take away, and always to sharpen your interest and fill your much-appreciated hours pleasurably. And I hope that in this our 39th year, and my own 7th as Artistic Director, you’ll make an early decision to be with us in Buxton next year, to celebrate the Festival’s 40th anniversary. Rarely is there such a warm partnership between those who travel so far to witness, and the artists who delight in giving. Stephen Barlow Artistic Director

You will also see Elijah Moshinsky’s completion of his early Verdi trilogy, the remarkable Alzira, not only a serious ticket for the curious, but for anyone who enjoys sizzlingly powerful and moving music drama in truly accessible simplicity directed by one of the true greats. There are also two invigoratingly contrasting visiting operatic productions, in addition to what is unarguably one of Mozart’s towering masterpieces, Idomeneo. You will see too that the burgeoning Festival family of singers decorates the pages, along with the cream of string quartets, instrumentalists and pianists.

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Alzira Giuseppe Verdi (1813–1901) Libretto by Salvatore Cammarano, based on the play Alzire, ou les Américains by Voltaire. Performed in Italian, with English side-titles.

Sat 7 July 7.15pm Tue 10 July 7.15pm Fri 13 July 7.15pm Mon 16 July 7.15pm Wed 18 July 7.15pm Fri 20 July 7.15pm Buxton Opera House Tickets: £20–£78 CONDUCTOR

Stephen Barlow DIRECTOR

Elijah Moshinsky

Graeme Danby Alvaro, father of Gusmano, former Governor of Peru James Cleverton Gusmano, Governor of Peru Brian McNamee Ovando, a Spanish Duke Jung Soo Yun Zamoro, leader of a Peruvian tribe Phil Wilcox Ataliba, leader of a Peruvian tribe Kate Ladner Alzira, Ataliba’s daughter

DESIGNER

Helen Bailey Zuma, her maid

LIGHTING DESIGNER

Luke Sinclair Otumbo, an American warrior

Russell Craig Mark Jonathan

A Buxton International Festival production with the Buxton Festival Chorus and Northern Chamber Orchestra. Verdi’s Alzira completes Buxton's trilogy of early Verdi titles (following Giovanna d’Arco in 2015 and Macbeth in 2017), conducted by the Festival’s Artistic Director Stephen Barlow, and directed by internationally celebrated Verdi specialist Elijah Moshinsky. Alzira is set in 16th century Peru, where the love affair between two Peruvian Incas, Zamoro and Alzira, plays out against their fight for independence from the Spanish rule of the Conquistadors. This rarely performed and thoroughly exhilarating opera shows Verdi with the inspiration of youth and innovation. SCENES FROM AN OPERA: ALZIRA Wed 18 July 3.30pm–4.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £15

Sponsored by

Original interpretation of the Festival operas, reimagined by the Assistant Directors and showcasing the talents of the members of the Festival Chorus who are covering the principal roles.

The Daughter of the Regiment Gaetano Donizetti (1797–1848) A co-production from Opera della Luna and Buxton International Festival, sung in English in a completely new version by Jeff Clarke. Mon 9 July 7.15pm Sun 15 July 2pm Buxton Opera House Tickets: £16–£55

Opera della Luna has built up a reputation for lively, irreverent, humorous and original productions which capture the energetic spirit of opera and bring it to a new audience, and its new version of Donizetti’s opera comique tells the old story in a new setting. Don’t expect comic opera soldiers in this fast and furious adaptation. ‘The Regiment’ is one of California’s most notorious biker gangs. Mad, bad, and dangerous to know; yet they have looked after the abandoned baby girl who was mysteriously left at their camp

Thanks to Buxton Festival Foundation for supporting this production.

many years ago. But who is this mysterious young woman who has lived with them all her life, and grown up in a dangerous man’s world? And why is the glamorous socialite Marsha Berkenfield so interested in her? The cast includes Sydney Opera House’s ‘Queen of the Night’, Suzanne Shakespeare as Marie, the Daughter of The Regiment. Tonio, the tenor with the 9 top Cs, will be sung by Jesus Alvarez from Spain, with many performances in Barcelona and at the SemperOper Dresden to his credit.

‘Exhilarating, hilarious, and gloriously sung’ — Bel Mooney, Daily Mail ‘It is rare to see artistic means matched so perfectly to dramatic ends, and even rarer for it to be this much fun’ — Richard Bratby, The Spectator

Tisbe Giuseppe Antonio Brescianello (c.1690–1758) A concert performance from La Serenissima, sung in Italian, with English side-titles.

Thu 12 July 7.15pm Tue 17 July 7.15pm Buxton Opera House Tickets: £16–£52

The music of Giuseppe Antonio Brescianello has so far reached very few ears in modern times. It may therefore come as a surprise to find that not only is his music of the very highest standard – fit to rub shoulders with the likes of Bach, Handel and Vivaldi. It is believed that his early career was spent in Venice before he was employed by the Electress of Bavaria as a violinist at the court in Munich. He subsequently moved to the Württemberg court in Stuttgart where he dedicated his opera pastorale to his employer, Duke Eberhard Ludwig, in January 1718.

Thanks to Buxton Festival Foundation for supporting this production.

the proceedings, Licori and Alceste. In addition, there is a Chorus who close Acts 1 and 2; the orchestra is made up of strings, recorders oboes, bassoon and horns. The music is of the highest quality and the limited amount of recitative ensures that the dramatic pace is strong. The opera concludes most unusually with a recitative which follows a beautiful duet for Tisbe and Pyramus. It is uncertain as to whether a final chorus or even a balletto was supposed to draw an end to the proceedings.

The theme of the opera is the story of Pyramus and Thisbe which is best known to modern theatregoers through Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream. The ill-fated lovers are joined by two other characters who comment on 9

Opening Night Opera Gala Featuring Opera North

Fri 6 July 7.30pm Buxton Opera House Tickets: £15–£45 CONDUCTOR

Nicholas Kok ORCHESTRA

Northern Chamber Orchestra Featuring soloists from the Opera North Chorus and Lesley Garrett CBE

In association with

This year, the Festival gets off to a flying start with a glorious opening night gala featuring some of the most memorable music from the worlds of opera, operetta and musical theatre. For what promises to be a hugely enjoyable night for all music-lovers, whether regular opera-goers or those just wanting to dip their foot in the water, soloists from the Opera North Chorus are joined by the Northern Chamber Orchestra (conducted by Nicholas Kok). The concert will be compered by Patron of the Festival's 40th Anniversary Appeal, Lesley Garrett, who will also sing a number of songs herself.

Supported by

Opera Talks

A Song at Six

Informative and informal introductions to this year’s operas from key members of the creative teams who brought them to life.

Join members of the Festival Chorus and Buxton International Festival Young Artists for 10 minutes of al fresco song in the picturesque bandstand in the Pavilion Gardens.

Sat 7 July 6pm Sun 8 July 1.45pm Mon 9 July 6pm Tue 10 July 6pm Wed 11 July 6pm Thu 12 July 6pm Fri 13 July 6pm Sat 14 July 6pm Sun 15 July 12.45pm Mon 16 July 6pm Tues 17 July 6pm Wed 18 July 6pm Thu 19 July 12.45pm Fri 20 July 6pm Sat 21 July 6pm

Fri 6 July 6pm Sat 7 July 6pm Mon 9 July 6pm Tue 10 July 6pm Wed 11 July 6pm Thu 12 July 6pm Mon 16 July 6pm Tue 17 July 6pm Wed 18 July 6pm Fri 20 July 6pm Sat 21 July 6pm Pavilion Gardens Bandstand Tickets: Free

Buxton Opera House Tickets: £2

Joanna MacGregor

Ashley Solomon

Sat 7 July 12noon–1.30pm

Sat 7 July 3.30pm–4.30pm

Piano

Joanna MacGregor is one of today’s most invigorating of all high-profile musicians. Pavilion Arts Her solo recitals distil her Centre wide interests ranging from Tickets: £25 composing and conducting to commissioning new works and Beethoven inspiring pupils through her 32 Variations constantly searching creativity in C minor and urge to communicate. Chopin With an exhilaratingly wide Mazurkas, Op 30 repertoire from jazz, to Bach and Op 59 and Messiaen to contemporary Ginastera music, Joanna breaks the Danzas Argentinas mould of specialisation with Sofia Gubaidulina deftness and insight across all genres. Her remarkable Chaconne programme, including works of Fazil Say freshness and depth from the Black Earth genius of Ginastera and the Beethoven extraordinary Turkish pianist/ Sonata in F composer Fazil Say, wrapped minor, Op 57 within two of Beethoven’s (Appassionata) towering masterpieces demonstrates Joanna’s unique talent for reinvention of the concert recital, exciting the heart and intellect with equal force.

Flute

Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £20 Father, Son & Godfather – Telemann, JS & CPE Bach

Ashley Solomon is at the forefront as Director and Performer of a truly rewarding and refreshing period practice movement, and his preeminent ensemble ‘Florilegium’ carries a world-wide reputation for highest quality scholarship and intensity of musicianship alike. In this concert, as soloist, he explores repertoire for unaccompanied flute by three giants of the baroque era. Six Fantasies by Telemann are performed either side of works by Johann Sebastian Bach and his most famous son Carl Phillip Emmanuel, who was inspired to write for the flute by his employer King Frederick the Great of Prussia. These three composers were very closely linked, with Telemann being CPE Bach’s godfather. All 12 Fantasias have recently been recorded by Ashley Solomon for Channel Classics on a number of flutes, including two unique instruments both built in 1760. One is an ivory flute by the English maker Cahusac, the other belongs to the Royal Collection Trust and is believed to have been owned and played by King George III.

London Metropolitan Brass

Jennifer Davis

Sun 8 July 12noon–1pm

Piano

Founded in 2016, the London Metropolitan Brass immediately went on to win the Musicians’ Pavilion Arts Company’s Brass Ensembles Centre Prize in 2017. They have rapidly Tickets: £16 attracted huge excitement and acclaim, bringing new life Mozart to a wide repertoire specially Excerpt from arranged or chosen for their The Magic Flute brand of spectacular virtuosity Dvořák arr and musicality. Their lively Mitchell programme creation stretches ‘Song to the Moon’ on this occasion from Russia from Rusalka across European styles Victor Ewald and inspirations, Ewald to Brass Quintet Mozart and Dvořák, to the No 3 Uruguayan‑born legendary Øystein Baadsvik trombonist Enrique Crespo’s dazzling Suite Americana, Frugg and is guaranteed to thrill Joakim Agnas and move in equal measure. Tango Enrique Crespo Suite Americana No 1

Supported by

Soprano

Caroline Dowdle Mon 9 July 12noon–1pm

Very occasionally, a young singer blessed with great talent leaps into the spotlight and Pavilion Arts seems poised to leap further, Centre faster and higher than others, Tickets: £17.50 such is their seeming ease, and solid foundation of voice, Gounod musicianship, technique and Je Veux Vivre imagination. Jennifer Davis Poulenc is such an artist. Recently Métamorphoses decamped from the ROH’s Jette Debussy Parker programme, already Apparition, having a repertoire of several Mandoline, Air de telling roles, and looking Lia from L’enfant forward to engagements for Prodigues example in San Francisco, her promise is unbridled and her Rachmaninov reputation rapidly growing 6 Romances, far and wide. Her programme Op 38 dives confidently into less Puccini well known but typically lyrical Quando me’n vo and dramatic songs of Sergei (La bohème) Rachmaninov, prefaced by Jonathan Dove those of Poulenc and Debussy It’s My Wedding which inhabit the entirely (The Enchanted Pig) sensuous French sound world these two contrasting Britten composers manipulate so The Last Rose surprisingly and liberally. of Summer James Joyce Bid Adieu (Musical Setting Edmund Pendleton)

The Day of Quartets SPECIAL OFFER! Book for all three concerts in the Day of Quartets at the same time and receive a 15% discount.

The Fitzwilliam Quartet

The Consone Quartet

Tue 10 July 11.30am–12.30pm

Tue 10 July 2pm–3pm

St John’s Church

Tickets: £22.50

Tickets: £16

Schubert String Quartet in D minor (Death and the Maiden)

Haydn String Quartet Opus 76 No 5 in D major

Praetorius/Brahms Chorale Prelude, ‘Es is ein Ros entsprungen’

Mendelssohn String Quartet No 4, Op 44 No 2 in E minor

Purcell/Barcham Stevens Fantasias No 7 and 8

The Fitzwilliam Quartet & The Consone Quartet Introduced by Richard Wigmore Tue 10 July 4.30pm–5.30pm St John’s Church Tickets: £22.50 Mendelssohn Octet version 1 One of the all-time longest established string quartets, with a dazzlingly gilded career and reputation established over many continents and such a wide repertoire, the ‘Fitzes’ return to Buxton accompanied by the Consone Quartet in a day of three concerts, concluding with what was promised last summer but postponed due to the sudden indisposition of Lucy Russell, the Fitzes leader, namely, the first version of Mendelssohn’s Octet, played on gut strings, a not-to-be-missed occasion, introduced with examples by the unerringly charismatic Richard Wigmore. 14

Start your day with the Fitzes performing Schubert’s epic and most popular ‘Death and the Maiden’ alongside Purcell’s piercingly beautiful Fantasias, typical programming from the Fitzes who are pre-eminent amongst modern day quartets in championing historical instrument set ups.

The Fibonacci Sequence Wed 11 July St John’s Church Tickets: £20 each SPECIAL OFFER! Book for all three Fibonacci Sequence concerts at the same time and receive a 15% discount. Kathron Sturrock’s glittering ensemble of star instrumentalists, now in their 24th year as the Fibonacci Sequence are well known all over the world in performance, broadcasting and recording. They make a welcome return to the Festival with, as ever, eclectic programmes to enchant the ear and excite interest.

Paul Archibald

Daniel Pioro

Paul Archibald

Andrew Marriner

Ashok Klouda

Daniel Pioro

Kathron Sturrock

Andrew Marriner

Ashok Klouda

Charlotte Trepess

Kathron Sturrock

Andrew Marriner

11.30am–12.30pm

2pm–3pm

Richard Skinner

Schubert The Shepherd on the Rock

Biber Passacaglia

Bassoon

Brahms Sonata in E flat

Vaughan Williams The Lark Ascending

Kathron Sturrock Piano

Bach Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring

Brahms Clarinet trio

4.30pm–5.30pm

Bach Jauchzet Gott in allen Landen

Brahms is the centrepiece of all three ‘Fibs’ concerts on this special day, and his response to the clarinet in particular always inspired some of his most numinous creativity, that rare sensitivity and intimacy which so closely identifies his inner feelings. The same could be said about Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending, which transcends sublimely the simplicity of the work’s original inspiration, George Meredith’s ‘matchless’ poem, delving resonantly into numinous realms, which so clearly contribute to The Lark remaining one of the most popular of all musical works.

Takemitsu Paths

Trumpet Clarinet Piano

Soprano

The Fibonacci Sequence begin their flamboyant day of contrasts and colour featuring soprano Charlotte Trepess who was the RNCM’s 2017 Gold Medal winner and who is currently a member of the Festival’s chorus, singing Bach and Schubert, alongside Principal Clarinet of the LSO, Andrew Marriner in repertoire that has contributed to his worldwide reputation as one of the very finest clarinettists of his generation. Add to the mix Bach played on the flügelhorn by Paul Archibald and this concert promises to delight.

Violin Cello

Clarinet Piano

Trumpet Violin Cello

Clarinet

Beethoven Eyeglass Duo No 1 in C Brahms Trio No 3 in C minor Martinů La Revue de Cuisine The climax of the Fibonacci Sequence’s three concerts brings together the larger ensemble, in a programme shifting easily between Takemitsu’s always ineffably beautiful atmospheres, to Beethoven’s charming viola and cello duet written with specific friends in mind, followed by Brahms’ epic C minor trio and piano writing to match, and finally Bohuslav Martinů’s infectiously uplifting jazz-inspired suite. Kathron Sturrock’s imagination with formidable pianism underpins the ‘Fibs’ experience with easy authority and exuberance. 15

Aquarelle Guitar Quartet

Victoria String Quartet

Thu 12 July 11.30am–1pm

Thu 12 July 2.30pm–4pm

Formed in 1999 whilst at the RNCM in Manchester, this St John’s Church intriguing quartet has gone on to build a huge reputation Tickets: £20 across the world to equal many string quartets by dint of their Programme includes works by exquisite ensemble playing and repertoire that spans the entire Rossini, Piazzolla period from the Renaissance and Ryuichi to fresh-minted contemporary Sakamoto. See commissions. Making a return website for full to Buxton, they typically bring details. music that is well known and music that should and will be. Their style is virtuosic to a high degree but married to a sensitivity that sounds so well in the lovely St John’s acoustic. Their fame has spread abroad, recently visiting Germany, Korea, Spain and Greece, and they are regular performers at the Royal Albert Hall and other major concert halls. Having now accumulated a substantial discography, they occupy a unique position amongst ensembles, such is their blend of artistry and charm.

Manchester based, and brim full with pedigree and wide experience, all four musicians Pavilion Arts comprising this newly formed Centre quartet have made many Tickets: £20 appearances at the Festival starring in other ensembles Mozart and orchestras. They all share String Quartet impressive credentials in in E flat, K428 solo work, leading orchestras Elgar and sections in opera and String Quartet in E symphony orchestras, minor, Op 83 broadcasting and teaching. Schubert The breadth of their work and String Quartet immersion in every aspect No 13 in A minor of a musician’s life promises (Rosamunde) performance and perspective of a rare quality. Their programme goes fittingly to the heart of quartets, all reflecting the respective composer’s maturity, when their mastery of form allowed complete freedom of imaginative expression. This concert promises both music and performances full of inspiration and assurance.

La Serenissima

Yoanna Prodanova Cello

Mihai Ritivoiu Fri 13 July 12noon–1.30pm

The recent rise in popularity of Italian Baroque music has St John’s Church been quite remarkable, yet popular knowledge of the Tickets: £25 repertoire still only extends to the bigger players such as Settecento Vivaldi, Corelli, Handel, Purcell, Baroque Tartini and Albinoni. There Instrumental were however a host of other music from the talented composers whose Italian States music has largely been ignored Tabea Debus or ill-appreciated to date. Recorder This programme explores Adrian Chandler, the hidden depths of some Camilla Scarlett of these more esoteric Violins composers; Vandini was a great Vladimir friend and colleague of Tartini Waltham and was also (for a period) Cello employed alongside Vivaldi Robert Howarth at the Ospedale della Pietà; Brescianello was a talented Harpsichord composer who was extremely influenced by Vivaldi and whose career took him to the court of Munich before becoming Maestro di Capella of the Württemburg court in Stuttgart; Dall’Abaco was also employed at the Munich court where he befriended Brescianello. The concert also includes three pieces for recorder and strings. Supported by

Piano

Fri 13 July 3pm–4.30pm

An award-winning regular duo, these two exceptional young artists are supported Pavilion Arts by the Musicians Company Centre and City Music Foundation Tickets: £20 respectively, in recognition of their outstanding talent and Beethoven maturity. Yoanna is Bulgarian 7 Variations on and studied in Montreal, and 'Bei Männern, Mihai hails from Romania welche Liebe where he won the Dinu Lipatti fühlen', WoO 46 Piano Competition. They Shostakovich continued their studies at the Sonata for cello Guildhall in London and are and piano in D seasoned performers here minor, Op 40 and abroad. They bring a Schumann thrillingly varied and virtuosic Adagio and programme, paying homage Allegro, Op 70 to Beethoven and Schumann, and including Shostakovich’s Chopin Polish song, Op 70 early Sonata in addition to Chopin’s extraordinary Sonata, Chopin the last work published in his Cello sonata in G lifetime and one of so few he minor, Op 65 wrote for instruments other than the piano. It’s impossible to appreciate Chopin’s full breadth of expression and command of the grandest form without acquaintance with this relatively rarely performed and autumnal masterpiece. Supported by

Stephen Kovacevich

Madeleine Mitchell

Sat 14 July 12noon–1.30pm

Sun 15 July 12noon–1pm

Piano

Following his fabulously well received recital at Buxton Festival in 2016, it is an Pavilion Arts enormous pleasure to welcome Centre Stephen Kovacevich back for Tickets: £35 a recital of music that has been in his blood all his life. Bach Prelude and Fugue Revered for the gentleness, privacy almost, and as the No 4 in C sharp Sunday Times offered, the minor, BWV849 ‘otherworldliness’ of his insight Beethoven into Schubert’s great sonatas, Piano Sonata his maturity breathes sensitivity No 30 alongside authority into all he Schubert plays, particularly Beethoven Piano Sonata and Bach which feature in this No 1 in B flat recital programme. His recitals major, D960 are truly collector’s items, never to be forgotten, bearing as they do a lifelong service to the composer and the music. He returns to Buxton having recently travelled far and wide, to amongst others Beijing, Los Angeles, Korea, Paris, Brussels and St Petersburg.

Violin

Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £15 Elgar Sonata for violin and piano, Op 82 Lili Boulanger Nocturne Brahms Sonata No 3 in D minor, Op 108

‘A violinist in a million’ and ‘one of the UK’s liveliest musical forces’ are just two of the glowing reviews Madeleine has attracted in a career which tells of virtuoso technique, exhilarating thinking and broad imagination in repertoire. At ease in all genres, her career cannot be defined without noticing an unquenchable curiosity and a refreshing balance between the powerful and the poetic. Her charisma and musical personality never fail to attract acclaim and she has long been lauded as one of this country’s leading violinists. Her programme typically includes two works with centenary importance, the exceptional Lilli Boulanger’s sadly premature death, and the writing of another of Elgar’s rare chamber works. This is a programme of bitter sweets and emotional depth.

Ex Cathedra

Summer Music By Candlelight Sun 15 July 8.30pm–10pm

A programme of glorious music for a magical midsummer St John’s Church evening, performed by the soft glow of candlelight as Tickets: £25 daylight fades. This enchanting Jeffrey Skidmore sequence of music and readings is inspired by birdsong Conductor and by the season – uplifting Programme repertoire to send you away includes: singing of Summertime … Alec Roth Die güldene Sonne: Dawn Chorus Roxanna Panufnik Child of Heaven: Dawn Chorus Sumer is icumen in – 13th century English Thomas Morley Now is the month of Maying Debussy Trois chansons de Charles d'Orléans Gershwin Summertime Te lucis ante terminum – Plainchant

Juliette Bausor Flute Daniel Bates Oboe Simon Lepper Piano Mon 16 July 12noon–1.30pm Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £20 Madeleine Dring Trio Poulenc Oboe Sonata Malcolm Arnold Suite Bourgeoise Delius Intermezzo from Fennimore and Gerda Poulenc Flute Sonata Iain Farrington Heatwave

Based upon their recently launched CD ‘Heatwave’, these three outstanding musicians showcase some of the repertoire along with two of the acknowledged masterpieces Poulenc wrote for wind instruments and Piano, the Flute Sonata and the Oboe Sonata. Eminently accessible works as they are, Poulenc couldn’t resist teasing the listener’s sense of what might be predictable, or not, as well as easily plunging from despair and darkness to satirical wit within as little as two bars. Poulenc is also the doyen of gentle fusion between sentiment and powerful feeling. Juliette Bausor and Daniel Bates between them hold four principal positions with some of our greatest orchestras. Simon Lepper was ubiquitous as exquisite accompanist long before now, and is a frequent and welcome guest time and again in Buxton. This programme provides above all an intriguing comparison between the imaginative and ever so English composers and the unfailingly French Francis Poulenc at his most vivaciously quixotic.

Opera & Music Diary PAGE

Friday 6 July 6pm 7.30pm

Song at Six Opening Night Opera Gala

Wednesday 11 July 11 10

Saturday 7 July 12 noon 3.30pm 5pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm 9pm

Joanna MacGregor Ashley Solomon Charles Maxtone-Smith, organ Opera Talk Song at Six Alzira Barb Jungr & John McDaniel

12 12 27 11 11 4 28

Sunday 8 July 10.45am 12 noon 1.45pm 3pm 9pm

Festival Mass London Metropolitan Brass Opera Talk Idomeneo The Alex Yellowlees Band

27 13 11 6 28

Monday 9 July 12 noon 3.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

Jennifer Davis & Caroline Dowdle Lizzie Ball & Morgan Szymanski Opera Talk Song at Six The Daughter of the Regiment

13 29 11 11 8

Tuesday 10 July 11.30am 2pm 4.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

The Fitzwilliam Quartet The Consone Quartet The Fitzwilliam Quartet & The Consone Quartet Opera Talk Song at Six Alzira

PAGE

14 14 14 11 11 4

11.30am 2pm 4.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

The Fibonacci Sequence The Fibonacci Sequence The Fibonacci Sequence Opera Talk Song at Six Idomeneo

15 15 15 11 11 6

Thursday 12 July 11.30am 2.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm 9pm

Aquarelle Guitar Quartet Victoria String Quartet Opera Talk Song at Six Tisbe Sara Dowling

16 16 11 11 9 29

Friday 13 July 12 noon 3pm 6pm 7.15pm 9pm

La Serenissima 17 Yoanna Prodanova & Mihai Ritivoiu 17 Opera Talk 11 Alzira 4 The Oxley-Meier Guitar Project 30

Saturday 14 July 12 noon 6pm 7.15pm 9pm

Stephen Kovacevich Opera Talk Idomeneo The Chris Ingham Quartet

18 11 6 30

Sunday 15 July 11am 12 noon 12.45pm 2pm 8.30pm

Festival Mass Madeleine Mitchell Opera Talk The Daughter of the Regiment Ex Cathedra â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Summer Music by Candlelight

27 18 11 8 19

PAGE

Monday 16 July 12 noon 3.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

Juliette Bausor, Daniel Bates & Simon Lepper Vision: The Imagined Testimony of Hildegard von Bingen Opera Talk Song at Six Alzira

Friday 20 July 19 22 11 11 4

Lucy Schaufer, Huw Watkins & Jennifer Langridge Ceruleo – Burying the Dead Opera Talk Song at Six Tisbe

22 23 11 11 9

Wednesday 18 July 12 noon 2pm 3.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

Ashley Riches, Kathryn Rudge & Simon Lepper Crazy Composers Scenes from an Opera: Alzira Opera Talk Song at Six Alzira

12 noon 3pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm 9pm

Scenes from an Opera: Idomeneo The Sacconi Quartet Opera Talk Song at Six Alzira Liane Carroll

6 25 11 11 4 31

Saturday 21 July

Tuesday 17 July 12 noon 3.30pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm

PAGE

12 noon 1.30pm 3pm 6pm 6pm 7.15pm 8pm

Alexei Watkins & Alex Woolf Eleanor Carter, organ Christian Blackshaw Opera Talk Song at Six Idomeneo National Youth Jazz Orchestra

26 27 26 11 11 6 31

Sunday 22 July 23 24 4 11 11 4

11am

Festival Mass

Thursday 19 July 12 noon 12.45pm 2pm 5.30pm

Roderick Williams & Iain Burnside 24 Opera Talk 11 Idomeneo 6 The English Concert 25

Vision

The Imagined Testimony of Hildegard Von Bingen A concert/play by Clare Norburn Live music performed by The Telling Mon 16 July 3.30pm–4.40pm

Clare Norburn, whose powerful Breaking the Rules gripped St John’s Church Buxton audiences in 2016, returns with a new candlelit Tickets: £20 show, the story of medieval Abbess Hildegard of Bingen, Clare Norburn told alongside music performed Soprano by acclaimed medieval Ariane Prussner ensemble The Telling. Mezzo Vision aims to give an insight Leah Stuttard or into the painful visionary Joy Smith Harp experiences Hildegard suffered Jan Chappell throughout her life, covering Hildegard some of the core emotional moments in her life. Vision is ‘an imagined testimony’ as Hildegard lies on her deathbed, revisiting and re-experiencing meaningful episodes from her past. What did it feel like to be taken away from her family at the age of 8? How did she experience the visions which she referred to as ‘the Living Light’? What was the physical experience of her visions? What did it feel like to have so much responsibility in an age when women were generally powerless and silent?

Lucy Schaufer Mezzo Soprano

Huw Watkins Piano

Jennifer Langridge Cello

Tue 17 July 12 noon–1pm

Describing herself with typical élan as Performer Producer and Purveyor of Fine Jams Lucy Pavilion Arts Shaufer is one of the most Centre versatile of mezzo sopranos/ Tickets: £17.50 singing actresses working Dream With Me today, with a career that takes her to opera houses and Programme includes works by concert platforms throughout Bolcom, Bernstein Europe, the USA and the UK. Her repertoire of a long list of and Gordon major roles crosses with ease Lightfoot. See from Mozart to Rossini and website for full on in eclectic style to the most details. demanding contemporary music, redefining what it is to be a modern-day opera singer in the combination of vocal gifts, musical perception and dramatic stagecraft. Recent engagements have taken her to Geneva, Houston, Madrid and the ENO, and not least to the Buxton Festival, where her talents for claiming the stage were seen to their full in Peter Eötvös’ The Golden Dragon and as Florence Pike in Albert Herring. Make no mistake, this programme will bring artistry of the highest order, mixed with imagination and her customary flair.

Ceruleo

Burying The Dead Tue 17 July 3.30pm–5pm

Henry Purcell is on his deathbed, tormented by St John’s Church half-dreams and memories from his childhood – including Tickets: £20 the unending terror of being caught up in the Great Fire of Emily Owen London. Soprano More than a concert, Burying Jenni Harper the Dead brings Restoration Soprano London to life with a new Satoko Doi-Luck script by Clare Norburn. Harpsichord Purcell (played by actor Gerald Kate Conway Kyd) gives us his deathbed Cello and Viol testimony, conjuring up the two singers and musicians Toby Carr of Ceruleo to his bedside. Guitar and Lute Together they take the Gerald Kyd audience on a journey back Henry Purcell through Purcell’s memories of theatrical intrigues and into his internal dream world, as he confronts imagined key childhood memories of 1666.

Ashley Riches Bass-baritone

Kathryn Rudge Soprano

Simon Lepper Piano

This year, BBC Radio 3’s New Wed 18 July 12 noon–1.15pm Generation scheme returns to Buxton with another Pavilion Arts concert featuring two of its Centre artists with another concert Tickets: £17.50 to be broadcast at a later date. This year, bass-baritone Programme Ashley Riches, who wowed includes Lieder audiences with his recital last from Richard year, is joined by soprano Strauss and Brahms and songs Kathryn Rudge, who Buxton audiences will remember as from musical Nancy in 2017’s Buxton's 2017 theatre. See production of Albert Herring. website for full details.

Concert in association with:

The English Concert

Crazy Composers Wed 18 July 2pm–3pm Buxton Opera House Limited ticket availability. Please contact Outreach team on 01298 70395.

Explorers, journalists, and forensic investigators. These are just some of the roles school children take on when The English Concert’s flagship education project Crazy Composers comes to town. Setting off on an exciting journey, they explore the lives and music of composers such as Handel, Bach, Mozart, Vivaldi and Purcell. What were these rock stars of the past really like, and what made them so great? Undoubtedly something eccentric, and often something just a little crazy lay behind their genius. With schools taking part from across the region, Crazy Composers is an energetic and highly entertaining musical experience for all involved. Part of Buxton International Festival's Creative Learning Programme.

Roderick Williams Baritone

Iain Burnside Piano

Thu 19 July 12noon–1pm Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £25 Schubert Winterreise

This is the second of a trilogy of concerts, presenting three of the greatest of all song cycles, one each year, given by an artist who is absolutely at the apogee of his glittering career. These performances are benchmarks for all who know their classic German Lieder, and an eye opener for those who are only beginning their acquaintance with works that are part of the bedrock of Western art music. Roderick Williams and the infallible Iain Burnside accompanying have both lived with these works all their lives, both steeped in interpretation and deep understanding of the painfully deep resonances in the poetry that is here so bonded to the music. The opportunity to hear this Winterreise given by two masters of their art and craft at the height of their powers is simply not to be missed.

The English Concert

The Sacconi Quartet

Thu 19 July 5.30pm–7.30pm

Fri 20 July 3pm–4.30pm

The English Concert loves music of the baroque and St John’s Church classical periods, and they believe that through their Tickets: £25 performances on original instruments, with styles of Full programme details on website playing and singing appropriate to a composer or period, they can get to the essential core of the music. With their international group of closeknit musicians, many of whom are soloists in their own right, anything is possible. It’s not just about their award-winning discography, or who they’ve worked with, it is about reaching the audience and making music together. This is why they are always on the look-out for exciting new opportunities and new ways to tell a story, whether they are working with the likes of Tom Morris to stage Handel’s Messiah, bringing its emotional and dramatic essence to the fore, or interacting in a more intimate way in Shakespeare’s Globe or the Wanamaker Playhouse.

Since their first appearance at the Festival the Sacconi St John’s Church Quartet have spread their tentacles, garnering recordings Tickets: £22.50 aplenty amongst which feature Jonathan Dove with Mark Suk Meditation on the Padmore, Graham Fitkin, and Old Czech Chorale John McCabe with Roderick Williams, many BBC Radio 3 'St. Wenceslas', broadcasts, appearances Op 35a at chamber music festivals Debussy countrywide, and at the String Quartet same time looking after their Dvořák own eye-catching Festival at String Quartet Folkestone which is now in No 13, Op 106 its 11th year. Their repertoire is founded upon the classics with which they made such a splash on debut, but now encompasses enormous breadth, with commissioning new work and collaborative projects and diverse musicians to the fore. They were pioneers in live streaming and are just as at home with Beethoven as they are with jazz works. Genuinely of catholic taste and imagination, and focused on accessibility to the widest audiences, they bring a typically inviting programme, balancing beautifully Czech romance with French sensibility and formal originality at its finest.

Alexei Watkins French horn

Alex Woolf Composer/ Piano Sat 21 July 12noon–1pm

One of the highly esteemed Musicians Company awardwinners, Alexei Watkins is Pavilion Arts an already distinguished Centre young horn player emerging Tickets: £16 to be eagerly sought by London orchestras in a highly Beethoven competitive market. His credits Horn Sonata amongst orchestras include Messiaen the BBCSO, Philharmonia and Appel Interstellaire English Chamber Orchestra. His Alex Woolf engagements as solo recitalist Land of Nod are burgeoning, bringing an opportunity to hear a virtuoso Franz Strauss horn player demonstrating this Nocturno most intriguing of instruments Alex Woolf in its many varied guises, Aria from poetic to powerful, and Vinter soothing to heroic. Alex Woolf, Hunter's Moon accompanying, also composes, and in 2012 was BBC Young Composer of the Year. Gramophone described him as ‘a major presence in starry company’. Their programming bears the hallmark of emerging artists today that is the embracing of repertoire choices which entrance the ear and mind equally, and a breadth of inspiration. Supported by

Christian Blackshaw Piano

Sat 21 July 3pm–4.45pm Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £35 Schubert Moments Musicaux, D780 Schubert Piano Sonata in A minor, D784 Schumann Fantasie in C major, Op 17

Those who were lucky enough to experience Christian Blackshaw’s exceptional recital at the Festival in 2017 will need no introduction to a pianist for whom critics the world over struggle to find new ways of describing his finesse and the purity of his expression. Adjectives flow easily – ‘luminous’, magical’, ‘a revelation’, ‘poetic’, ‘captivating’, ‘masterful’ – and these were only for his definitive complete recordings of Mozart. His performances veil easily the signs of deep thinking behind the apparent simplicity and even authenticity of his interpretations, although he himself would debate forcefully whether such a thing as ‘authenticity’ can ever be held to be a valid term. Rather, he describes preparation and performance as being a permanent search. Whatever the process, the performances of this pianist regarded as one of the most sensitive and persuasive, always draw the listener deeply into the heart of the music and its context. His programming of Schubert here is an invitation to what will undoubtedly be a Festival highlight.

ORGAN RECITALS

FESTIVAL MASSES

Each year, Buxton International Festival is delighted to present two organ recitals on the four manual Hill organ in the glorious acoustic of St John’s Church by leading Oxford and Cambridge organ scholars.

A Sunday-morning favourite: beautifully sung church services in the wonderful acoustic of St John’s Church, conducted by Michael Williams MBE.

Charles Maxtone‑Smith

Mozart

Organ

Sat 7 July 5pm–6pm

Charles Maxtone-Smith is currently organ scholar at New St John’s Church College, Oxford, where his work involves playing for services Tickets: £12 and assisting in the training of the probationers and choristers. Having been a music scholar at Winchester College, he took up the gap-year organ scholarship at Hereford Cathedral, which involved taking part in the Three Choirs Festival at Gloucester.

Eleanor Carter Organ

Sat 21 July 1.30pm–2.30pm

Eleanor Carter is the Sir William McKie Senior Organ Scholar at St John’s Church Clare College, Cambridge. She started learning the organ at Tickets: £12 the age of nine, quickly going on to study with Katherine Dienes-Williams at Guildford Cathedral. She latterly attended the Junior Department of the Royal Academy of Music where she studied organ with Anne Marsden Thomas and Peter Holder, with the cello as her second study. She regularly accompanies services at various local churches, and has had opportunities to play at Evensong in Canterbury and Chichester Cathedrals.

Missa Brevis in C, K258 Sun 8 July Featuring the Buxton Madrigal 10.45am–12.15pm Singers and Orchestra, and St John’s Church soloists from the Buxton Festival Chorus – Georgina Tickets: Free Stalbow (soprano), Anna Jeffers (mezzo), Brian McNamee (tenor) and Aaron O’Hare (baritone).

Haydn

Heiligmesse, Hob XXII:10 Sun 15 July 11am–12.30pm

Featuring the Buxton Musical Society and Orchestra, and St John’s Church soloists from the Buxton Festival Chorus – Isolde Roxby Tickets: Free (soprano), Imogen Garner (mezzo) Ben Thapa (tenor) and Steven Griffin (baritone).

Charpentier Messe de Minuit Sun 22 July 11am–12.15pm

Featuring the Buxton Madrigal Singers.

St John’s Church Tickets: Free

Jazz

Come Together

Barb Jungr & John McDaniel perform The Beatles Sat 7 July 9pm–10.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £22.50

Barb and John celebrate Paul, John, George and Ringo with brand new, breathtaking, inspiring and often unexpected arrangements. In this exciting new collaboration, two giants of music, jazz and cabaret from both sides of the Atlantic – the extraordinary award-winning vocalist Barb Jungr and Grammy and Emmy awardwinning arranger and pianist John McDaniel – investigate The Beatles' song catalogue in their own unique and inimitable fashion.

‘One of the world’s great cabaret singers, England’s Barb Jungr is a genuine original, deploying warmth, high drama and sensitive musicality to reinvent everything she sings’ — Time Out, New York

The Alex Yellowlees Band Sun 8 July 9pm–10.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £20

Alex Yellowlees, Scotland’s premier jazz violinist has dazzled and entertained audiences throughout Europe with his original realisation of the ‘hot club’ style. Ever the pioneer, Alex has sculpted his own musical voice over a lifetime of performance and recordings. Drawing from his extensive experience of Celtic, blues and jazz genres, you now can hear and share in the sonic marvel that is at the very core of the Alex Yellowlees band.

Lizzie Ball Violin

Morgan Szymanski Guitar Viva la vida con Frida Mon 9 July 3.30pm–4.50pm Pavilion Arts Centre Tickets: £22.50 Sponsored by

Violinist and vocalist Lizzie Ball and guitarist Morgan Szymanski take a musical journey through the life, times and art of Frida Kahlo, one of the most iconic and yet enigmatic artists of the 20th Century. Together they tell the story of her life: the relationship with Diego Rivera, looking at her as a female icon and her encounters with other figures such as Leonora Carrington, and her relationship with fashion and her wardrobe, and how this affected so much of her art and life. Her story is punctuated with the songs and pieces of music that have a direct relationship not only with her life, but with some of her paintings themselves.

Sara Dowling Thu 12 July 9pm–10.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £22.50

To succeed in the crowded world of the female jazz vocalist, either commercially or to obtain critical acclaim, it is an absolute necessity above all things to be different, or a class apart. Sara Dowling is gifted with immensely emotional vocals, her influences wide and far-reaching, from Erroll Garner, Wynton Kelly and Bud Powell to the haunting melodies of the great Arabic chanteuse Fairuz. Now she is known for her interpretations of classic ballads, leaving audiences spell bound as well as the energy and vigour with which she tackles the up-tempo standards from the American Song Book.

Jazz

The Oxley-Meier Guitar Project Fri 13 July 9pm–10.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £20

Join two of Europe's leading jazz guitarists Pete Oxley and Nicolas Meier for a dazzling display of contemporary fare, ranging from Turkish panache to soundscapes of Latin America to English pastoralism, played on nylon string, steel string, electric, 12-string, fretless, slide, guitar-synth, glissentar guitars and more!

‘Don't fall into the trap of assuming that this is something exclusively for guitar buffs, or even jazz buffs. If you love music of any kind you'll probably fall for this’ — The Observer

The Chris Ingham Quartet The Jazz of Dudley Moore Sat 14 July 9pm–10.30pm Spiegeltent Tickets: £22.50

Everyone remembers Dudley Moore, the beloved comic actor. Perhaps fewer know about Dudley Moore, pianist — the virtuoso brilliantly exploiting the stylistic possibilities gifted to him by Errol Garner and Oscar Peterson – or Dudley Moore, composer — purveyor of quirky, imaginative jazz originals and the witty film soundtracks. Now Chris Ingham and his Quartet return to Buxton to bring the emotional range and depth of Dud’s music to life again in a loving and humorous tribute.

Liane Carroll

National Youth Jazz Orchestra

Fri 20 July 9pm–10.30pm

Sat 21 July 8pm–9.30pm

Spiegeltent Tickets: £22.50

Multi-award-winning vocalist Liane Carroll has been a pillar of the British jazz and soul scene for over 35 years, dedicating her life to creating a deep and abiding connection with audiences all over the world. Along the way she has collaborated with such diverse artists as Paul McCartney, Gerry Rafferty, Long John Baldry and drum & bass outfit London Elektricity at Glastonbury Festival 2017. Equally at home in intimate jazz venues and vast performance spaces, Liane Carroll now brings her exceptional talent, versatility and ability to truly interpret a song to the Spiegeltent.

Spiegeltent Tickets: £20

NYJO is a glittering showcase for the UK’s finest young professional jazz musicians, combining a hard-swinging rhythm section and a raft of hugely talented soloists, to bring you the very best in British big-band jazz. Under the Artistic Direction of Mark Armstrong, the 14-piece big band performs around 40 concerts a year nationally and internationally, and aims to inspire the next generation of young jazz musicians with education work wherever they tour.

Join the Friends of Buxton Festival ALL MEMBERS ENJOY: • Priority booking

FRIENDS EVENTS DURING THIS YEAR’S FESTIVAL

• Regular newsletters by email and post

FRIENDS RECEPTION

• Invitations to Friends events • Opportunities to book Friends holidays in the UK and abroad • Recognition of your support in the Festival programme • Patrons, Benefactors and Directors Circle members enjoy additional opportunities.

Sun 8 July 6pm No 6 The Square Tickets: £20 Come and share drinks and canapés with other Friends after the first performance of Idomeneo, this year's Friends-sponsored opera.

There are five levels of membership to choose from, starting from just £30 per year

BUXTON CRESCENT TALK & DRINKS RECEPTION

Become a member today online at www.buxtonfestival.co.uk

Wed 11 July 4pm Pump Room

The Friends of Buxton Festival are proud sponsors of Idomeneo at the 2018 Festival.

Tickets: £5 The Buxton Crescent Heritage Trust look forward to welcoming Friends of Buxton Festival to the newly refurbished Victorian Pump Room for a drinks reception and update on this fascinating heritage project. FRIENDS DINNER Thu 19 July 5pm Old Hall Hotel Tickets: £35 An opportunity to take a break from a busy Festival schedule and relax with other Friends over a convivial three-course dinner and glass of wine. The dinner sits neatly between a matinee performance of Idomeneo and a variety of evening events.

BUXTON INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL Book Festival

The Festival is completed with an extensive programme of Books at Buxton. This July Buxton will play host to eminent speakers and topical public figures with great stories to tell, bringing you the very best from the world of politics, history, literature and the great art of life itself! Perspectives: Depth, distance and dimensions in today’s world We are delighted to announce that Buxton International Festival will partner with the British Academy to revive the spirit and ethos of the revolutionary Georgian Coffee House, the social network of its day. Perspectives will be a new early morning panel series designed to provoke and

inspire, bringing together a dynamic mix of speakers with the Buxton audience, to explore how we look at history and ourselves. With over 40 other individual Book events at regular 10am, 2pm and 4pm slots there really is something for everyone. Full information will be available this spring – look out for our Books at Buxton brochure, follow us on social media or log on www.buxtonfestival.co.uk/ whats-on/books

Each year the Pavilion Gardens hosts over 100 fairs and events and this number is continually growing! Whether you're looking for delicious local produce, antique furniture, original artwork, books, toys, crafts or some new clothes, you're bound to find them, and much more at our events and fairs. If you work up an appetite whilst visiting us at one of our events, be sure to visit our Coffee Bar or Pavilion Café for some delicious food and drink prepared by our friendly staff. Spring Spectacular Octagon Hall & Prom Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday 26, 27, 28 May 10am–5pm Buxton Night Food & Drink Festival Friday 13 July 4pm–11pm (Followed by Buxton Carnival Day and W/E Bazaar) Festival – Food & Drink Night Friday 20 July 4pm–11pm Festival, Food & Drink and Summer Fete Weekend Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 July 10am–5pm Bank Holiday Special Saturday, Sunday and Bank Holiday Monday 25, 26, 27 August 10am – 5pm Full details at www.paviliongardens.co.uk 34

Support the Festival A big thank you to our sponsors, your support is crucial on and off the stage. Special thanks to Corporate Partners The Old Hall, Danubius Hotels, The Osborne Group and Longcliffe for their ongoing, long‑term commitment to the Festival.

We work with our supporters to create unique experiences, come and join us our ‘unmissable’ Festival of opera, music and books and explore new ways to: • Engage with audiences • Raise awareness of your brand • Explore PR opportunities • Entertain • Engage the local community There are also many opportunities for individuals to get involved and get access to exclusive behind the scenes events. Join the Directors Circle or an Opera Syndicate, sponsor a singer, music or book event. For details contact: Joanne Williams – Development Director Joanne.williams@buxtonfestival.co.uk 35

The Spiegeltent A new and exciting venue comes to the Festival this year, enter a new dimension with its ornate interior and mirrored walls when you step into the Spiegeltent. Lavishly decorated in the Baroque style, the Spiegeltent will set the scene for stylish evening music events and be a place to wander into during the day when there are no performances, catch a glimpse of rehearsals and meet up with other Festival goers.

The Spiegletent will be a hub of activity throughout the Festival, a striking location for the burgeoning jazz music programme with an eclectic mix of Festival activities during the day. Keep an eye on the special page on the website in the run up to and during the Festival to find out what's on.

Supported by The European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development: Europe investing in rural areas

Seating Plan Opera House Stage Stalls A–N Stalls D–H (seats 10–23) Stalls O–Q

Dress Circle Boxes*

Dress Circle Dress Circle (centre)

Upper Circle Side Seats*

Upper Circle

Gallery*

Pavilion Arts

St John’s Church Stage

Stage

Stalls

Ground Floor

Bleacher

Unreserved

Balcony

Alzira Idomeneo

Daughter of the Regiment

Tisbe

Opening Night Gala

Stalls A–N (except as below)

£53

£41

£38

£40

Stalls D–H (seats 10–23)

£59

£46

£43

£40

Stalls O–Q

£36

£28

£30

Dress Circle (except as below)

£73

£51

£48

£45

Dress Circle (centre block)

£78

£55

£52

£45

Dress Circle Boxes*

£73

£51

£48

£45

Upper Circle

£52

£41

£38

£25

Upper Circle Sides seats*

£20

£16

£15

Gallery*

£25

£21

£ 20

£15

Ticket Info Ticket prices for other events vary from show to show – please see individual show listings for details. All seats in St John’s Church are bookable in advance. Please note there is no disabled access in the Balcony. All seats in The Spiegeltent are unreserved.

* Some seats have a restricted view.

Booking

Access Information

Festival Box Office 01298 72190 or in person at Buxton Opera House, Water Street, Buxton SK17 6XN from 6 April.

Buxton Opera House

Box Office opening Pre-Festival: Monday to Saturday, 10am–8pm Sunday – Closed. If there is a performance at the Opera House 4pm–8pm During the Festival: Monday to Saturday, 10am–8pm Sunday, 12pm–8pm, or 10am if there is a performance at the Opera House Availability at venues Tickets for venues other than the Opera House can be bought on the door half an hour before each event, unless sold out. Refunds Tickets can neither be refunded or exchanged. Box Office will try to re-sell tickets for sold-out events – a £1.50 administration fee will be charged. All tickets purchased online or through our Box Office are subject to these booking terms and conditions.

The Opera House Foyer and Box Office counter are not wheelchair accessible, but there is wheelchair access to the side Box Office door (in Water Street), with an intercom system to alert staff. The Dress Circle and Upper Circle levels are not wheelchair accessible and can only be reached by climbing the stairs. The building is not accessible by motorised scooter. Pavilion Arts Centre All parts of the Pavilion Arts Centre are accessible by wheelchair, apart from the Main Room balcony. Although there is a lift, the balcony is not recommended for those with mobility issues.

Ticket prices and fees

St John’s Church

The advertised price of a ticket is the price that you pay; all ticket prices include any taxes, levies and booking fees. The cost of a ticket is made up of:

The main church is accessible to all, but the balcony is not available for those with mobility issues. Companion tickets

– Deal Value: The face value of the ticket set by the Festival

In all venues your safety is paramount. In an emergency, if you would have difficulty making your way out of the building on your own, we strongly advise that you bring a companion.

– Booking Fee: All tickets, except where we sell tickets for a third party, include a 7.5% Booking Fee. This fee goes towards the running cost of our ticketing system, ticket printing, staffing and all credit, debit, cheque, and cash handling costs. These fees help us to stay an effective business, which in turn helps us reinvest in our theatres and continually improve the service we provide – Restoration Levy: Buxton Opera House is an exquisitely beautiful Edwardian theatre and one of the country’s finest examples of Frank Matcham theatre design. To help maintain and operate both the Opera House and Pavilion Arts Centre, the cost of tickets includes a restoration levy of £1 for tickets over £10 and 50p for tickets under £10. Tickets for the Opening Night Opera Gala are exempt from the restoration levy. 38

The Opera House is a beautiful Edwardian building, but unfortunately because of the nature of the building that does bring some restrictions. The Opera House is only partially accessible to wheelchair users and the wheelchair entrance is 72cm at its narrowest point. We have three wheelchair spaces in the Stalls at ground floor level, and a specially adapted toilet. Unfortunately the Stalls bar is not accessible by wheelchair, but a member of staff will gladly bring refreshments to your seat.

Help with hearing There are passive infra-red (PIR) systems in both the Opera House & Pavilion Arts Centre for people with hearing impairments. This works through a special headset rather than your hearing aid and is available from the theatre. Please reserve one when you book your tickets (a £10 cash deposit on the night is required). There is also an induction loop system at both Box Offices.

Special Offers

Extra Information

Only one offer per ticket. All offers are subject to availability.

Opera finish times

Groups of ten receive a 10% discount for all performances except Saturday evenings. See five Book talks and save! Book tickets for five or more Book talks (at the same time) and receive 10% off the price. Offer excludes Literary Lunch. Opera House Standby. Full-time students and those on JSA/Income Support may purchase any available seat for a performance at half price from 6.45pm on the day of the performance. Personal callers at the Box Office only. Under 30s – Festival for a Fiver. From 1 June all available seats are £5 for under-30s. Book at the Opera House Box Office or by phone. Tickets must be collected from the Box Office and proof of age provided. Festival for a Fiver tickets cannot be purchased online. Offer excludes Festival Friends events and Literary Lunch. The day of quartets. Book for all three Day of Quartets concerts at the same time and receive a 15% discount The Fibonacci Sequence. Book for all three Fibonacci Sequence concerts at the same time and receive a 15% discount

As our Festival opera productions are created specifically for each Festival, we are unable to provide finish for the operas at the time of going to press.

BUXTON FESTIVAL FRINGE

The 2018 Fringe offers a spectacular programme of theatre, comedy, music, film, exhibitions, poetry, children's events and more. One of the largest Fringes in England, it features some 500 performances at over 40 venues in and around Buxton, including a free afternoon sampler at the Pavilion Gardens on Sunday 8 July. The Fringe is open to all with no selection or censorship. The programme is published in early June and on www.buxtonfringe.org.uk, where you can order a free printed programme and find out how to become a Fringe Friend. For queries email info@buxtonfringe.org.uk, call 01298 70705 or text 07952 193 521.

Opening weekend offer: Book stalls tickets for the first performances of both Alzira (7 July) and Idomeneo (8 July) at the same time and receive a 10% on both performances.

How to get to Buxton

EAGLE PARADE

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TREET

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ST RIA N) RO AD

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Ashwood Park

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Market Place

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BRO AD WA L

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Coach Park

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Town Hall

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A6 to MANCHESTER, GLOSSOP, HAYFIELD, CHINLEY & NEW MILLS

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Pavilion Gardens

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TERRACE ROAD

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The Slopes

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Pavilion Arts Centre

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The Crescent

Old Hall Hotel

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D N ROA

A55 to LEEK & MACCLESFIELD

St John’s Church

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Old Clubhouse AD RO

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Devonshire Dome

Cricket Ground

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Palace Hotel

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Buxton Station

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The Lee Wood Hotel

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A5004 to STOCKPORT & WHALEY BRIDGE

A6 to BAKEWELL, TIDESWELL & MATLOCK

BATH ROAD

WEST ROAD

AD RO LE DA LO ND ON RO AD

A515 to ASHBOURNE

Please call the Buxton Tourist Information Centre (Tel: 01298 25106) or Festival Office if you need advice on your travel plans.

Intercity trains also go to Stockport and Manchester with connecting services to Buxton – www.nationalrail.co.uk

By Car: Buxton is approximately an hour’s drive from the M1, M6, Manchester, Sheffield, Nottingham and Derby.

Northern Rail provides direct services to Buxton from Manchester, Preston, Blackpool and Hazel Grove – www.northernrail.co.uk

Visit www.theaa.com for route planning. Car parking: There are 1001 car park spaces in Buxton including: Buxton Opera House: Pay and display parking for 50 cars, including 2 spaces for the disabled. Pavilion Gardens: Parking for 262 cars including 15 spaces for the disabled. Please allow extra time if travelling by car on Carnival Day (14 July). By Rail: Regular inter-city trains from Euston to Macclesfield take less than 2 hours and with a 20 min taxi ride to Buxton – www.virgintrains.co.uk

By Bus: Direct buses to Buxton operate from Chesterfield, Derby, Glossop, Huddersfield, Macclesfield, Sheffield, Stockport and Stoke. For more information visit www.derbysbus.info, or www.traveline.info Traveline Tel: 0871 200 22 33 National Express Tel: 08717 81 81 78 By Air: Regular national and international flights to Manchester and Nottingham East Midlands airports. Manchester Airport is approx. 50 minutes away by Taxi/Car.

Buxton International Festival, 3 The Square, Buxton, Derbyshire SK17 6AZ. Registered Charity No 276957