BACKTomorrow, the second annual Music@Malling festival opens, bringing together musicians to perform at historic venues around West Malling, Kent. Showcasing the work of contemporary composers, this year the festival includes works from Huw Watkins and Judith Bingham, alongside composers’ most admired by Charles Dickens, such as Mendelssohn, Mozart, and Chopin, in celebration of what would have been his 200th birthday.
Music@Malling also features a Meet the Composers event, as well as education and outreach programmes, enabling local school children to get involved. Opening the festival this Thursday, are performances of Saint-Saens’ Carnival of the Animals by Chamber Domaine, narrated by cellist Matthew Sharp, who will be performing throughout the festival. Children from local primary schools have contributed to the project through art and compositional tasks.
Ahead of the festival, conductor and festival founder Thomas Kemp featured on BBC Radio 3’s In Tune, with pianist Ben Dawson to perform Judith Bingham’s Shelley Dream, which will be performed at the festival. Cellist Richard Harwood also appeared on the show, with baritone Jonathan McGovern, and Matthew Sharp to discuss Music@Malling, and the connections West Malling shares with Charles Dickens. Contrasting with the music of Judith Bingham, In Tune opened with Mendelssohn’s Song Without Words,,which will be performed at the festival on Saturday 29th.
For more information and tickets for Music@Malling, visit their website: http://musicatmalling.com/index.php
Photo credit Eric Richmond, Gramophone