The Cheltenham Jazz Festival performance from Kit Downes Trio featured on Jazz on 3 last night…
listen again right here (for seven days)

…and CONGRATULATIONS on their nomination for a Mercury Music Prize.

Brahms, Schumann and Clara Schummann, Wednesday 14 July, listen again

Four Seasons and a Souvenir, Tuesday 13 July, listen again

Saturday 10 July 2010 — Michael Zev Gordon at HSBC Cheltenham Music Festival.

A lot of people I meet, once they’ve found out that I direct a Music Festival (and once they’ve concealed their disappointment that it’s one of those music festivals, not a Glastonbury or Latitude — this admission, I realise, is akin to outing oneself as a lingerie model…but for a thermal underwear catalogue) are surprised to learn that it’s a full-time job, year-round. It seems they imagine I work on the Music Festival only on Sunday afternoons, and that I’m a day-job potter, plumber or low-mood therapy counsellor the rest of the time.

“…and at this time of year, it’s particularly full-time. And of course that applies to my Music Festival colleagues at Cheltenham Festivals too. We’re all pretty flat-out.”

Well, this is a full-time job; and at this time of year, it’s particularly full-time. And of course that applies to my Music Festival colleagues at Cheltenham Festivals too. We’re all pretty flat-out.

Holly Traynor (Festival Manager), Robin Purser (Festival Co-ordinator) and Hannah Ross (Intern) form a tri-partite administrative engine room. They are putting the finishing touches to the ‘day sheets’ — intricately detailed, hour-by-hour event management schedules that track what’s going on in all our different venues each day, alongside accommodation and transport requirements. For weeks, they have been intelligence-gathering from performers and their agents — minutiae regarding rehearsal times, page-turners, music stands, sponsor lunches, harpsichord tuners…all hugely important to ascertain in advance, to ensure each event’s smooth running.

First the words, then the music…

And what about me? I’m reminded of the old Italian saying ‘Prima le parole, poi la musica’ (first the words, then the music). Because before the feast of music that starts in 10 days or so, it’s all about words for me at the moment. Working closely with Chris Pearson in marketing, there’s copy to be written for our ‘strand print’ flyers, and all the toing and froing that’s involved in this design-and-print process (I love being involved in all of this). And there’s a lot of liaison with colleagues about maximising press coverage. I end up doing a few interviews myself (I’ll be on Radio 3’s In Tune on Wednesday 30 June, with Brett Dean and Huw Watkins), and I’m often involved in the process of facilitating other press activity (for example, listen out for Patricia Routledge on Classic FM on Sunday 27 June).

The biggest thing on this ‘prima la parole’ front is that we’re within 48 hours of sending the Music Festival’s 60,000 word, 110 page programme book to the printers. As ‘commissioning and managing editor’ (I can’t think of another way of describing this bit of my job), I’ve been working closely with our freelance production editor, Tim Symons, to get all the programme note pages and biographies ready. I’ve been writing a few things for the book myself, and copy-editing all the other articles (we’re running features on Sound Mind, Schumann, Gesualdo, Brett Dean, the Tibetan monks, Ole Bul, Michael Zev Gordon’s Allele and the Holst Museum). And then there’s all the other generic pages and adverts to corral. It’s very satisfying putting this programme book together (and there isn’t a summer since 2002 that I haven’t done this same task, first in Lichfield, then in Aldeburgh), but it’s an enormous mountain to climb just before the festival starts. I’m confident it’ll be a great read, though, with substantial, erudite and thoroughly readable contributions by a range of writers that include Ray Tallis, Stephen Johnson, Christopher Cook, Hilary Finch, Harriet Smith and Andrew Stewart.

Chart topping tenor Alfie Boe, interviewed on Michael Ball’s Sunday Supplement, performs at our Opera Gala Finale on Saturday July 17th. Currently appearing in the ENO’s The Pearl Fishers, he’ll be singing opera favourites by Verdi, Puccini, Wagner, Bizet and Donizetti with the Philarmonia Orchestra.

Catch the interview/book online

Alfie Boe, interviewed by Michael Ball — on the BBC iPlayer
Book online — Alfie Boe at Cheltenham Music Festival

Listen again, as Jez Nelson was joined by a panel of the UK’s leading jazz critics to play selections from their favourite album releases of 2009. The first track was Dave Douglas recorded live at Cheltenham Jazz Festival and the last track Paul Dunmall playing bagpipes at the Everyman Theatre, Cheltenham.

Visit the BBC Radio 3 website and listen again
(link valid for seven days)

From the 15th December all the way up until Christmas day, BBC Radio 3 will be broadcasting a series of concerts recorded at the 2009 Cheltenham Music Festival.

Tune in at 1pm each day to catch eight lunchtime performances from Music 2009:

• Tuesday 15 Dec: Ingrid Fliter, Meta4 — Beethoven, Schumann
• Wednesday 16 Dec:
  Tai Murray, Maxim Rysanov, Andreas Brantelid
• Thursday 17 Dec: Tai Murray, Andreas Brantelid, Ashley Wass
• Friday 18 Dec: Elizabeth Watts
• Tuesday 22 Dec: Nash Ensemble

…and following concerts will have programme details will be available nearer the time:

• Wednesday 23 December: Haydn Trio / Elin Manahan Thomas
• Thursday 24 December: Angela Hewitt
• Friday 25 December: Quatuor Diotima

See a list of upcoming lunchtime concerts from BBC Radio 3.

“I’m a big fan of this festival…I think it’s one of the most interesting and forward-thinking jazz festivals in this country”

Jamie Cullum

The 2010 Cheltenham Jazz Festival programme is shaping up nicely — but one of the most exciting things about next year is that for the first time the festival will welcome Jamie Cullum as Guest Director.

BBC Radio Gloucestershire caught up with him during the Literature Festival — listen here to what he’s looking forward to about Cheltenham Jazz 2010:

from BBC Radio Gloucestershire

Whether or not you managed to see the 50th anniversary Hoffnung exhibition at the Summerfield Gallery during the 2009 HSBC Cheltenham Music Festival, you may be interested to know that Radio 4 broadcast a play on Hoffnung on Monday 28 September – and you can Listen Again here until Sunday 3 October.

One tubby British comic genius – Little Britain’s Matt Lucas – plays that other tubby British comic genius from another age, Gerard Hoffnung, in a play that also features Gina McKee (as Hoffnung’s wife Annetta), Hugh Bonneville and – playing herself in the present day – Annetta Hoffnung.

Hear the play on BBC Radio 4 →