Festival

Online version of the seasonal printed guide 'The List'

Igor Stravinsky 'The Soldier's Tale'-  Two performances 6pm and again at 8pm.

Step into a spellbinding fusion of music and theatre as The Soldier’s Tale brings the Devil, a princess, and a wayward soldier vividly to life in Igor Stravinsky’s iconic work.

This production is led by internationally acclaimed violinist Miranda Fulleylove, with a seven-piece ensemble of Britain’s finest musicians, performing with incisive energy and precision in support of a cast of singer/actors.

Directed by immersive theatre specialist Elgiva Field and conducted by Peter Ash, Artistic Director of the Odyssey Festival Orchestra, the performance weaves together fine musicianship with ebullient storytelling.

Lasting just one hour, the performance will be presented twice on the same evening, at 6pm and again at 8pm, providing two opportunities to experience this inventive and exhilarating cautionary tale...

A day of creative, musical fun for the whole family in the 'Tree of Trees.' Back for the third year with acoustic duo Lorna Somerville and Darren Fisher of 'Fly Yeti Fly' performing quirky indie-folk music, before teaching us a song we can all learn together! Enjoy pop-up activities from floral crafts, art, singing mamas, qigong, face painting and garden games. Ticket options: Family ticket (2 adults & up to 4 children) for £60 or 1 Adult (£20) & 1 Child (£10) plus add-on options for more adults

Michele Pasotti in conversation with Donald Macleod at Tetbury Goods Shed.

This conversation will explore the scholarship and artistic choices behind Michele Pasotti’s production of Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda by Claudio Monteverdi. 

St Mary's Church Tetbury.  Tickets £10 - £35

One of the world’s greatest violin virtuosos, Viktoria Mullova continues her collaboration with Alasdair Beatson, together playing Beethoven and Schubert on gut strings and fortepiano. 

During their three-year collaboration they have released a first duo disc of Schubert, followed by a Beethoven disc of Sonatas 6, 1 and 8 in 2024, and more recently their third duo album of Beethoven Sonatas 2 and 10. The combination of fortepiano and gut string violin are what Beethoven’s music craves, giving a rich texture and distinct colours between the registers.

This evening they perform Beethoven's 2nd, 3rd and 9th Sonatas. The fortepiano has been hired from Wigmore Hall, and Viktoria plays either her ‘Jules Falk’ 1723 Stradivarius or her Guadagnini violin.

Ludwig van Beethoven:
Sonata No 3 in E flat major
Sonata No 2 in A major
Sonata No 9 in A major, ‘Kreutzer'

St Marys Church, Tetbury.  Tickets £10 - £35.

The renowned Italian ensemble La Fonte Musica returns to Tetbury under the baton of Michele Pasotti with a performance of 'La Sera del Combattimento' which recreates the first performance of Monteverdi’s 'Il combattimento di Tancredi e Clorinda', following the composer’s own vivid account of that historic evening.

Although a man of few words, Monteverdi left invaluable guidance on how the work should be presented for maximum effect, which is being followed tonight. He noted that the 'Combattimento' should be preceded by madrigals sung 'without any gesture,' so that the sudden entrance of the protagoniste would heighten the sense of dramatic surprise. 

When programmed in this way Monteverdi’s revolutionary fusion of music, poetry, and drama regains the sense of novelty and theatrical power that astonished its first audiences.

Wessex Week is a celebration of the region’s history and culture through the centuries, with a particular emphasis on Malmesbury and the Anglo-Saxon period

AMY JEFFS - ARTHUR: A NEW LIFE

We are delighted to welcome Sunday Times bestselling author Dr Amy Jeffs, in conversation, to celebrate the release of her latest book ARTHUR: A New Life

“The Arthur I know is all story. But if his legend and its history teach us anything true, it is that the seam between myth and reality is full of moth-holes…”

Tickets £10 or free when you pre-order the book ( Hardback RRP £30)

In association with Barnowl Books, Malmesbury

What happened after Henry VIII sold the Abbey? A guided walk with Campbell Ritchie Join guide Campbell Ritchie on an entertaining walk across Malmesbury's town centre that will provide an insight into Malmesbury's unique history. (90 minutes)

10.30 -12pm  Meet at the Town Hall   

Supper at The Old Bell followed by a talk by Tony McAleavy

After many centuries of occupation the Benedictine monks of Malmesbury were evicted in December 1539.

Tony tells the colourful story of the last few decades of monastic life and addresses the question: was the community in a state of terminal decline in the lead up to the Dissolution? He will set out to show that, although some of the last monks were badly behaved and  ill-suited to a religious life, many others were highly conscientious and dedicated to their monastic calling.

Follow the ticket link for menu details.

Talk by Tony McAleavy

After many centuries of occupation the Benedictine monks of Malmesbury were evicted in December 1539.

Tony tells the colourful story of the last few decades of monastic life and addresses the question: was the community in a state of terminal decline in the lead up to the Dissolution? He will set out to show that, although some of the last monks were badly behaved and  ill-suited to a religious life, many others were highly conscientious and dedicated to their monastic calling.