Wednesday 2 September 2015

Powerhouse at Presteigne

I've been in the sleepy little Welsh bordertown of Presteigne over the bank holiday weekend where conductor George Vass curates one of Britain's best contemporary music festivals.


It's a great festival where composers meet up and get together with discussions going on into the early hours at the various taverns around the town. Most of the concerts are held in St Andrew's Church in the town's centre (see below), as well as in various medieval churches in the surrounding villages. 













Presteigne is one of the most fascinating Welsh bordertowns, with lots of hugely characterful late eighteenth and early nineteenth century houses and cottages.


The concentration this year has been on the composer Matthew Taylor (who gave a fascinating "Desert Island Discs" type interview about his life and work on Monday afternoon) as well as marking the 150th anniversaries of Nielsen and Sibelius's births. I've been reviewing some of the concerts for the Hereford Times and Western Mail. You can read the reivews at the links below.

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