Summer Music in City Churches

Since the demise of the City of London Festival in 2016, the City has lacked a music festival which puts the focus on the City's historic buildings. A new festival Summer Music in City Churches aims to change that. From 21 to 29 June 2018, the festival is presenting a range of concerts in historic City churches, as well as throwing a spotlight on the Diocese of London's new project aimed at re-asserting the central role of music in the life of its churches; https://www.musicianschurch.org/

The festival opens on 21 June 2018 at the church of St Giles Cripplegate with the City of London Choir, conductor Hilary Davan Wetton, performing Durufle's Requiem, Holst's Nunc Dimittis, and music by Elgar. And the choir returns for the festival close on Friday 29 June 2018 with baritone Roderick Williams and the London Mozart Players, in a programme English music from the period of World War I, including Williams' own orchestration of Butterworth's A Shropshire Lad

Other concerts include the brass ensemble Septura in a secular requiem with arrangements of music by Brahms, Handel, Parry (his Songs of Farewell) and Shostakovich (his String Quartet no.8), a Weimar cabaret from soprano Mary Carewe, Holsts' The Planets in the composer's transcription for two pianos performed by John York and Fiona York, a lunchtime recital from pianist Adrian Brendle inspired by Dame Myra Hess's wartime recitals at the National Gallery, Farewell to Arms a recital from tenor Richard Robins, pianist Guy Morgatroyd and story teller Jo Blake Cave.

Full details from the Festival website.