'Largest classical music festival ever held in Banbury' set to take place this month

The very first Banbury Early Music Festival will be two days full of concerts and workshops.

Most of the festival’s events will take place at St Mary’s Church, but there will also be an accompanying marketplace for musicians at the Whately Hall and the Cromwell Lodge hotels.

The festival has been launched off the back of last year’s Early Music Day at St Mary’s and hopes to draw in classical music fans from around the area and further afield.

Director of music at St Mary’s and music teacher at The Warriner School, Dylan McCaig, is organising the festival with Heidi and Alison from local early music ensemble Sounds Historical.

Dylan said: “I ran last year’s trial event (Banbury Early Music Day) at the church, which was a great success, and this year we are expanding our efforts to what promises to be the largest classical music festival ever held in Banbury!

"We have planned a weekend full of concerts and workshops, and interest is already building with significant engagement on our social media platforms. We hope to establish this festival as an annual tradition for the Banburyshire community.”

The festival will feature performances by Dylan’s Calder Consort and Heidi and Alison’s Sounds Historical, as well as vocal and recorder workshops and a competition for young musicians.

For more details about the Banbury Early Music Festival, including how to buy tickets, please visit its website at:https://banburyearlymusicfestival.weebly.com