King’s Lynn Festival

The 2024 Festival will burst into life on Sunday 14 July with Foden’s Band at King’s Lynn Corn Exchange, and will continue until Saturday 27 July with classical recitals and concerts, jazz, folk, talks, walks, workshops and exhibitions.

Pianist Alim Beisembayev, winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition, will play a programme of music by Chopin, Debussy and Schubert at the Lady Fermoy Memorial Concert on Thursday 18 July at King’s Lynn Minster. Also highly regarded on international stages is the Czech group, the Skampa Quartet, who play Schubert, Mozart and Brahms at St George’s Guildhall on 25 July.

Early Music Day on Saturday 20 July at St Nicholas’ Chapel features recorder virtuoso Tabea Debus, who plays Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No.4 with the European Union Chamber Orchestra directed by Hans Peter Hofmann, harpsichordist Masumi Yamamoto, whose late night concert is devoted to Bach’s Goldberg Variations, and the day opens with Peterborough Cathedral’s organist Harvey Stansfield. Tabea will also play her own ‘Earworm’ recital at All Saints on Friday 19 July.

The free exhibition, Peace to Pop, showcases British art from 1945-1980. Drawings, prints, painting and sculpture will explore the output of artists who were influenced by the remarkable developments of the post-war period. Artists featured include Eduardo Paolozzi and Peter Blake. The exhibition in the Fermoy Gallery runs from Saturday 13 July – Sunday 4 August. Workshops, films and talks will also be held, offering further insight into the art of the period.

The ever-popular coffee concerts at King’s Lynn Town Hall give audiences a chance to hear the rising stars of the classical music scene. This year’s includes the Elmore Quartet, violinist Harry Kneeshaw, pianist Icknas Maknickas, cellist George Cooke, and the Chloé Piano Trio.

The Festival marks the centenary of a number of key events. Bollywood Brass Band (Friday 26 July) celebrate one hundred years since the first Bollywood film. Playing the great tunes and compulsively danceable rhythms they will take audiences on a fascinating journey from Bollywood’s musical beginnings right up to the present day. The band will also be hosting a dance workshop prior to the performance. The BBC Big Band mark the centenary of the premiere of Rhapsody in Blue with an evening honouring the music of George Gershwin (Friday 19 July). Two events shine a light on the remarkable 1924 expedition, when George Mallory and Sandy Irvine attempted to reach the summit of Everest. The Epic of Everest, a film that captured the breath-taking beauty

and historical significance of the expedition, is accompanied by the musicians of The Lucky Dog Picturehouse (Tuesday 23 July). Stephen Venables – the first British climber to reach the summit of Everest without supplementary oxygen – will recount his own ascent in the light of the first pioneering attempts, in a Royal Geographical Society lecture (Monday 22 July).

An evening of poetry at Ferry Lane Social Club, by TOAST – Norfolk’s biggest regular poetry show, offers a great night out for everyone. In this special event for the Festival, TOAST will feature winner of the Costa Book of the Year Hannah Lowe, plus Sleep Cousin as featured on BBC Introducing, and King’s Lynn’s very own up-and-coming talent, Savannah Andrews. TOAST will also be holding workshops in local schools before the Festival and make an appearance at Festival Too on 30 June.

Events for children and young people include workshops alongside the exhibition: Pop It, Print It, Tote It! a workshop exploring printmaking techniques for ages 5+ (Saturday 13 July), and a Pop Art Drop In (Saturday 20 July) with team from The Workshop, where families can create their very own Pop Art Collage. The Lucky Dog Picturehouse present Action! The (Not So) Silent Family Movie show (Tuesday 23 July) where you can expect honky horns and hilarity, with cartoons and comedies from over 100 years ago. A screening of the Japanese anime classic, Your Name (Saturday 20 July) is accompanied by a talk with film expert and anime geek Dan Ramsden who explains how the genre began and what the difference is from any old cartoon.

Folk music fans will be enthralled by a wide range of songs from Eliza Carthy and Martin Carthy (Wednesday 17 July), and the Ukulele Orchestra of Great Britain (Wednesday 24 July) offer fun for all the family with their all-singing, all-plucking show of new tunes and old classics. Dance lovers are in for a special treat with Roshni, an intimate crafting of Kathak dance and live music with Sonia Sabri Dance Company (Sunday 21 July).

Other highlights include a focus on the music of leading British composer James MacMillan with the Contemporary Consort (Monday 22 July), the Mexican guitarist Morgan Szymanski at All Saints Church, films at St George’s Guildhall, and look out for free pop-up events throughout the Festival in unusual spaces and places in King’s Lynn. The Festival will come to a rousing conclusion on Saturday 27 July with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto with soloist Bartholomew Lafollette and Dvorak’s Symphony No.8.

Tickets for most events during the Festival are 50% off for under 25’s, with further discounts for under 18’s for a concert with clarinettist Emma Johnson (Tuesday 16 July) and free tickets for under 16’s for the King’s Lynn Festival Chorus concert (Sunday 21 July).

Tickets on sale to the public from Monday 13 May 2023 via 01553 764864 (9am-5pm), online at www.kingslynnfestival.org.uk or in person from King’s Lynn Corn Exchange (10am-5pm).

Full programme details at www.kingslynnfestival.org.uk