The first details of next year’s Norfolk & Norwich Festival have been announced, with a handful of shows going on public sale next week.
The 2024 festival will run from May 10 to 26, and the opening weekend will see the return of the Aurora Orchestra for the first time in seven years with Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 at Norwich Cathedral, performed entirely from memory.
The cathedral itself will be centre stage on May 12 for a unique, meditative performance on its recently rebuilt organ by its master of music Ashley Grote. The concert will feature three works by Olivier Messiaen, displaying the full range of the instrument.
South American troupe Circolombia will take the now-traditional Spiegeltent circus slot with the debut of their new show Corazón – ‘heart’ in Spanish – promising a high-energy modern circus show running from May 15 to 26.
The Britten Sinfonia returns, performing a series of concerts featuring music by Bach at St Peter Mancroft church, including appearances by harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani and violinist Jacqueline Shave. The season includes complete cycle of Bach’s keyboard concertos, Bach’s second orchestral suite, and the baroque concerto the fifth Brandenburg.
More contemporary music will be provided by folk-pop artist Kenny Anderson (aka King Creosote) on May 18, and Norwich-born musician Laura Cannell will present the live version of her birdsong-inspired seventh solo album Antiphony of the Trees on May 12.
The festival’s spoken word programme will include a performance of local performance poet Luke Wright’s show Silver Jubilee on May 24.
Festival director Daniel Brine said: “It always feels like we’re up and running each year with the announcement of the first shows. While it’s only a tiny taste of what’s to come, there’s a nice representative blend of the local and the international – something that’s particularly important to our Festival.”
- Further details and booking on the Norfolk and Norwich Festival website.
