For more than forty years the Gower Festival has been bringing music of the highest quality to this area of south west Wales. Once again, during the first two weeks in July, we are inviting internationally acclaimed musicians to play in the superb acoustic and atmosphere of our ancient churches.
As you navigate the web site, clicking photographs will reveal further information.
Sadly, we have no alternative but to cancel this year’s Festival. This is due to many reasons including safety of performers and audience alike.
We are pleased and happy to announce that our wonderful artists all expressed the desire to be part of the 2022 Festival. In addition we will welcome back, as ‘artists in residence’, the brilliant London Conchord Ensemble.
Live music is returning to Gower and we’ll keep you informed!
gordon back
2019 Festival Review Video
Most of the outstanding artists originally booked for the 2020 Festival will be coming to perform for us in July 2021, promising a Festival as good and varied as ever. So that social distancing rules don’t limit audience numbers too much, the majority of the concerts will be given twice, once in mid-afternoon and again at the usual evening time. For the same reason we have to exclude the smaller Churches which would have a very limited seating capacity. For more about the performers and their music, please click on the images below. Details of times and venues will be confirmed in the New Year as will ticketing arrangements.
2021 Festival
CANCELLED
“It is a privilege for me, as President, to be able to welcome you to the Gower Festival, my ‘local’ festival, having been raised on the beautiful Gower Peninsula. There is an exciting programme for you to enjoy, with concerts in the historic churches of Gower.”
Sir Karl Jenkins CBE
“The Gower Festival represents the best of the British summer festival tradition, great music for friendly and appreciative audiences in the most beautiful surroundings. I always look forward to returning with much anticipation.”
Llŷr Williams
“Performing at the Gower Festival on many occasions has always been a special experience for me. I am therefore thrilled to be invited to be a Patron of this outstanding Festival.”
Catrin Finch
An evening of Gower-influenced poetry and jazz, featuring star actors Melanie Walters and Bob Pugh with music by popular jazz pianist Geoff Eales.
Poetry and Jazz
A song recital by leading Welsh bass-baritone Neal Davies and pianist Sholto Kynoch, director of the Oxford Lieder Festival, promises to be a highlight of this year’s festival. Their programme includes a song-cycle by Schumann and a group of Welsh folk songs.
Neal Davies
and Sholto Kynoch
A concert in memory of Brian Clarke, valued member of the Festival Committee and friend to many. It will include music which particularly appealed to Brian, featuring among others oboist John Anderson, cellist Tom Carroll, soprano Ros Evans, composer Sir Karl Jenkins and Côr Ysgol Gyfyn Gŵyr.
Gordon Back and friends
A great favourite with Gower audiences, Pavel Kolesnikov is admired for the sensitivity of his playing and the originality of his choice of music. His latest CD, of Bach’s Goldberg Variations, has been widely praised in the press.
“The young British-based Russian makes this much-recorded music dance and sing. A voyage of rediscovery.” (The Sunday Times)
Pavel Kolesnikov
Following the success of his concerts at the 2018 Festival, everyone will look forward to hearing Andrey Lebedev again in 2021, playing music with a Spanish theme.
Andrey Lebedev
The dynamic Sitkovetsky Trio - Alexander Sitkovetsky (violin), Isang Enders (cello) and Wu Qian (piano) – include in their programme Beethoven’s serene ‘Archduke’ Trio, Op. 97, his last and greatest work in this form.
Sitkovetsky Trio
A lecture recital on Bach’s life and music, given by inspirational cellist and conductor
David Watkin.
An award-winner for his Bach recordings, David Watkin’s music-making combines ‘huge commitment’ with naturalness and spontaneity, as if he had ‘just picked up his cello to play for pleasure’.
lecture recital on the music of J S Bach
One of our brightest rising stars and recent first prize winner of the Virtu(al)oso Global Piano Competition for Artist Relief, Martin James Bartlett offers an intriguing programme of piano music associated with the romantic themes of love and death.
Martin James Bartlett
A rare opportunity to hear Sir Arthur Bliss’s lyrical Quintet for Clarinet and Strings, preceded by Beethoven’s dramatic String Quartet in C minor, Op. 18/4.
The acclaimed Elias Quartet are joined by Robert Plane, principal clarinet of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
Elias Quartet and Robert Plane
Benefits of becoming a Friend
Advance booking for concerts, regular Festival email updates, acknowledgement in the Festival programme, invitation to any masterclasses held during the Festival an opportunities to help with the running of Festival events and to participate at the Society’s Annual General Meeting.
To join please see below.
friends of the Gower Festival
The Elias Quartet perform two gems of the string quartet repertoire: Haydn’s Quartet in G, Op. 33/5, a work both tuneful and witty, and Mendelssohn’s passionate Quartet in A minor, Op. 13, with its echoes of the composer’s Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture.
Elias Quartet
Information to follow
ticketing arrangements to be confirmed
It is with deep regret that we have taken the decision to cancel this year’s Gower Festival.
The safety of our Festival-goers, artists, partners and the wider community, together with continued uncertainty relating to future restrictions on public activities, have combined to make this decision inevitable.
A big thank you is due to our sponsors and supporters, and to all who have contributed in preparing for the Festival.
We continue to wish you and your families well in these difficult and trying times.
We have started to plan Gower Festival 2022, which will take place 4th to 16th July.
The Gower Festival has its roots in the long, hot summer of 1976 when Jonathan Beecher, an Oxford cellist, brought a student orchestra and a handful of professional soloists to perform an astonishing series of thirty-one concerts in Gower churches during the last two weeks of August. So many events packed into a fortnight may have been over-ambitious. But the idea of holding a music festival in Gower churches was such a good one that it led to the formation of the Gower Festival Society and in due course to the appointment of John Fussell MBE, Swansea's Director of Music and City Organist, as Artistic Director of the enterprise. More than anyone else, it was John who established the high standards of musical performance and well-chosen repertoire which have characterised the Gower Festival ever since.
We have some wonderful concerts arranged for the 2021 Gower Festival.
Festival Friends have priority booking.
Annual Membership costs: £15 per household.
You can join in one of four ways:
Don’t miss your chance to support the Gower Festival Society and win cash prizes for yourself!
There are three prize draws per year - July, November and March.
The cost of a share is only £12 per year - that’s just £1 per month. You may take out more than one share if you wish.
You can join in one of three ways:
Gower Festival secretary at info@gowerfestival.org
Friends of Gower Festival secretary: friends@gowerfestival.org
Information about Swansea and
Gower including, walks, what's on, accommodation: www.visitswanseabay.com/
destination/gower-peninsula
Swansea Classical Guitar Circle: www.swanseaguitars.co.uk
