The idyllic rural North Yorkshire village of Aldborough becomes an unlikely epicentre for music across ten days, from 12 to 21 June.
This year, the festival also welcomes journalist Matthew Parris as its headline guest speaker.
The respected journalist and Times columnist has spent over 35 years writing about politics. He promises an entertaining and insightful evening discussing his career.
Matthew Parris said: “I am so looking forward to visiting Aldborough for the first time, and engaging with the intelligent audience that I know the festival always draws. Yorkshire is where my infant memories begin: I was one year old when my family returned from Africa to make our home there, but I’m afraid my first recollection is of freezing cold and damp in a tiny stone terraced house in a tiny village in the then North Riding! I hope what used to be the East Riding will give me a kinder welcome!”
Robert Ogden, Director of the Northern Aldborough Festival, said: “We’re looking forward to giving Matthew a warm Yorkshire welcome, and have no doubt that he’ll be charmed by the beautiful, rural, village and with its ancient St Andrew’s church as our unique festival venue.”
This year's programme celebrates the artistry and power of the human voice, centred on the annual New Voices Singing Competition, which boasts a star-studded judging panel.
Putting the voice centre stage, the UK-wide hunt for the year’s finest vocal classical talent is a showcase of the hottest rising stars and offers a prize fund of £7000 and performances at leading festivals for the winners.
2025’s judging panel features arguably England’s most famous living operatic baritone, Sir Thomas Allen, the pioneering female conductor Dame Jane Glover, and pianist and founder of the Oxford Lieder Festival Sholto Kynoch.
Audiences experience acts normally seen on the cosmopolitan stage in the intimate setting of the ancient St Andrew’s village church. Now in its 31st year, a charity, the festival’s mission is to bring world-class acts to rural audiences, and provide a platform for rising stars of the classical scene.
A very special headline act features two musical luminaries: the mezzo soprano Dame Sarah Connolly with Dame Imogen Cooper on piano. Their programme includes the romantic and beautiful ‘Woman’s Life and Love’ (Frauen-Liebe und Leben) by Schumann, and much-loved songs by Brahms and Duparc.
Opening the festival fresh from their Proms debut is the dynamic Fantasia Orchestra. Home to some of the best of young British classical music talent, they will be joined by leading violinist Tamsin Waley-Cohen, performing Vaughan Williams’ stunning Lark Ascending. Under the baton of Tom Fetherstonhaugh, the programme includes Elgar's elegiac Serenade for Strings and Dvorak's Nocturne.
The festival also welcomes the leading British jazz vocalist Jacqui Dankworth and her Trio. She’ll showcase her unique vocal mastery in an intimate venue, with a set featuring her favourite classics that have inspired her incredible career.
One of the UK’s most exciting opera companies, Wild Arts, performs Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love. Attracting five-star reviews, the semi-staged comedy reimagines the legendary story in a dreamy 1950s seaside setting. Audiences can picnic in the beautiful surrounds of Aldborough Manor before the performance.
Described as a ‘musical Bear Grylls’ the world-leading French horn player Ben Goldscheider teams up with the acclaimed Heath Quartet to perform Mozart and Haydn.
Audiences can expect a spine-tingling evening with the critically-acclaimed singers of Armonico Consort as they sing Rachmaninov’s Russian masterpiece, The Vespers. Considered simply the most gorgeous choral music ever written, the piece was so personal to Rachmaninov he requested a section of the Vespers to be sung at his funeral.
BBC Proms star, vocalist Thanda Gumede has a heartfelt, beautiful baritone-to-falsetto voice. He performs with a pianist and bassist bringing Neo-soul and Gospel to a Grade II listed venue – The Old Hall in North Deighton.
The headline speaker this year is the respected journalist and Times columnist, Matthew Parris, who has spent over 35 years writing about politics. Expect an entertaining and insightful evening.
Closing the festival is the popular Last Night Outdoor Concert, set in the grounds of Aldborough Manor. This year’s headline act is the Killerz Tribute, one of the original tribute acts to The Killers, who will perform to circa 1,000 festival-goers. Audiences are invited to bring a picnic and dance the night away, ending with a spectacular orchestrated firework display.
Aldborough’s late-night venue ‘The Shed’ also returns for concert goers who want to continue festivities after the evening concerts in a relaxed environment, with a variety of live entertainment and refreshments.
For the full programme and to book tickets, go to: https://aldboroughfestival.co.uk/