For 30 years, the Harrogate International Sunday Series has delighted audiences by bringing world-class chamber and classical musicians to the heart of Yorkshire, and with the announcement of an exciting new programme of Sunday morning coffee concerts from January to April 2024, this tradition is set to endure.
This year’s five concerts – featuring clarinettist Robert Plane with pianist Tim Horton, pianist Daniel Lebhardt, the Astatine Trio (piano, violin and cello), pianist Clare Hammond, and violinist Hyeyoon Park with pianist Zlata Chochieva – will blend tradition and innovation in a series of riveting programmes.
Opening the 30th anniversary year on 28 January will be clarinettist Robert Plane – back by popular demand, having shone as a musician-in-residence at Harrogate’s summer music festival. Robert will perform a programme by 20th century and contemporary composers, complemented by Brahms’ Sonata in F minor, Op.120, No. 1.
In the first of two concerts featuring pianists, Daniel Lebhardt will take to the stage on 18 February with a programme that includes Romantic works by Brahms and Scriabin alongside pieces by influential Hungarian composers Bartok and Ligeti. Pianist Clare Hammond will follow on 24 March, playing innovative, diverse works by Hélène de Montgeroult, Clara Schumann, Ravel, Coleridge-Taylor, Spanish post-Romantic Isaac Albéniz, and contemporary composer Edmund Finnis, whose works span electronic and classical music. Film fans amongst the audience might recognise Clare from The Lady in the Van, in which she played a young Maggie Smith!
On 3 March, Sunday Series is thrilled to be welcoming rising stars the Astatine Trio to Harrogate. Formed at the Royal College of Music in 2021, the award-winning trio of piano, violin and cello will perform a traditional programme comprising Haydn, Mendelssohn, Shostakovich and Tailleferre.
The 2024 programme will culminate on Sunday 14 April, when acclaimed violinist Hyeyoon Park and pianist Zlata Chochieva will perform Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending, sonatas by Mozart, Debussy and Grieg, and Distance de fée by influential 20th century Japanese composer, Tōru Takemitsu.
All of the Sunday Series concerts will take place at the Old Swan Hotel, which provides an intimate setting to enjoy a morning coffee and exceptional music with friends. A discount of 10% is available to those booking a series subscription for all five concerts, and to encourage a new generation of classical music lovers, tickets for under-35s will be priced at just £5.
Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said:
We’re delighted to unveil the programme for Harrogate International Sunday Series 2024, which once again brings some of the world’s most talented classical and chamber musicians to Yorkshire. Whilst celebrating our 30th anniversary, this year’s programme is decidedly forward-looking, featuring award-winning young performers and platforming an exciting blend of both traditional and innovative works.
Here’s to the next 30 years of bringing classical and chamber music to life in the Nort
Robert Plane | Sunday 28 January | 11am | The Old Swan Hotel
Robert Plane joined us back in July as part of the Summer Residency and returns to Harrogate by popular demand to open the Sunday Series. His career as a solo and chamber clarinettist is rich and varied; he has appeared with international orchestras across Europe, Asia and North America. Previously principal clarinettist of the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Royal Northern Sinfonia, Rob now holds the post of Head of Woodwind Performance at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. He is joined by pianist Tim Horton, a founding member of both Ensemble 360 and Leonore Piano Trio, with whom he tours widely.
Book Here: https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/whats-on/robert-plane-28-january-2024/
Daniel Lebhardt | Sunday 18 February | 11am | The Old Swan Hotel
Hungarian born pianist Daniel Lebhardt makes his Harrogate debut, presenting a programme featuring composers from his homeland. Daniel is a fast rising star, having given concertos with the Hallé, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and National Philharmonic of Ukraine. He has won multiple prizes including 1st Prize at the Young Concert Artists auditions in Paris and New York, and has performed at Wigmore Hall, St David’s Hall, and the Kennedy Center, Washington DC. His recent recording include music by Bartók, and violin sonatas by Copland, Prokofiev and Poulenc with Benjamin Baker.
Book Here: https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/whats-on/daniel-lebhardt-18-february-2024/
Astatine Trio | Sunday 3 March | 11am | The Old Swan Hotel
Our youngest musicians in the 2024 Sunday Series are the Astatine Trio, formed at the RCM in 2021, and are Britten Pears Young Artists for the 2023/24 season. Making their Harrogate debut, the Trio have already won the First Prize and the Luigi Boccherini Prize at the International Virtuoso & Belcanto Chamber Competition, and joint first prize at the Birmingham International Piano Chamber Music Competition in November 2022. Most recently, the Trio were the youngest finalists of the 2023 Lyon International Chamber Music Competition and were awarded the SEAM prize for contemporary music. They are mentored by the legendary Alfred Brendel and made their Wigmore Hall debut in 2022.
Book Here: https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/whats-on/astatine-trio-3-march-2024/
Clare Hammond | Sunday 24 March | 11am | The Old Swan Hotel
Acclaimed pianist Clare Hammond joins us for the first time, performing a beautiful programme covering the late classical period to the 20th century. Winner of the Royal Philharmonic Society’s ‘Young Artist Award’ in recognition of outstanding achievement in 2016, Clare has recently performed concertos with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and the Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra. She has recorded six discs for BIS, most recently an album of Etudes by visionary French composer Hélène de Montgeroult, who features in Clare’s Sunday Series programme.
Book Here: https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/whats-on/clare-hammond-24-march-2024/
Hyeyoon Park | Sunday 14 April | 11am | The Old Swan Hotel
Violinist Hyeyoon Park returns to the Sunday Series, after her debut performance here in 2016. Her programme includes Vaughan Williams’ The Lark Ascending, in its original scoring for violin and piano, which she recorded for Decca Classics in 2022 to mark the composer’s 150th anniversary. Hyeyoon recently appeared with both the Hallé and Royal Northern Sinfonia alongside Sheku Kanneh-Mason and Benjamin Grosvenor in Beethoven’s Triple Concerto. She is joined in Harrogate by her duo partner Zlata Chochieva, who studied under Mikhail Pletnev and has won ten international piano competitions.
Book Here: https://harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/whats-on/hyeyoon-park-14-april-2024/
Pricing Information for all 5 concerts:
Band A tickets £24 | Band B tickets £23 | Band C tickets £21 | Under 35 tickets £5
Series Subscription: book all five concerts in the same price band and enjoy a 10% discount.
Please note all bookings are subject to a £1.75 transaction fee.
