The Three Choirs Festival is one of the oldest music festivals in the world, dating back certainly to 1715, and possibly before. Its early days took the form of musical meetings of Lay Clerks (professional cathedral singers) from the three Cathedrals of Gloucester Hereford and Worcester, but in recent years it has grown in scale to become what it is today – a week-long festival of choral and orchestral concerts, supported by a daytime programme of chamber music, organ recitals, talks, theatre, exhibitions and other events. By tradition, the festival is an annual one, though its location cycles round the three Cathedral Cities of Gloucester, Worcester and Hereford.
Traditionally, the musical centre of the festival has been the three Cathedral Choirs, who sing numerous evensongs and other services over the course of the week, as well as one major concert. These choirs are made up of boy choristers (who attend choir schools attached to each of the three Cathedrals) and professional singing men. We now form a Festival Chorus in addition to the Cathedral choirs, an auditioning body made up of singers from the three cities and surrounding areas. They are joined by a major professional orchestra, in 2006 and 2007 the Philharmonia Orchestra, to perform a wide range of substantial works, but particularly the great choral compositions of Britain’s finest composers. We at Three Choirs take great pride in having British music at the centre of our festival, though not of course to the exclusion of anything else! Singers of the highest quality are engaged as soloists, many of whom have extensive operatic experience in major opera houses around the world, while others come to us early in their careers.
The major evening concerts take place in the Cathedral of the hosting city (Gloucester in 2007) which is transformed from a place of worship into a concert hall by the provision of bespoke audience seating and a performance platform. We also make provision for those seats which do not have an unobstructed view of the concert platform through CCTV coverage and large displays. Daytime concerts take place in the surrounding area, both in churches and other venues.
Each festival also has an attached club, traditionally run by the Friends of the home festival. This provides a central social venue for audience and performers alike, as well as food and drink throughout the course of the festival, in a welcoming and hospitable atmosphere.
There is something for everyone at Three Choirs, so why not find out what all the fuss is about, and visit this unique annual event.
