Since my first Three Choirs as a Worcester Chorister in 1969, I have
wanted to assemble my own Three Choirs Festival programme. For a 10 year old boy, that week was wonderfully inspiring - I experienced my first Missa Solemnis, my first Glagolitic Mass, my first Gerontius, my first Venetian music and a fantastic new work by Jonathan Harvey - with a notated riot in the middle - Ludus amoris.  This was really a terrific programme, the inspiration of Christopher Robinson. In many ways, I have judged all the subsequent festivals I have worked at or attended by the standards of 1969! The Festival which ran closest to my childhood ideal was another Worcester one, (I'm not biased-honestly!), that of 1978,when Donald Hunt put together what we can now see was a daring but very successful week, culminating in my first experience of Mahler's Eighth Symphony, which haunted me for days afterwards.

Now that I am Director of Music at Gloucester, I have the opportunity to put my ideals, plus 40 years of Three Choirs experience, to good use! We are busy putting together a spectacular programme for 2010, one which I hope will capture everybody's imagination. It will include some exciting, but traditional programmes ... and some surprises! I think I can promise that 2010 will be a vintage year...

Adrian Partington

Adrian Partington introduces Gloucester 2010
In a wonderfully informal address to invited guests as captured on this 20 minute video, Adrian Partington describes his thought processes when planning the 2010 festival; how the programme ideas evolved and the innovations he has put into place to take the festival onward and upward.