Tag Archives: Oxford International Song Festival

News – the 25th Oxford International Song Festival ‘Love Songs’, 9-24 October 2026

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from the press release. Picture of Benjamin Appl (c) David Murano

The Oxford International Song Festival marks its 25th anniversary with a thrilling and wide-ranging programme centred on the theme of love. Spanning 59 events, the Festival explores love in its myriad forms – its joys, complexities, and heartbreaks expressed in music and poetry, and its creative force in the lives of composers and poets. Alongside headline recitals by world-leading artists, audiences can enjoy lunchtime, rush-hour and late-night concerts, as well as study events. The programme is further enriched by choral music, dance, chamber works and discussions.

The Festival opens on 9 October with a recital by Dame Sarah Connolly, also marking the Festival’s first event at the newly opened Schwarzman Centre. Baritone Matthias Goerne makes his Festival debut on 10 October with a performance of Schubert’s Winterreise at the Olivier Hall. Other featured singers include Carolyn Sampson, Benjamin Appl, Katie Bray, Roderick Williams, Alice Coote, Katharina Ruckgaber, Johannes Kammler, Camilla Tilling, Sarah Maria Sun, Anna Prohaska and Christoph Prégardien. They are joined by pianists including Joseph Middleton, Tamara Stefanovich, James Baillieu and Pauliina Tukiainen, among many others, including the Festival’s Artistic Director, Sholto Kynoch.

The programme includes several world premieres: Nardus Williams performs Marriage of…?, a new work by Associate Composer Emily Hazrati and librettist Nazli Tabatabai-Khatambahksh; Katy Thomson and Rustam Khanmurzin premiere a new work by John Webb, exploring the corrupting nature of power; and Anna Dennis and John Reid present The Silent Songs of Josefine, a bold new Kafka-inspired work by Can Bilir.

The Festival’s central weekend (17–18 October) is devoted to the music of Franz Schubert, with Graham Johnson continuing his landmark exploration of the composer’s final years, 200 years on. Other highlights of the weekend include Camilla Tilling returning to perform Schubert’s Rückert settings and Helen Charlston (below) performing Die Schöne Müllerin, both with Sholto Kynoch; and Sarah Maria Sun performing Der Hirt auf dem Felsen with pianist Jan Philip Schulze and clarinettist Julian Bliss.

On Wednesday 21 October, the New Generation Day showcases three concerts in partnership with the BBC Radio 3 New Generation Artists scheme, all recorded for future broadcast. Performers include baritone Andrew Hamilton and pianist Michael Pandya; soprano Erika Baikoff with Sholto Kynoch; and Konstantin Krimmel with Ammiel Bushakevitz, presenting a programme that includes Vaughan Williams’ Songs of Travel.

Louise Alder and Joseph Middleton explore the passing of the year in a programme featuring Helen Grime’s Seasons, written for them in 2025. Alice Coote and Julius Drake present an imaginative recital blending repertoire from David Bowie to Mozart. Renowned pianist Dame Imogen Cooper performs Hugo Wolf’s Italienisches Liederbuch as part of her final concert season before retirement. Juliane Banse returns with pianist Alexander Krichel, dancer István Simon and choreographer Andreas Heise for a danced performance of Mozart songs and piano music.

Instrumental highlights include appearances by the Carducci String Quartet, performing the Mozart Quintet with Julian Bliss and Alec Roth’s Seven Elements with James Gilchrist, guitarists Bryan Brenner and Václav Fuksa, and accordionist Murray Grainger. Eight Oxford Song Young Artist duos each give short showcase slots at the start of headline evening recitals in the first week of the Festival. In the second week, they immerse themselves in the residential Mastercourse, led by Jan Philip Schulze, with daily public masterclasses.

With thousands of tickets priced under £20, discounts for multiple bookings, and £10 tickets available for under-35s, the Festival remains accessible to the widest possible audience.

Each autumn, audiences from around the world are drawn to Oxford for the Festival’s outstanding artistic quality and the city’s unique atmosphere. Performances take place in a range of venues, including the historic Holywell Music Room – Europe’s oldest purpose-built concert hall – as well as the Levine Building, the Olivier Hall, Garsington Studios at the Wormsley Estate and, for the first time, spaces within the Schwarzman Centre.

Public booking opens on Wednesday 20 May. Tickets can be booked online at oxfordsong.org or via the Box Office on 01865 591276 (Monday to Friday, 11am–1pm).

Published post no.2,878 – Tuesday 5 May 2026

News – Oxford International Song Festival, 10-25 October: Stories In Song

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adapted by Ben Hogwood from the press release. Pictures by Capucine de Chocqueuse (Marie Laure Garnuer and Celia Oneto Bensaid), Peak Motion Films (The Erlkings), Rosie Hardy (Soraya Mafi), Guido Werner (Konstantin Krimmel)

  • The UK’s largest song festival, now in its 24th year, features 67 events over 16 days.
  • The Festival boasts a headline series of evening song recitals and a rich array of other events, including choral music, dance, chamber works, and talks.
  • Among several world premieres is Nice Weather for Witches, a specially commissioned song cycle by Elena Langer, as part of a programme based on the Slavic legend of Baba Yaga.
  • With ‘Pay More/ Pay Less’ and ‘Pay What You Can’ options, free events, £10 tickets for under-35s, and a variety of discounts and concessionary rates, the Festival is accessible to all.

Taking place from 10 to 25 October, the Oxford International Song Festival promises an exhilarating and ambitious fortnight filled with adventure, discovery, and vision this autumn. This year’s theme of storytelling will feature over 150 singers, instrumentalists and speakers, who will perform hundreds of works across 67 events. The Stories in Song programme ranges from fairytales and ballads to the life stories of composers and poets, from Baroque lute songs to Irish folk music, and from a Schubert Weekend to a day of Spanish and Latin American song.

Artists include Benjamin Appl and Sholto Kynoch who give the opening night recital on 10 October; bass-baritone Stephan Loges with pianist Libby Burgess(11 Oct);soprano Juliane Banse and pianist Daniel Heide (12 Oct); Christian Immler and Anne Le Bozec (13 Oct); Nicholas Mulroy with Toby Carr and Elizabeth Kenny (14 Oct); Stéphane Degout and Cédric Tiberghien (15 Oct); Dietrich Henschel and Angharad Rowlands (16 Oct); Marie-Laure Garnier (above) and Célia Oneto Bensaid (16 Oct); Thomas Oliemans and Paolo Giacometti (19 Oct); Camilla Tilling and Paul Rivinius (21 Oct); and Konstantin Krimmel (below), with Ammiel Bushakevitz (24 Oct). Artists appearing for the first time include Nikola Hillebrand with Julius Drake (19 Oct) and Sir John Tomlinson (25 Oct).

The first of this year’s world premieres is Wild Nights, a new work by Oxford Song Young Artist Will Harmer (10 Oct), performed by Sebastian Hill with Will Harmer, as one of eight showcase recitals given by Oxford Song Young Artists who are completing their 18-month programme of training and performance opportunities.

A new song cycle by Cheryl Frances-Hoad, based on the Untold Lives collection in the British Library, will be sung by Neil Balfour with Sid Ramchander (15 Oct). Oliver Johnston and Natalie Burch give the world premiere of two songs by Elena Langer, setting the Russian poet Osip Mandelstam (22 Oct). Oxford Song’s Associate Composer Emily Hazrati creates a new cycle for Soraya Mafi (above), and Ian Tindale (23 Oct), Book of Queens, inspired by the Shahnameh (‘Book of Kings’), the 10th-century epic poem by the Persian poet Ferdowsi.

Elena Langer’s new cycle, Nice Weather for Witches, is the centrepiece of a programme of song and dance, based on the legend of Baba Yaga, with mezzo-soprano Rowan Hellier, dancers Ana Dordevic and Carola Schwab, and choreographer Andreas Heise (22 Oct). The performance is preceded by a partnership storytelling event with the Crick Crack Club.

The middle weekend of the Festival (17-20 Oct) will be dedicated to the songs of Franz Schubert. Graham Johnson will continue his survey of the composer’s life 200 years on, delving into Schubert’s world in 1825, joined by the soprano Martha Guth and an ensemble of singers from Oxford Song’s Young Artist Programme. Other recitals are given by Henk Neven, Thomas Oliemans,and Nikola Hillebrand. The weekend will culminate with a performance of Die Schöne Müllerin by Roderick Williams and the Carducci String Quartet. The Erlkings (above), the unique Schubert-inspired band based in Vienna led by singer Bryan Benner, will be in residence throughout the weekend, celebrating their tenth year with a new version of Winterreise, as well as performances for students and families, and a concluding Schubert party.

Song Connections events throughout the Festival offer a range of enriching experiences for festivalgoers. On an informal Song Sofa, Katy Hamilton will lead conversations with Roderick Williams and Benjamin Appl in a new format designed to bring audiences closer to both artists and music. There will be an introduction to the Spanish language, highlighting its many regional and continental variants, and discussing its delights and challenges for singers. There will also be a session on the principal poets from the ‘Golden Age’ of Spanish poetry in the 16th and 17th centuries, through to Romanticism and the 20th century. Professor Philip Ross Bullock will explore the life and music of Dmitry Shostakovich, commemorating the 50th anniversary of the composer’s death. Natasha Loges explores a rich legacy of composers from around the globe who studied in Europe, were drawn to the voice-piano combination of song, and subsequently integrated Western idioms with vernacular languages, harmonies and rhythms.

Late-night events include a performance by Argentinian bandoneon virtuoso Victor Villena, who will deliver an electrifying set of tango music (14 Oct), mezzo-soprano Olivia Vermeulen and pianist Jan Philip Schulze with their latest programme, ‘In Heaven’ (17 Oct), and a Halloween-inspired concert with Aphrodite Patoulidou and Keval Shah (24 Oct). An Irish folk-music performance with Zoë Conway and John McIntrye concludes a day focused on the music and poetry of Ireland (23 Oct).

Some events are free or priced at just £6-£10, and there are thousands of tickets available for £18 or less. A generous range of discounts are offered to anyone booking multiple events, and under-35s can attend any event for just £10.

Sholto Kynoch, Artistic Director of the Oxford International Song Festival, shared his excitement: “Telling stories is a fundamental element of song, at the heart of all we do. It is part of the fusion of words and music that creates such magical sparks. In this year’s Festival, we explore stories in many different forms, from fairytales and ballads to the human and artistic relationships behind the songs, and the developing stories of national song traditions. Whether classical song is new to you or you’ve been a regular visitor to the Festival, be assured of the very warmest welcome: the music is thrilling and profound, but the Festival remains informal, sociable and friendly. I look forward to seeing you there.”

Public booking for the Oxford International Song Festival is now open. Book tickets online at http://www.oxfordsong.org or call the Box Office on 01865 591276 (Mon-Fri 9.30am – 1pm).

Published post no.2,658 – Monday 15 September 2025