This year’s festival is a celebration of some of the most beautiful and poignant song ever written, performed in the intimate setting of the Ashburton Arts Centre. Whether you are a seasoned classical music lover or you just want to explore something new, do join us, we’d love to meet you and welcome you into the wonderful world of song!

Gramophone award nominated artists and festival directors, Natalie Burch and James Way open this year’s festival with Schubert’s epic tale of love, delirium and lost youth.

Expect to be transported, moved and beguiled as they tell the intriguing story of a love-lorn wanderer journeying through a wintery landscape.

Join us afterwards to discuss the fate of our lonely wanderer at a location to be discolsed!

The first relaxed event we have held at Devon Song. All are welcome to come along, bring a coffee, move about the space and come and go as needed. And don’t worry about making noise throughout the performance!

Rough timings:

11-11:15 - arrive, get comfy

11:15-11:50 - music and introductions from the artists

11:50-12:00 - time to chat to the artists and other audience members

‘Among the best young singers in Britain today’ (Bachtrack), Bethany Horak-Hallett joins festival director Natalie Burch in an exquisite hour of musical contemplation. With music from Hildegard von Bingen, to Gustav Mahler and a new piece written for Beth and Natalie by the outstanding Deborah Pritchard, this is sure to be an absolute treat. Switch off your phones, forget the stresses of modern day life, and find peace in this beautiful programme of Quiet Music.

Extraordinary: A Celebration of the Life & Music of George Butterworth

7.30pm
The Arts Centre, Ashuburton

April 18th

This semi-staged dramatisation explores the context of the relatively short life of this seminal, early 20th century composer as well as of the demons that pursued Butterworth and the elegiac love for fellow man that consumed him. This performance uses his complete ‘A Shropshire Lad and Other Songs’ song cycle, which sets A. E. Housman’s sexually and powerfully charged poetry to music for Piano and Baritone. There’s also other selections of Butterworth‘s symphonic masterpieces and folk songs arranged for piano, coupled with memories and comments by those that knew him form this production.

Richard Court: Baritone/Actor
Mark Packwood: Accompanist/Actor
Duncan Macfarland: Director