Sheffield music festival reveals first guest curator - as well as female composer theme

This year’s nine day festival – the first live festival from Music in the Round for two years - is scheduled to run from May 13-21 at the Crucible Studio Theatre and other venues.

Started in 1984 by leader of the world-renowned Lindsay String Quartet, Peter Cropper, the festival now centres around the extraordinary versatility of the eleven musicians of Sheffield-based Ensemble 360.

They’ll perform in 15 concerts of around 20 concerts and events over the nine days in May, joining to form duos, trios, string quartets and wind quintets in myriad combinations.

This year well over a third of the music to feature in the festival is written by living artists and female composers past and present, including the world premiere of The Light Blinds, a new RPS commission by Angela Slater.

Guest Festival Curator Helen Grime said: “It’s been a huge pleasure and honour to be guest curator of the 2022 Sheffield Chamber Music Festival. I’ve had lots of fun, working with Ensemble 360, putting together programmes of music I love, finding connections between old and new music and threading through various themes that are close to my heart.

“Each concert features the music of at least one female composer, including overlooked gems from the last few hundred years, as well as more recent pieces and a world premiere.

“I’m very excited to be welcoming some of the most distinguished musicians working in the country as guest artists, and I hope audiences will enjoy meeting them, as well as seeing Ensemble 360 back in their festival home, the Crucible Studio Theatre.”

The festival will open on Friday May 13 with the world-class musicians from Ensemble 360 performing works including Dvorak’s joyous Piano Quintet No.2.

Two family concerts open and close the festival, including the enchanting story of intrepid young inventor, Izzy Gizmo on Saturday May 14.

And on on Sunday 15 May two concerts will also tune in to the wonders of the natural world, with performances at sunrise (5:15am) and sunset (8pm).

Tickets are now on sale at www.musicintheround.co.uk, or from Sheffield Theatres box office, or by calling 0114 249 6000.