Retro 70s fusion to feature at this year’s Elgar Festival

One of the county’s most successful festivals has put together an all-star group to perform at the event.

The Elgar Festival – which takes place from Saturday 24 May until Sunday 1 June this year – will welcome Ken Woods – the festival’s Artistic Director – alongside his fusion band The Electric Truth.

The band will play at West Malvern Social Club in Great Malvern, Worcestershire on Saturday 24 May at 8.00pm, offering a nightclub style evening of entertainment.

The event – which costs £10 per ticket – will also feature a ‘Bester at Polyester’ outfit competition with 70s fancy dress recommended.

Ken explained: “This year’s Club Elgar show is a musical time machine taking listeners back to the heady era of the 1970s jazz/rock fusion movement.  It’s a virtuosic celebration of bright colours, brilliant improvisation and funky grooves, featuring the musical legacies of iconic musicians such as Herbie Hancock, Tony Williams, Freddie Hubbard, Carlos Santana and, of course, Edward Elgar. It’s about fun, about excess, about experimentation, and, this time, about Elgar.”

When not conducting orchestras and directing festivals in the UK and USA, Kenneth Woods is a lifelong guitarist who studied jazz improvisation and arranging with legendary teacher David Baker at Indiana University.

Ken concluded: “Club Elgar is about two things, having fun and knocking down the walls between musical genres.”

Themed ‘Celebrate with Elgar’, this year’s Festival will bring together world-class professional musicians and artists alongside local choirs and ensembles placing the music of Worcester’s most famous son alongside that of his contemporaries and some of today’s leading composers and arrangers.

Set in the composer’s hometown and surrounding areas, the festival is an annual celebration of Elgar’s music spanning symphonic and string orchestra concerts by the resident and world renowned English Symphony Orchestra.

Other highlights this year include Elgar’s Symphony No. 2 and John Ireland’s oratorio ‘These Things Shall Be’ performed by the ESO and joined by the 2025 Festival Chorus on Saturday 31 May in Worcester Cathedral. There are further performances by English String and Chamber Orchestras, recitals by world renowned performers Raphael Wallfisch, David Briggs and April Fredrick, several participatory events including ‘Come and Play Elgar 1’ and a Young Singers Masterclass. The ever-popular family concert returns hosted by Classic FM’s Zeb Soanes including the winning pieces of the Festival’s Young Composers’ Competition; the event will also celebrate the work and 70^th birthday of Worcester’s finest living composer Ian Venables. 

There are several free events, relaxed concerts, an exhibition, choral events, a film screening, Q and As, a guided walk and a new performance partnership with students from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.

Since its inauguration in 2018, when it was a Critic’s Pick in both The Guardian and The Times, the festival has doubled in size and scale and continues to grow annually through an innovative development programme of appealing and accessible events, working with hundreds of both internationally renowned professional artists and amateur musicians and performers of all ages to ensure Elgar really is for everyone.

For further information and to book tickets please visit www.elgarfestival.org