Family favourite to return to this year’s Elgar Festival

A family favourite concert is set to return at this year’s Elgar Festival.

The ever-popular family concert – entitled The Elgar for Everyone Family Concert -will take place on Wednesday 28 May at Worcester Cathedral, hosted by renowned presenter, composer and author Zeb Soanes.

The event will also include the winning pieces of the Festival’s Young Composers’ Competition as well as celebrating the work and 70^th birthday of Worcester’s finest living composer Ian Venables. 

Kenneth Woods, Artistic Director of The Elgar Festival said : “Always a firm festival favourite, the annual Elgar for Everyone Family Concert brings more than 100 young musicians together from across Elgar Country to perform a vividly varied programme alongside their teachers and mentors from English Symphony Orchestra, following two days of rehearsals and workshops.

“We’re delighted to welcome Zeb Soanes from Classic FM who will be both hosting and narrating the story of everyone’s favourite bear in Paddington Bear’s First Concert! It really will be an uplifting event not to be missed.”

Tickets cost £15 for adults with children under 18 able to attend for free.

The 2025 Elgar Festival event takes place between Saturday 24 May until Sunday 1 June.

The festival – which was launched in 2018 – was established by decree of Worcester City Council and is traditionally held on the weekend closest to Elgar’s birthday, 2 June 1857.

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.

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.

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 it began – lauded as ‘Critic’s Pick’ in both The Guardian and The Times – the festival has doubled in size and scale and championed Sir Edward to as wide an audience as possible. It 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