>July Events / >June Events / Events in Norfolk and Suffolk / Music / Tourist Attractions Norfolk and Suffolk June 26, 2012
The 17th annual Wymondham Music Festival Fortnight, June 23 to July 8 2012 www.wymfestival.org.uk, featuring 43 events, many of them free, kicks off with the combined jazz bands from Wymondham High and the Jazz Band of the Gymnasium Waldstrasse Hattingen in Wymondham Market Place at 10am on Saturday, June 23 2012.
The first evening concert on June 23 features O Duo’s percussion extravaganza, 7.30pm at Wymondham Abbey. This is followed by the popular annual Midsummer Jazz Picnic with the DixieMix Band at Becketswell on Monday, June 25 (6pm – 9pm).
Concerts and events that follow feature Americana, classical, folk, world, jazz, swing, disco, funk, soul and early music in a range of venues across the town.
There’s the BBC Folk Awards 2009 Best Live Act winner, The Demon Barber Roadshow, with its high-energy mix of music and dance, as recommended by Mike Harding, BBC Radio 2, ‘The Demon Barbers are one of the best live bands I’ve ever seen, If you get a chance to see them – don’t miss it, they are brilliant.’
Jazz pianist Craig Milverton pays homage to 16 of the great jazz pianists, Cuarteto Guarachando present an evening of Afro Cuban music, son and salsa and Norwich’s Claire Barker Band bring in the disco, funk and soul.
There’s also The Kickstart Sessions, performances from young bands at Ketts Park Centre on Saturday, June 30 from 11am to 5pm, presented in association with SNYA Radio and Woodshack Rehearsal Studios.
Tickets for all concerts and workshops are on sale at the Book Fountain Wymondham, or email [email protected]. There’s a £2 discount on all tickets bought by the end of 22 June.
See www.wymfestival.org.uk for full Festival Fortnight programme details.
Festival Fortnight highlights
Wymondham Abbey:
- O Duo, June 23 at 7.30pm – Owen Gunnell and Oliver Cox, with their percussion extravaganza, a mix of popular classics and contemporary music played on marimbas, vibraphone and huge array of percussion.
- Eclipse, An Apple For My Love, June 27 at 7.30pm, music, songs, dance and legends of the British Isles including Irish jigs, English folk songs, Celtic legends, baroque grounds and Purcell songs – Joy Smith (harp), Layil Barr (recorder), Steven Player (dance) and Thomas Hobbs (tenor).
- A Little Bit of Gershwin, June 28 at 7.30pm, Karen Harries (mezzo soprano) and Will Fergusson (piano), music from George and Ira Gershwin and their contemporaries.
- Cuillin Sound, June 30 at 7.30pm, featuring Lynda Coffin (flute). Sarah Watts (clarinet) and Laurence Perkins (bassoon).
- Explorers and Enchanters, July 1 at 8pm, Laura Cannell (recorders) and Carolyn Gibley (piano), 20th century music arranged for recorder and piano.
- Wymondham Young Musicians’ Concert, July 2 at 7pm.
- Jazz Piano Legends, July 5 at 7.30pm, Craig Milverton, UK Jazz Pianist of the Year 2010, pays homage to 16 great jazz pianists of the last 100 years.
- Lunchtime recitals at 1.10pm on June 29 (Annabella Ellis 2012 Norfolk Young Musician), July 2 (music for two organs David Morgan and Anne Duarte), July 3 (The Clarinet Connection), July 4 (David Dunnett organ with American choir Musica Missouri – Independence Day special) and July 5 (Love found, Love lost – Tom Elliott baritone and Julian Haggett piano).
Wymondham Central Hall
- Claire Barker Band, June 29 at 8pm – Norwich based disco, funk and soul.
- Skyliner Band, July 4 at 8pm – 1940s dance with this nine piece band specialising in the big band music of the 1940s.
- Cuarteto Guarachando, July 6 at 8pm, son, salsa and Afro Cuban music, Adriana Lord (vocals), Luke Rattenbury (guitar), Eddie Myer (bass and Juan Carlos Paez (drums).
- The Demon Barber Roadshow, July 7 at 8pm, winner of the Best Live Act, BBC Folk Awards 2009, a high-energy mix of song, dance and musical surprise.
Open-air Events
- Wymondham High Jazz Bands, June 23, 10am to 12noon, Market Place
- Midsummer Jazz Picnic at Becketswell, June 25, 6pm to 9pm, featuring Dixie Mix Jazz Band
- Brother Pit, acoustic American music, June 30, 10am to 12noon, Market Place
- Teddy Bears’ Picnic, July 1, 11am to 1pm, at King’s Head Meadow with live music and storytelling for young families.
- Ben Grizzly and the Loose Leaf Drifters’ country style, July 7, 10am to 12noon, Market Place.
Festival lecture-recital
- The Lute in England through Art and Music, with David Van Edwards and Peter Trent, Tuesday, July 3 at 7.30pm, Fairland Church Centre.
Festival Fortnight Finale Wymondham Baptist Church
- Music for a Golden Queen, July 8 at 3pm, Hexachordia brings Festival Fortnight to a close with a feast of music popular at the court of Queen Elizabeth I.
Workshops
- Wymondham Songfest 2012, June 30, 9am – 5pm at the Green Dragon, write, perform and record a song in a day with Johnny Steinberg.
- Woodwind workshop with Cuillin Sound June 30, 1pm – 3pm, Abbey Hall.
- An hour of Morris, Rapper and Clog dance moves with The Demon Barber Roadshow, July 7, 5pm, Central Hall.
Wymondham Music Festival is supported by Wymondham Town Council, South Norfolk Council and Norfolk County Council. For more information about Wymondham contact the Tourist Information Centre tel. 01953 604721.
John Wood, Chair, Wymondham Music Festival said: “We have an exceptional programme this year. Festival Fortnight is going to be real treat for music fans, with its superb mix of classical, folk, jazz and world music. Come and mark this year of celebration in our historic market town. “
Wymondham Music Festival (reg. charity no. 1081375) is run by a committee of volunteers who give their time to organise and administer the programme, and is supported by grants, advertising, sponsorship and the generosity of its patrons. The Festival began in 1996 as a small series of concerts and was called Wymondham Music Week. It has expanded to become the musically diverse festival that it is today, promoting the performance and appreciation of music, as well as offering music education for local people. The Festival committee links up with many other local music organisations to promote events throughout the summer months.
