Winchelsea Arts 2024 - 2025

Winchelsea Arts aims to organise concerts of the highest quality for the local area, support emerging young musicians and raise the profile of the historic church of St Thomas the Martyr both in the wider South East region and nationally.

The Ancient Town of Winchelsea, part of the Cinque Port Confederation, is an historical, architectural and environmental gem; set on a hill overlooking Romney Marsh and the English Channel, protected by its status as a conservation area, yet easily accessible by the motor car and public transport. For some two centuries, the town has been a magnet for writers, artists and musicians, drawn by its charm, peace and inspiration. Central to these qualities and geographically central to the Town itself is the Church of St Thomas the Martyr.

This Church, of which only the choir nave remains of a much more extensive early 14th century structure, contains magnificent monuments, a unique collection of stained glass windows by Douglas Strachan and features excellent acoustics. These attributes make the Church a perfect venue for concerts.
 

- Our 2024/2025 programe is listed here:

• A French Christmas by candlelight
• The choirs and musicians of King’s College School
• Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra directed by Marcio da Silva

Winchelsea Arts thank Heringtons for their generous sponsorship of the 2024-25 season’s opening concert 

Thursday 19th December at 7.30pm

Ensemble OrQuestra directed by Marcio da Silva

A French Christmas by candlelight
The Music of Marc-Antoine Charpentier

St Thomas’s Church will be decorated for Christmas by Nigel Ashton, providing the perfect setting for this his atmospheric candlelit concert to begin the festive season. Charpentier’s famous Messe de Minuit, based on the melodies of ten French Christmas carols and composed for Midnight Mass on Christmas Eve 1694 in the Église Saint-Louis in Paris, will be the centrepiece. Ensemble OrQuestra, described as ‘thrilling and versatile’ by The Guardian return for this much anticipated performance. 

Sunday 16th March 2025 at 4.00pm

The choirs and musicians of King’s College School directed by Peter Hatch and George de Voil 

King’s College School has a rich tradition of high-quality music making. Recent highlights include an outstanding review from the National School Theatre Awards for their production of Billy Elliot and victory in the 2024 South East Schools Chamber Music Competition. Mixed voice choir Coro and a cappella ensemble King’s 9 will be joined by music scholars for this recital of songs from musicals, choral classics and instrumental solos. 

Saturday 17th May 2025 at 7.30pm

Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra directed by Marcio da Silva

Boyan Ivanov - clarinet

• Holst St Paul’s Suite Op29 No2

• 
Finzi Clarinet Concerto Op31

• 
Barber Adagio for Strings Op11

• Britten Simple Symphony Op4

Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra return for a concert of Anglo-American twentieth century orchestral music. Barber’s soothing adagio has featured in many film soundtracks, including 1986 film Platoon. The second movement of Britten’s Simple Symphony famously echoes the opening of Barwick Green, the theme music to the long-running BBC Radio 4 programme, The Archers. The music of Holst and Finzi evokes images of the English countryside thanks to folk song influences

Previous Concerts

Saturday 6th July at 7.30pm

The Heringtons’ Concert
London Handel Players directed by Adrian Butterfield.

Alex Chance - countertenor

The London Handel Players is a world class ensemble bringing together leading period-instrument specialists in the field of baroque chamber music. They will be joined by outstanding countertenor, Alex Chance to present a concert of music by Handel and Vivaldi. The concert promises to be ‘All in all an end-to-end pleasure’ (Gramophone magazine)

Sunday 1st September at 4.00pm

Elgan Llŷr Thomas – tenor
Edmund Whitehead – piano

A recital of songs by Finzi, Quilter, Donizetti, Fauré and Vaughan Williams

‘Elgan Llŷr Thomas sounds lyrical, handsome and impulsive’ (Gramophone magazine)

Elgan returns to Winchelsea to give a recital of a wide variety of song. Recent operatic engagements include his Royal Opera House Covent Garden debut as First Noble of Brabant in Lohengrin, Ralph Rackstraw in HMS Pinafore for English National Opera and Lysander in A Midsummer Night’s Dream for Scottish Opera. Elgan will be accompanied by British-Russian conductor, pianist and former Royal Opera House Jette Parker Young Artist Edmund Whitehead.

Saturday 12th October at 7.30pm

Pascal Rogé - piano

Music by Satie, Ravel, Debussy and Poulenc.

Pascal Rogé is an exceptional French pianist. His playing of repertoire by major French composers from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries is characterized by its elegance, beauty and stylistically perfect phrasing. He has performed in almost every major concert hall in the world, with every major orchestra across the globe and has collaborated with the most distinguished conductors in history, including Lorin Maazel, Michael Tilson Thomas and Mariss Jansons.