Orchestra in a Field, the festival that rewrites the rules on classical music, takes world-class orchestral music out of the concert hall and into a relaxed outdoor festival setting, for all to enjoy. A two-day event packed with musical performances ranging from classical greats to interpretations by some of our hottest contemporary talents, it's perfect family entertainment. So if you thought that orchestral music was snooty, throw out your misconceptions and throw on your flip flops! What we’re offering here with Orchestra in a Field just isn’t available anywhere else. “People associate big orchestras with stuffy concert halls, and a lot of people are alienated by that image of ‘classical music’. But take the music out of that setting, and it’s a revelation.” The sight of a full-scale symphony orchestra lit up against a night sky is awe-inspiring enough – let alone the sound!
Glastonbury Abbey is set in 36 beautifully peaceful acres of parkland in the centre of the ancient market town of Glastonbury, the historic and mythical Isle of Avalon, in the heart of rural Somerset.
An introduction from Charles Hazlewood:
“At Orchestra in a Field I want to prove that you can have exactly the same kind of visceral experience at an orchestral concert that you might at a rock festival. Music is the most universal language we humans have, and there are few things to beat a world-class symphony orchestra playing like their lives depended on it. ”
”The fact that it happens in a field rather than in the more rarefied atmosphere of a concert hall means that anyone and everyone can be how they want and respond how they want. Every person on the planet has the ability to understand great music. Orchestra in a Field is determined to prove it. I’ll introduce the whole show live from the stage, to help people who know the music well hear new things in it and to encourage people who aren’t so familiar with classical music to engage with their heads as well as their hearts.”
“What Heston Blumenthal is to food, Charles Hazlewood is to music” – The Guardian
