Spring Concerts

Friday 19 September, 8pm

St Andrew's Church, Fingringhoe

Norway's incredible Engegård Quartet open the 25th Anniversary Roman River Festival in the church that hosted the first performance back in 1999. Featuring Grieg, Mozart, and a collection of Norwegian folk melodies, with the Festival's first Artistic Director, Juliet Jopling, on viola. 

Saturday 20 September, 4.15pm

CODA, 63 High Street, Colchester

British musician, filmmaker, author, and transformative coach, Jamie Catto, performs songs and reads from his new book, The Old Forest Path – a children's  book with evocative illustrations by Kanako Wakabayashi that intertwines themes of music, magic, and liberation.

Saturday 20 September, 8pm

St Mary's Church, Dedham

Festival regulars Sijie Chen and Sacha Rattle lead this performance of Messiaen's revolutionary statement of faith and art – inspired by the declaration in the Book of Revelation that “there shall be time no longer...”

Sunday 21 September, 11am

Layer Marney Tower, near Colchester

The wonderful Bach to Baby return to Layer Marney Tower with a concert aimed towards the little ones. Tickets include admission to this stunning Tudor gatehouse (and its sheep, goats and café!).

Sunday 21 September, 3pm

Venue tbc (Central Colchester)

Violinist Sijie Chen returns for a third year to lead a workshop in partnership with Play Strings Colchester. Sign up to bring a young musician and give them an opportunity to learn from a former young musician, soloist, and one of the leading lights of period chamber performance.

Sunday 21 September, 6pm

St Mary's Church, Ardleigh

The acclaimed Armonico Consort perform Rachmaninov's radiant 1915 Vespers in the Medieval and Victorian-Gothic surrounds of St Mary's, Ardleigh. William Butterfield's lavish gold interior offers the perfect backdrop for this unaccompanied pinnacle of Russian sacred music.

Monday 22 September, 11.30am

Jaywick Martello Tower, St Osyth

 The first of three lunchtime recitals from Roman River's Artistic Director, Orlando Jopling – bringing out the rich, resonant voice of the cello through suites by Bach and Britten, alongside lively Corelli variations. Limited to just 50 tickets in the intimate Jaywick Martello Tower.

Monday 22 September

St Mary's Church, Wivenhoe

A mellow Monday evening of relaxing music, performed by candlelight in Wivenhoe's St Mary's church by mezzo-soprano Marta Fontanals-Simmons, flautist Chloë Vincent, and harpist Olivia Jageurs. An exploration of sound, mood, and storytelling, our trio weave together folk tradition, contemporary work, and lyrical reflection.

Tuesday 23 September

St Lawrence Rowhedge

Journey through Russian and post-Soviet musical landscapes, kicking off with a free shot of vodka and a toast to Dmitri Shostakovich on his 119th birthday. Alissa Firsova, Daniel Rowland, and David Cohen perform music by Shostakovich, Rachmaninov, and Firsova.

Wednesday 24 September, 11.30am

St Osyth Priory Chapel

 The second of three lunchtime recitals from Roman River's Artistic Director, Orlando Jopling – journeying through light, shadow, and reflection; Bach’s joyful Suite No. 1, Britten’s intensely expressive Second Cello Suite, and a transcription of the Chaconne in D minor from Bach’s Violin Partita.

Wednesday 24 September

All Saints Church, Fordham

Acclaimed pianist Martin James Bartlett returns after an incredible performance during the Roman River Festival in 2022, leading us on an expressive voyage through different eras, cultures, and emotional landscapes – from Rameau, Byrd, and Couperin, to Beethoven and Debussy, and to Liszt's astonishing arrangement of Wagner's Tristan und Isolde.

Thursday 25 September

Old Garrison Gymnasium, Colchester

A concert unlike any other this year, and held in a venue we haven't visited since it was renovated. Stand-out rising star Jordan Ashman, praised for his ability to blend tradition with innovation, comes to fill the stage in what was once an army sports facility – the Old Garrison Gymnasium. 

Friday 26 September, 11.30am

St John's Church, Mount Bures

 The third of three lunchtime recitals from Roman River's Artistic Director, Orlando Jopling – featuring  Bach’s Suite No. 5 in C minor,  Giovanni Sollima’s Lamentatio, and Britten’s Third Cello Suite, with each piece chosen to reveal a different facet of the cello’s character.

Saturday 27 September, 8pm

St Peter ad Vincula Church, Coggeshall

 One of the most ambitious evenings that Roman River Music has ever produced, featuring two of the classical canons' greatest works – Beethoven's Triple Concerto in C major (with leading soloists Tom Poster, Elena Urioste, and Laura Van der Heijden) and Mahler’s Symphony No. 1.