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07
Jun 2021
Festival director welcomes sold-out shows as Northern Aldborough returns
Northern Aldborough Festival is returning this month and festival director, Rob Ogden, said he is excited to offer audiences live performances once more.
Stellar acts in the classical genre such as Lesley Garrett and The Haffner Ensemble will perform in Aldborough between June 21 and 27 as the festival returns as one of the first large events locally since the pandemic.
Eager festival goers meant the event was sold out after 10 days of tickets on sale.
The festival has a rich history welcoming big names in the classical world since it began in 1994. It has grown to be an established classical music event in the north.
Mr Ogden has been involved since 2009, taking on the director role in 2010. This year is like no other with capacity almost halved and social distancing measures in place.
Each night 140 audience members will be sat in St Andrew's Church, previous years it has reached 270. The final night's outdoor concert will welcome 550 people down from 1,000.
Mr Ogden said:
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This show has been in the works since August 2019 with many acts agreeing to return this year after the 2020 festival was cancelled.
Young names, famous names and new names all have the chance to take to the stage to offer the audience a live musical treat.
The Canadian pianist Angela Hewitt has stuck in Mr Ogden's minds as one of the best performances he's seen at the festival.
Mr Ogden already has plans for next year including a jazz item and a Handel's Theodora oratorio (a large scale music composition).
As a trained opera singer himself, Mr Ogden knows how eager acts are to perform to audiences again and he hopes the Northern Aldborough Festival can offer the act and the audience something they've been missing.
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