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31
May
Celebrating 30 years of bringing world-class musicians to Harrogate
Thirty years ago, the Wesley Chapel in Harrogate acquired a Yamaha concert grand piano for £33,000 thanks to a bequest by longstanding choir member Olive Dobson.
Since then, some of the greatest pianists in the world, including Sir Stephen Hough, Angela Hewitt and Jean-Efflam Bavouzet have played the Yamaha in Harrogate.
The Monday lunchtime concert series that evolved is recognised as one of the best in the north, consistently attracting national and international talent for hour-long monthly concerts at what is now known as the Wesley Centre. Although piano music still features prominently, all classical tastes are catered for.
A celebration to mark three decades of the concert series will be held after the next recital at 1pm on Monday (June 2), when the British pianist Mishka Rushdie Momen plays two Schubert sonatas.
Its success and longevity are down to Andrew Hitchen, who has been at the helm since the start.
Andrew, a chapel committee member who was previously concert manager of Harrogate Choral Society, explains that things began more by chance than design.
He agreed to find a piano to act on Olive’s wish that her donation be used for the musical life of the church.
Andrew introducing a concert.
The pianist Kathryn Stott directed him to a piano dealer on the south coast who provided pianos to Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester.
The head of keyboard at Chetham’s supervised the delivery of the Yamaha and suggested sending students for lunchtime recitals.
'It took off in a way I never envisaged'
The student concerts proved popular and things developed in 1995 when Kathryn Stott played the first Olive Dobson Memorial Concert, which sparked the idea of a regular concert series.
Andrew, whose family have been members of the Wesley congregation since the 1890s, says:
The thing took off in a way that I never ever envisaged.
We were presented with an enormous opportunity with the bequest and then another opportunity through Chetham’s. Word got round that we had a decent piano and I started getting calls from agents in London.
Andrew first contacted the management company Harrison Parrott, which represents Sir Stephen Hough, in 1997. Sir Stephen is one of the world's most sought after pianists so bringing him to Harrogate seemed ambitious but in 2006 he arrived for what turned out to be the first of 10 concerts so far.
Two of his early concerts attracted a record 420 sell-out crowd. Since then, the pews have been removed, which reduced capacity to 350. The average attendance is now 170, says Andrew.
The view from the balcony at a recent Sir Stephen Hough performance at the Wesley Centre.
When the pews were taken out, the carpet was replaced with oak flooring, which improved the acoustic.
Often artists warm-up in Harrogate for concerts at places such as London’s Wigmore Hall.
“We do get a lot of requests and there are only 12 slots to fill each year. We could put on a concert every fortnight,” says Andrew.
New blood
Having run the series for so long, Andrew says he had been “pondering the question of succession” for several years until a gift landed in his lap.
Sarah Devonald, a Radio 3 presenter who has produced music shows, documentaries and the BBC Proms, moved to Harrogate a few years ago.
Sarah, who plays the oboe and studied music in Leeds, wanted to get involved in the local music scene after moving back up north and offered to help when she called Andrew to buy tickets for a Stephen Hough recital.
She recalls:
I was walking to King’s Cross station at the time and it was the first and probably last time anybody has said, ‘Is that the Sarah Devonald?’ so we had a chat.
Sarah Devonald
Since then Sarah has done everything from writing the programme notes to making tea and providing accommodation for artists. Andrew says: “I can’t quite believe that somebody like Sarah landed in our midst. It’s absolutely fantastic.”
Sarah says she was struck by how trusting the audience is to Andrew:
Anything he puts on, they will come. It’s that feeling that no matter what it is, it will be top quality performers.
The two are now working together, with a view to Sarah eventually taking over.
Her influence is evident in the more varied programme for the 2025/26 season, which is already fully organised. You can see details here. Any profits go towards improving the Wesley Centre or enhancing future artists' fees.
Sarah says:
The aim is to make sure it’s varied with lots of different repertoire. We always like to have the piano involved because it’s the star of the show but also mix things up with strings and wind.
Sarah’s husband Tim Swanwick has introduced card and online ticket payments, and has created an improved website.
From an inauspicious start, Harrogate now has a thriving monthly series. There could hardly be a better legacy for Olive Dobson — or a better gift to the district's numerous classical music lovers.
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