Ludlow Festival will welcome the Orchestra of the Swan (From Ludlow Advertiser)

Ludlow Festival will welcome the Orchestra of the Swan

12:44pm Thursday 31st May 2012 in Ludlow

A TOP group of musicians will form the Orchestra in Residence at Ludlow Festival.

The Orchestra of the Swan, based in Stratfordupon- Avon, will add the classical element to a programme of activities that already includes jazz, folk and pop.

One of the most exciting and imaginative chamber orchestras in the UK, the Orchestra of the Swan is the associate orchestra at Birmingham Town Hall.

This critically acclaimed chamber orchestra will perform in St Laurence’s Church on Wednesday, June 27, and the orchestra’s principal cellist, Nick Stringfellow, also presents two very special lunchtime concerts, in which he’ll introduce and play some of Bach’s best known works.

On Tuesday, June 26, Nick will play Bach’s Cello Suites One and Two, along with an introductory talk, and on Thursday, June, 28, he will perform Suites Three and Four.

Thanks to sponsorship from Premier Medical, the Orchestra of the Swan will also visit and perform in local care homes in Ludlow.

Ensemble Sine Nomine are an energetic choir of young professional singers from the Marches area, founded in 2010 by Sebastian Field and Patrick Dunachie, former choristers at Hereford Cathedral.

The ensemble will be performing Handel’s Messiah in St Laurence’s on Sunday, June 24, as part of the opening weekend of Ludlow Festival.

They will be accompanied by The Corelli Orchestra led by Warwick Cole, who will provide accompaniment on period instruments.

The concert will be directed from the harpsichord by director of music at St Laurence’s and chairman of the festival management group, Shaun Ward. A free pre-concert talk to ticket holders starts at 6.30pm.