Lunchtime Concerts

 

Entry for the St Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Music Competition 2010 is now open.

 

In partnership with Making Music, the competition embodies our commitment to the discovery, nurture and promotion of new and emerging musical talent and continues a long history of musical excellence and artistic contribution at the heart of London. No more than nine ensembles will be chosen from the preliminary CD audition round to perform live in the semi-finals during the lunchtime concerts on Monday 19, Tuesday 20 and Friday 23 April 2010 at 1.00pm. Based on these performances, no more than three ensembles will be chosen for the final to take place as an Evening Concert on Tuesday 27 April 2010 at 7.30pm. This is a ticketed event and will be judged by a panel including John Rutter OBE and Oliver Macfarlane head of BBC classical music TV, Robin Osterley CEO of Making Music and Dr Andrew Earis, Director of Music at St Martin-in-the-Fields.

 

 

View: Full Lunchtime and Evening Concert listings.

 

St Martin’s has a commitment to discovering, nurturing and promoting new talent and for over sixty years the Lunchtime Concert Series has given opportunities to young musicians to perform in a professional environment in central London to an appreciative audience. Concerts every Monday, Tuesday and Friday feature an extraordinarily wide range of performers and repertoire. Entry is free however, for those able; a suggested donation of £3.50 is greatly appreciated to help fund all aspects of the work of St Martin’s.

 

 

“I longed to throw open the doors to the very best music…and I have had the joy of seeing the importance of these concerts to many young artists starting out in their careers.” Dame Myra Hess

 

The Free Lunchtime Series is an integral part of the musical life of St Martin’s. The concerts continue a tradition reaching back over 60 years to the start of the Second World War and pianist Dame Myra Hess’s war effort. Hess’s series of Lunchtime Concerts held at the National Gallery occupy a central position in the history of war time London where they kept hope and the dream of life beyond war alive in the hearts of embattled Londoners. When the Board of the National Gallery closed the concerts down, the series was taken up by St Martin-in-the-Fields across the road. Since then we have developed the series to include the SMITF Organ Series (on the first Monday of each month), the New Music Series (last Tuesday of each month) in which composers are invited to submit original works for performance and the Pianists of the World series (last Friday of each month). 2010 will also see the first St Martin-in-the-Fields Chamber Music Competition semi-finals take place during lunchtime concerts between 19 and 23 April.

 

 

We welcome applications for lunchtime recitals at St Martin-in-the-Fields. Thanks to our location, exceptional audience numbers and reputation, the standard at our lunchtime series is consistently very high and the competition fierce. Prospective applicants are encouraged to read the Notes to Prospective Applicants and the Application Form thoroughly before applying. These documents are available to download below.