Petersfield Musical Festival celebrates 125 years

PMF is celebrating its rich history as it marks 125 years of sharing the joy of music, March 13th to 21st, as Sarah Hard tells us

This year marks PMF’s 125th anniversary. To celebrate this important milestone, it has planned a rich and varied programme of musical events at the Festival Hall and St Peter’s Church from 13th-21st March. 

Kicking off the Festival, PMF is welcoming a young and dynamic wind band based near Winchester – the St Cat’s Ensemble. Their performances cross genres from jazz to film (including Lord of the Rings). Keelan Carew, a popular BBC broadcaster and musical outreach pioneer, will be the piano soloist in George Gershwin’s timeless Rhapsody in Blue.  

Another highlight of the Festival will be the Gemini Consort in collaboration with SouthDowns Camerata (a local string orchestra) for a programme of music inspired by locally based composers including Lucy Flint, Dorry Macaulay and Clive Osgood, along with works by other British composers who had historic connections with the area such as Gerald Finzi, Gustav Holst and Edward Elgar. The Gemini Consort / SouthDowns Camerata will explore themes of sorrow and joy, from young love, nature and grief. Both groups have a mission to champion new and under-performed works. Songs in the programme set poetry by poets such as Wordsworth and Christina Rossetti, along with lesser-known literary artists. It promises to be a fascinating concert. 

The popular and fun Baroque collective Red Priest are also making their debut. This dynamic and versatile group will present a lively programme of Baroque masters including Vivaldi, Bach and Handel – but in their own modern and up-beat interpretations. Also new to the Festival, Brass Breakout Jazz Orchestra join Froxfield Choir for an evening of Duke Ellington along with tap dancing and soloist Gloria Miller.  

For lovers of orchestral music, Petersfield Orchestra are making their regular appearance featuring Gershwin’s Piano Concerto in F (soloist Karen Kingsley) and the rapturous Rachmaninov Symphonic Dances. Also included is Bernstein’s much-loved Candide Overture.  

Festival conductor Paul Spicer will raise his baton for the 2026 choral concert, the Verdi Requiem, a powerful and deservedly famous work reflecting on man’s place in the universe.  

This year’s Festival will also showcase young students from local schools at its Youth Concerts. For younger audience members, the theme of this year’s Family Concert is Sky High, when the Basingstoke Symphony Orchestra will explore ways of flying through music including films such as Chitty Chitty Bang Bang. 

There will be free pre-concert talks ahead of two of the concerts, as well as a celebratory talk by Philip Young, former PMF Chair, about the history of the Festival since 1906.  

Our thanks to our sponsors Leydene Glass & Glazing, Littlejohn Bathrooms and The Lodge Dental Surgery for their ongoing support.  

For further details and to book tickets, please visit petersfieldmusicalfestival.org.uk 

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