Farnham Festival - New Music For Young people were delighted to welcome the Countess of Wessex GCVO to the Farnham Maltings last week where she attended a concert featuring the talents of choirs and performers from The Ridgeway Community School, Abbey School, Luminosa Young Voices and Farnham Junior Youth Choir.

No one could have failed to have been moved when all the children performed a sung and signed arrangement of ‘You Raise Me Up’. It perfectly embodied one of the principle aims of the festival to give young people of all abilities the opportunity to take part in musical performance. The confidence, excitement and joy on the faces of the children, encouraged by their committed teachers, carers, support staff and conductors, was nothing short of inspirational.

The festival, which has been running since 1961, is non-competitive and organised on a not-for-profit basis by a small team of local volunteers. It gives young people from the local area the opportunity to premiere music written especially for them by contemporary composers and affords them the opportunity to learn and enjoy music and performance in a professional arts venue.

Last week’s festival programme of six concerts featured an amazing breadth of young talent performing a hugely diverse range of musical styles from religious baroque to Ed Sheeran.

The festival kicked off with an overwhelmingly enthusiastic Wild World concert performed by children from local infant schools. Such was the interest from junior schools this year an extra concert was added to the programme and included two concerts on consecutive evenings so they could all participate in the Along Came Man concert.

Two new pieces were commissioned this year which were premiered at the Exposition and Recapitulation orchestral and choral concert and the Jazz evening respectively. ‘Time For Change’ composed by Melanie Thorne, former head of music at Priorsfield School in Godalming, was performed by two excellent choirs - Farnham Youth Choir, Weydon Contemporary Choir and a terrific saxophone trio. Involving young people in composition and writing is a key aim of the festival and the lyrics for this piece were written by secondary school student Dorothy Nguyen. The outstanding More House School premiered William Goodchild’s challenging and complex jazz composition - More 4.

Special mention is given to Lizzie Kirk’s Farnham Festival Players. Due to school curricular pressures this orchestra, of musicians from many different schools and groups, only had one rehearsal scheduled. The recent bad weather resulted in this being cancelled. Their only rehearsal was the performance – it was fabulous!

The festival would like to thank Farnham Town Council and the Farnham Institute Charity. Without their support the event could not continue to commission. Teachers and schools are also thanked for their huge commitment and support. They are an inspiration.