Budleigh Music Festival brings classical to the coast

For 20 years, Budleigh Music Festival has brought world-class classical music to the Devon seaside town of Budleigh Salterton. Its mission is simple: to make extraordinary music accessible to all. And this year’s festival, opening on 27 June, continues that legacy with an inspiring programme led by pianist Sir Stephen Hough (pictured below).

The festival was established in 2005, and alongside aspirations to bring internationally renowned artists to the southwest, it also aims to showcase up and coming musicians and develop young talent. It regularly features BBC Young Musician finalists, with past performers including Sheku Kanneh-Mason, Jess Gillam and most recently pianist Ethan Loch.

Alongside artistic director Jason Thornton and the festival team, the myriad other tasks required to stage the event are undertaken by a team of dedicated local volunteers. Concerts take place in the intimate setting of Budleigh Salterton’s historic St Peter’s Church where, in the week leading up to opening night, the Steinway D arrives swathed in its protective cocoon. With the utmost care, it is unwrapped, and the church becomes the stunning backdrop to concerts including Armonico Consort’s performance of Rachmaninov’s hauntingly beautiful Vespers.

Fittingly for its 20^th anniversary, the festival is staging 20 concerts over its nine days. Festival chair Kate Somerby said: ‘There are challenges to mounting a festival such as ours. Our artists have to travel down to Devon, and as we’re a rural seaside town with limited public transport our audiences have to plan their visit, so it feels like there’s a real investment from everyone as each concert begins. Access to the arts can be taken for granted in urban areas but we offer precious opportunities for local people to experience the very best in classical music.

‘Our artistic director, Jason Thornton, has programmed a really special celebratory festival. We have 20 events to celebrate our 20 years of festivals. Every day there is a variety of performances – whether that’s a headliner, a rising star, or a group of buskers – which will be a joyful celebration of music. You can really feel the buzz about the town during festival week, it receives fantastic support both from our local community and further afield, for which we are very grateful.’

The festival will once again be welcoming musicians from Future Talent, the charity established to support gifted young musicians from low-income families. Last year a group travelled from London to perform a world premiere of Ataya Sonata, a piece composed for them by the influential Senegalese kora player, Seckou Keita. This year Future Talent will perform with chamber collective ZRI (Zum Rotgen Igel), an ensemble who will also be presenting a groundbreaking performance of Schubert's Quintet in C Major, reimagined to capture the radical spirit of its original composition.

How does the festival remain relevant and achieve its aims to reach a wide audience? Somerby explains: ‘We’re conscious that how people consume their entertainment is changing at great pace and we’re always looking to the future. The calibre and profile of our artists continues to grow and we’ve also reintroduced world music and jazz to the programme, broadening its appeal.’

When the festival was established 20 years ago there was much broader range of events including jazz, literature and drama. Composer and pianist Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, who lived in the town, was both a contributor and supporter of the original festival and his legacy lives on in the town with his works regularly performed at the festival. The inclusion of jazz harks back to those early days, as does a performance this year from author Michael Morpurgo who reads from his version of The Carnival of the Animals. This concert is presented in collaboration with the town’s other popular cultural event, Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival.

The 2025 programme also offers a diverse line up of artists. From the Band of HM Royal Marines Plymouth featuring Jess Gillam, to the London African Gospel Choir, who will be performing a version of Paul Simon’s Graceland, and from young South American violin prodigy, Guido Saint’Anna to One Piano Four Hands, two gifted pianists from the prestigious Liszt Music Academy in Budapest who will be performing Mahler’s Symphony No1, as a piano duet.

Appropriately, 4 July will feature an all-American programme of Charles Ives, Aaron Copland and George Gershwin performed by Bath Philharmonia, conducted by music director Jason Thornton and featuring Zeynep Ozsuca on piano. The festival’s daytime recital series will include performances from Lumas Winds, the Rhossili Duo, Bonnie Scott, and William Bracken.

For Jason Thornton (pictured above), it’s truly a labour of love. He said: ‘It is an immense privilege to curate a programme which brings world-class musicians and rising stars to this beautiful corner of the country. Our aim has always been to make classical music accessible to everyone, and that vision continues to evolve. Whether it’s a renowned pianist, a vibrant jazz ensemble, or an emerging young artist taking their first steps onto the professional stage, we want to create unforgettable musical experiences for all who join us and keep this festival alive and thriving.’