Bath Festival Orchestra relaunches as Chromatica Orchestra

Chromatica Orchestra has today announced it will make its debut at Battersea Arts Centre in London next month (8 October). The orchestra, formerly known as Bath Festival Orchestra, aims to bring together early-career musicians and emerging conductors.

The newly transformed orchestra has today revealed its inaugural season, focusing on the theme of ‘Orchestra Unleashed’. The orchestra has also announced the appointment of former Royal Opera House (now Royal Ballet and Opera) orchestra manager Alison Tedbury as its new executive director.

Tedbury said: ‘I'm excited to join Chromatica Orchestra for its inaugural season. This is an organisation that pushes boundaries, and its inventiveness and aspiration are together a draw and a testament to the whole team. I look forward to shaping its exciting future’.

The opening concert, led by one of two new Emerging Conductor fellows, Charlotte Politi, features violinists Kristine Balanas and Maren Bosma (who is also Chromatica Orchestra’s leader) alongside mezzo-soprano Natalia Kutateladze. Further collaborators across the upcoming season will include Ben Goldscheider, Robin Tritschler and Valeriy Sokolov.

Alongside Politi and Tedbury, the inaugural season will feature Emerging Conductor fellow Tess Jackson and founding artistic director Peter Manning. Chromatica Orchestra does not receive public subsidy and has instead been made possible by the support of a small group of private donors who are keen to support the orchestra and its engagement efforts. As well as the Emerging Conductor Fellowship, which offers conductors the chance to create and present their own programmes, the orchestra will also visit schools, offering students to opportunity to perform side by side with the orchestra on stage as part of the main season.

Chromatica Orchestra chairman Charles Lewington said: ‘Investing in music education isn't just about cultivating potential future stars; it's about enriching lives and communities, instilling valuable life skills such as teamwork and problem-solving, and sharing the joy of live music-making. Supporting music education is a cause that means a lot to us at Chromatica Orchestra, and we’re proud to be able to work with these talented young people and share the joy that music can bring.’