The Three Choirs Festival will receive support from third round of the Government’s Culture Recovery Fund.
The Festival is among 925 recipients to benefit from the latest round of awards from the Culture Recovery Fund and this award will put the festival on a firm footing for staging next year’s 2022 festival in Hereford.
More than £100 million has been awarded to hundreds of cultural organisations across the country, including the Three Choirs Festival, in the latest round of support from the Culture Recovery Fund, the Culture Secretary announced today.
The Three Choirs Festival is a beacon for music making in the Southwest region. One of the most longstanding classical music festivals in the world, it celebrated its 300-year anniversary in 2015. For eight days each summer, hundreds of performers bring musicmaking to the alternating host cities of Gloucester, Hereford and Worcester on a scale rarely seen in the region, and the organisation has a growing programme of community participation activity taking place both during and beyond the festival week. Bringing together voluntary and professional musicians of all ages in front of an international audience of thousands, the festival is a vibrant part of the UK’s rich choral and classical music traditions.
Following a triumphant return to live music making in 2021, this award will put the Three Choirs Festival on a firm footing for the future and ensure that the 2022 festival in Hereford retains the unique atmosphere that makes it so special.
The third round of funding will support organisations from all corners of the sector as they deal with ongoing reopening challenges, ensuring they can thrive in better times ahead.
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: “Culture is for everyone and should therefore be accessible to everyone, no matter who they are and where they’re from.
“Through unprecedented government financial support, the Culture Recovery Fund is supporting arts and cultural organisations so they can continue to bring culture to communities the length and breadth of the country, supporting jobs, boosting local economies and inspiring people.”
Over £1.2 billion has already been awarded from the unprecedented Culture Recovery Fund, supporting around 5000 individual organisations and sites across the country ranging from local museums to West End theatres, grassroots music venues to festivals, and organisations in the cultural and heritage supply-chains.
Alexis Paterson, Three Choirs Festival Chief Executive, said: “This funding support is really crucial to sustaining our operations over the winter months and will allow us to plan confidently for our 2022 festival, which we know will be another wonderful occasion of music making in our region.”
Darren Henley, Chief Executive, Arts Council England, said: “This continued investment from the Government on an unprecedented scale means our theatres, galleries, music venues, museums and arts centres can carry on playing their part in bringing visitors back to our high streets, helping to drive economic growth, boosting community pride and promoting good health. It’s a massive vote of confidence in the role our cultural organisations play in helping us all to lead happier lives”.
For more information about the Three Choirs Festival and to see our preview flyer for Hereford 2022, visit: 3choirs.org