WATCH: Petworth Festival unveils summer programme 2023

Artistic director Stewart Collins says he believes the world has been changed by the pandemic but that this should still be the year the festival gets back to more or less where it was: “I think the interesting thing was that last year the recovery was still happening. We actually had incredibly good feedback both from the summer festival and the literary festival but we were slightly down on numbers. But actually this year the balance seems to be – both from speaking to people around the country and also speaking to people here – that people are back to their old enthusiasms and habits.”

The festival promises a classical programme lit up by Jess Gillam, top choral group Tenebrae and the young superstar pianist Jeneba Kanneh-Mason, alongside gigs from evergreens The Manfreds and jazz/funk maestros Shakatak, comedy from Clive Anderson and Henry Normal, plus traditional music from the Gigspanner Big Band and Irish whirlwind Lisa Canny: “People comment every year on the sheer variety of what we present annually in and around Petworth, but I would love to think that this year we raise that particular bar higher than ever.”

Events will take place in 12 venues over 19 days in and around Petworth, key venues including The Petworth House Stables, St Mary’s Church Petworth, Midhurst Rother College’s fabulous theatre and Coldwaltham’s elegant Champs Hill Music Room: “One of our key aims is to bring the very best to your doorstep and I’d have to say that the option of travelling just a few miles to see artists of this quality rather than to the bigger centres is very much part of the Petworth Festival’s appeal.”

A number of events in this year’s programme specifically celebrate Petworth’s place at the heart of the South Downs. Two concerts feature music inspired by the landscape, one a brand-new commission Bignor Hill by Sussex composer Ned Bigham, the other the South Downs Suite by jazz quartet Full Circle. Spanish violinist Violetta Vicci also takes to the open air at Bignor Park in two concerts. Tickets go on general sale on May 9.

“You still see people masked up and there is an awareness that there was not pre-pandemic but every indication is that people are going to be back to their former behaviour. We are wanting to encourage people not just to resume what they used to do but also to bring their friends along. We still have a financial hangover from the pandemic. We kept going over two to three years during which the circumstances were adverse and that means that we are hoping for a bumper year this year. Financially it is certainly not a concern but we know that there is ground to be made up. We have always been quite conservative in our expectations but we're definitely quite bullish in what we're presenting this year. We feel that the programme is very strong and we really do feel that the audiences are there. The first people that we present the programme to are the sponsors and that usually gives a tremendous feeling for what the overall response is going to be, and this year the sponsors were overwhelmingly positive. They found what we were offering was very, very strong and very, very relevant and very much feeding all the things that we have done so well over the years.”

There will also be the Petworth Festival June edition (June 2 and 3) in support of Midhurst following the fire. Friday, June 2, Ben Waters, quality rhythm & blues from the boogie-woogie maestro, 7.30pm, Midhurst Rother College; Saturday, June 3, Gyles Brandreth – Elizabeth, 11.30am, Midhurst Rother College; Bernard d’Ascoli (piano) plays Ravel, Schubert and Chopin, 7.30pm, Midhurst Rother College.