Upcoming Events
Release date of Finzi: The Dance Continued – Friday 25th September 2026
Nick Pritchard and Ian Tindale’s new album of Finzi songs (including unpublished and previously unrecorded material) will be released by Signum Records. A launch concert in London is also planned – further details of which will be shared once known. The Finzi Friends have supported this exciting recording project.
The Finzi Trust’s Anniversary Gala – Sunday 27th September 2026
Temple Church, London, EC4 7BB
The Finzi Gala Day comprises a matinée recital and an evening orchestral and choral celebration.
2pm matinée recital:
Robert Plane (clarinet)
Nick Pritchard (tenor)
Iain Burnside (piano)
Ian Tindale (piano)
Performers from Sinfonia Smith Square
Join us for a special anniversary gala celebrating the life and music of Gerald Finzi, marking the 125th anniversary of his birth and the 70th anniversary of his death. Presented in association with the Finzi Trust, this day brings together some of Britain’s leading musicians to explore the breadth and distinctive character of one of England’s most cherished composers.
The matinée recital features a selection of Finzi’s chamber music alongside songs that span the familiar and the newly discovered. Nick Pritchard and Ian Tindale perform works drawn from their new Finzi recording, released the same month, including songs receiving their first public performances. Chamber works for clarinet, piano and strings complete a programme that reflects Finzi’s lyrical voice, warmth and deep affinity with English poetry and landscape.
Programme
Gerald Finzi (1901–1956)
Prelude for Strings, Op. 25
Interlude for Oboe and String Quartet, Op. 21
Five Bagatelles for Clarinet and Piano, Op. 23
Eclogue for Piano and Strings, Op. 10
Selected Songs for Tenor and Piano
7:30pm evening orchestral and choral celebration:
Robert Plane (clarinet)
The Temple Singers
Sinfonia Smith Square
Thomas Allery (conductor)
Dr Jonathan James BEM (conductor)
The culmination of a special anniversary gala celebrating the life and music of Gerald Finzi, this evening concert marks the 125th anniversary of the composer’s birth and the 70th anniversary of his death. Presented in association with the Finzi Trust, it brings together some of Finzi’s finest orchestral and choral works in the setting of Temple Church.
The programme opens with the lyrical Romance for string orchestra, followed by the Clarinet Concerto, one of Finzi’s final compositions, performed by Robert Plane with Sinfonia Smith Square.
Following the interval, The Temple Singers and Sinfonia Smith Square present three of Finzi’s most admired choral works. The programme concludes with Lo, the Full, Final Sacrifice, the expansive festival anthem composed in 1946 for the 53rd anniversary of the consecration of St Matthew’s Church, Northampton, a work that stands among the composer’s greatest achievements in sacred music.
Programme
Gerald Finzi (1901–1956)
Romance, Op. 11
Clarinet Concerto, Op. 31
Magnificat, Op. 36
For St Cecilia, Op. 30
Lo, the Full, Final Sacrifice, Op. 26
More information and tickets are available via the Finzi Trust website: https://www.geraldfinzi.org/
Past Events
Finzi Friends Day – Saturday 4th July 2026, 3pm
St Nicholas Church, Newbury
Reading Bach Choir
Jonathan Eyers (baritone)
Janet Hilton (clarinet)
Gavin Roberts (piano)
Finzi Friends will gather in Ashmansworth and Newbury on 4 July 2026 for a special day marking the 70th anniversary of the death of Gerald Finzi, and dedicated to the memory of the distinguished Finzi scholar Diana McVeagh.
The day begins in the morning at St James’s Church, Ashmansworth, with a talk on Finzi by musicologist Dr Matthew McCullough, a specialist in twentieth century British music and co-editor of the recently published Music, Mortality, and Memory. Matt is known to Finzi Friends through his contribution to the 2021 Journal. This will be followed by a relaxed bring-your-own lunch in the Village Hall with tea and coffee provided.
In the afternoon, the celebration continues with a Finzi concert at St Nicolas’ Church, Newbury, featuring the Reading Bach Choir, Jonathan Eyers (baritone) and Janet Hilton (clarinet) with Gavin Roberts (piano). Music includes the Seven Partsongs of Robert Bridges; the Bagatelles for clarinet and piano; and songs from Earth and Air and Rain
Programme
All music by Gerald Finzi (1901-56)
From Seven Part-Songs of Robert Bridges
- Clear and gentle stream
- I praise the tender flower
From Five Bagatelles for clarinet & piano
- Prelude
- Romance
From Earth and Air and Rain
- Summer Schemes
- When I set out for Lyonnesse
- Waiting Both
From Seven Part-Songs of Robert Bridges
- I have loved flowers that fade
- Nightingales
From Five Bagatelles for clarinet & piano
- Carol
- Forlana
From Earth and Air and Rain
- The Phantom
- So I have fared
- Rollicum-Rorum
From Five Bagatelles for clarinet & piano
- Fughetta
From Earth and Air and Rain
- To Lizbie Browne
- The Clock of the Years
- In a Churchyard
- Proud Songsters
From Seven Part-Songs of Robert Bridges
- Wherefore tonight so full of care
- Haste on, my joys!
- My spirit sang all day
To book tickets, please follow this link: https://www.tickettailor.com/events/finzifriends1/2101096
Sunday 1st June 2025
Guided walk and Evensong with Finzi’s Music
Hampstead Parish Church – St John-at-Hampstead
NOTE – THIS IS AN UPDATED, CORRECT VERSION OF THE TIMINGS IN THE NEWSLETTER!
IIn collaboration with Hampstead Parish Church we have arranged a free event to include an afternoon guided walk, followed by tea and a talk, culminating in a performance of Evensong by the Church Choir.
The music, supported financially by Finzi Friends, will include Finzi’s Magnificat and God is gone up.
Following afternoon tea, the talk will feature an introduction to the chosen Finzi pieces and other aspects of his choral music.
Join us for any part of the afternoon!
Timings are scheduled as follows:
- 1.30pm Event start with walk through Hampstead led by Martin Bussey (Meet at Hampstead Tube station from 1.15).
The walk includes links to, amongst others, Robert Louis Stevenson; the painter John Constable; George du Maurier and Sylvia Llewellyn Davies; ballerina Tamara Karsavina; Eleanor Farjeon – and a mystery singer!!
- 3.30pm Tea at Hampstead Parish Church with the Friends of the Music at Hampstead Parish Church. This includes an introduction by Finzi Friends Chairman, Martin Bussey, to the works performed at Evensong
- 5.00pm Evensong sung by the Choir of Hampstead Parish Church directed by Geoffrey Webber, to include Finzi’s Magnificatand God is gone up
Llewellyn Davies stone Hampstead Parish Church
Hampstead Parish Church
Eleanor Farjeon stone Hampstead Parish Church
Hidden Gems June 26 2024 at 19.30 St Mary-le-Strand WC24 1ES
Finzi Friends are delighted to be joining with ‘Hidden Gems’ in a concert featuring Finzi and many composers associated with him, including Howard Ferguson, Edmund Rubbra, Herbert Howells, Kenneth Leighton, Ivor Gurney, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Finzi’s teacher, Ernest Farrar. The programme has been curated by our music advisor, Gavin Roberts who will be the pianist for the evening. It includes Farrar’s Lullaby, Gurney’s beautiful Db major Prelude and Leighton’s Household Pets for solo piano. Gavin will join with clarinettist Peter Sigleris in Howard Ferguson’s Four Short Pieces for clarinet and piano – and, of course, one of Finzi’s Bagatelles. Gavin will also be bringing two students from Guildhall School of Music and Drama: Jacob Cole, tenor and Alex Zasiadko, baritone. They will perform songs by Finzi, Rubbra and Vaughan Williams. Alex will also sing In days like these, Martin Bussey’s setting of lines from Finzi’s wartime letter to Howells reflecting on composing in the early, dark days of World War II.
This is an ideal introduction to the music of Finzi and related composers. Join us and bring along friends who are less familiar with the repertoire! We are grateful to Anna Ovsyanikova for her readiness to bring this programme into her ‘Hidden Gems’ series.
Tickets are available here or on the door: www.ticketsource.co.uk/hg
Finzi Friends Day in Churchdown and Chosen Hill
Please click on the poster on the right for more details about this upcoming Finzi Friends event.
This event arranged by the Finzi Friends will consist of the AGM, a talk by Philip Lancaster about Katharine Towers’ new Finzi collection, and a recital in St Andrew’s Church.
Finzi Friends Event in St John’s Wood and Hamilton Terrace
Please click on the poster on the right for more details about this upcoming Finzi Friends event featuring a voyage of discovery and afternoon recital in London
This FREE event arranged by the Finzi Friends will consist of a walk from Hamilton Terrace, the birthplace of Gerald Finzi, followed by refreshments and a recital in St John’s Wood Church a stone’s throw from Hamilton Terrace and on the western edge of Regent’s Park.
An Unusual Christmas Gift
Rising baritone Peter Edge received an unusual Christmas present from composer John Whittaker. (https://john-whittaker.org/musician/) Peter, who is currently engaged in English Touring Opera’s 2023 season, was given a score of Finzi’s Let us garlands bring. A nice idea, you say, but this was no ordinary score. As you can see from the photograph, the score was the one originally given by Finzi himself to composer William Busch, and is signed by Finzi. To celebrate, Peter recorded ‘It was a lover and his lass’ for us together with pianist Frasier Hickland. There will be a longer article about Finzi and Busch in the Spring Newsletter for those to whom Busch’s name is less familiar. Meanwhile we hope you enjoy Peter and Frasier’s performance, showing that Finzi’s music is thriving amongst the latest generation of performers. Although they didn’t sing Finzi on this occasion, we thought you might also like to see Peter and Frasier pictured with Sir Thomas Allen at the recent British Song Festival Masterclass.
Click to make the photos bigger!
left to right – Frasier Hickland, Peter Edge & Sir Thomas Allen
Let us garlands bring front page – Finzi’s signature
Letter – John Whittaker to Peter Edge
Ashmansworth AGM & Discussion with composer Raymond Yiu
Saturday 9 July 2022
It was good to welcome members to Ashmansworth. A fuller account with photographs and also AGM details will appear in the next Newsletter.
Following the AGM in the morning, members enjoyed a stimulating talk by Raymond Yiu in the Village Hall about his music, and particularly his love of English Song. Ray’s openness and enthusiasm enabled an understanding of what inspires him and something of his working methods. This was great preparation for enjoying his cycle Dead Letters in the afternoon recital. Ray explained the significance of the relationship between Gerard Manley Hopkins and Digby Mackworth Dolben as the starting point of the cycle.
After a fine catered lunch, members moved up to Ashmansworth Church for an afternoon recital including Lost Letters. Songs in the cycle reflected Ray’s sustained interest in English Song as well as being compelling on their own account. The high-quality recital, by tenor Jonathan Hanley and Gavin Roberts, piano interspersed Ray’s songs with songs by other composers from many other periods, creating an intriguing and highly enjoyable experience. Particularly memorable was the performance by Jonathan and Gavin of Britten’s Canticle My beloved is mine, demonstrating great control yet intensity of expression.
Click to make the photos bigger!
Lunch in Ashmansworth Village Hall
Audience assembling in Ashmansworth Church for the recital
Gavin Roberts. Ray Yiu and Jonathan Hanley acknowledge the applause after the recital
Gavin Roberts, Ray Yiu and Jonathan Hanley
Finzi Friends supports Barnes Festival
7 March 2022
Finzi Friends was delighted to give financial support to the Barnes Festival piano composition competition and its workshop with celebrated pianist Matthew Schellhorn on March 7 2022 at St Mary’s Barnes. Matthew is noted for his promotion of Howells’ piano music through his Naxos recordings and the participating composers were asked to write a work taking as their starting point Howells’ short piece Chosen. The Adjudicators were Paul Spicer and Edwin Roxburgh, both pupils of Howells, who lived in Barnes, and Martin Bussey, Chair of Finzi Friends. At the workshop, Martin and Edwin, together with Matthew who played their pieces, talked through the entries with young composers from Tiffin School and St Paul’s Boys and Girls Schools and Laura Mitchell, the competition winner from York University. In the evening concert Matthew played Laura’s beautiful and sensitive piece in a recital including various repertoire by Chopin and Rachmaninoff that Howells himself played, as well as pieces by the adjudicators and Howells, including Howells’ sparkling Sonatina. It was also a chance to hear once again Ivor Gurney’s final work Si j’etais Roi in Philip Lancaster’s realisation which Matthew premiered last autumn. Finzi Friends is delighted to have enabled such a worthwhile and stimulating event for young composers. Click to make the photos bigger!
Left to right: James Day, Artistic Director, Barnes Festival Edwin Roxburgh Matthew Schellhorn Laura Mitchell Martin Bussey
Pianist Matthew Schellhorn talks with winning composer Laura Mitchell
Pianist Matthew Schellhorn talks with winning composer Laura Mitchell
AGM and Churchdown Visit
September 4 2021
Following the postponement of the 2020 AGM we combined the 2021 AGM with a return visit to Churchdown on September 4. It was good to see so many members attending and we had a fruitful review of the activities of the Friends as part of the AGM. We thanked Clare McCaldin as she departed the Committee, especially for her role in setting up the new website, and paid tribute to all of Adrian Williams’ tireless efforts as Treasurer and also instigator and chair of the reserve grants working party. It was good to have his successor, Ian Wadhams with us. We also were delighted that our new website manager, Derri Lewis was able to join us.
After a sociable lunch, giving some members time to get up to the top of Chosen Hill, we enjoyed one of Iain Burnside’s brilliantly devised creations, centred around Finzi’s Letters. This enabled proper celebration of Diana McVeagh’s edition of the letters and it was a joy to have Diana with us. Iain accompanied tenor Florian Panzieri in captivating performances of many favourite Finzi songs, interspersed with readings from the letters by current chairman Martin Bussey and his predecessor, and Finzi Trustee, Paul Spicer. A highlight of the concert was hearing Iain as solo pianist in Howells’ tribute piece to Finzi, written on hearing of his death, Finzi’s Rest. Click to make the photos bigger!
Friends gather expectantly for the afternoon
Martin Bussey reading as one of Finzi’s correspondents
The four artists together (L to R) Martin Bussey; Iain Burnside; Florian Panzieri; Paul Spicer
Diana with her book Gerald Finzi’s Letters
Paul Spicer with Diana McVeagh
Paul Spicer reading as Finzi
Diana McVeagh autographs a copy of her Letters book
Diana McVeagh and Iain Burnside at the post-recital tea
St Marylebone Festival
July 23 2021
This summer has seen a re-awakening of Finzi Friends musical activities, through through our partnership event with St Marylebone Festival, on July 23 2021. There were three distinct parts to the event. In the afternoon Martin Bussey led a guided walk starting at Finzi’s birthplace in Hamilton Terrace down through St John’s Wood, passing Vaughan Williams’ house near Regents Park and ending up with a viewing of the Finzi bust. We were made very welcome by the librarian of the Royal Academy. The second element was an introductory talk by Martin Bussey prior to the evening concert entitled ‘Finzi, Town and Country’, looking at Finzi’s involvement in London set against his rural lifestyle. The culminating element was an invigorating and well-performed concert featuring the choir of St Marylebone in choral, solo vocal and instrumental roles. This included ‘Lo, the full final sacrifice’, settings of Christina Rossetti and Finzi’s Oboe Interlude amongst other works. We invested substantially in terms of financial support for this concert and it was well attended in the context of opening up after Covid. Particularly significant was the attendance at all the events by newcomers to Finzi or non-members of Finzi Friends.
In planning for the future we continue to look at holding events such as this; supporting other celebrations of Finzi’s music; and supporting groups who are performing Finzi’s music in interesting ways or visiting more rarely performed pieces. Click to make the photos bigger!
Gavin Roberts
The Finzi Bust
Martin talking outside Finzi’s birthplace
Martin talking outside Finzi’s birthplace
The tour reaches Regent’s Park
St Marylebone PC choir in performance
The choir of St Marylebone Parish Church rehearsing with Gavin Roberts
With Kathryn Adamson from the Royal Academy of Music library talking about the Finzi bust, with the Moura Lympany bust evident in the corner.
Finzi’s birthplace in Hamilton Terrace
The choir of St Marylebone Parish Church rehearsing with Gavin Roberts
Bethany Crouch, clarinet And Gavin Roberts playing Finzi’s Bagatelles
New Finzi releases – May 2021
Gerald Finzi Letters 1915-1956
Edited by Diana McVeagh
From amusing trivia to the deeply serious ideas and principles Finzi set out at the onset of war and in the 1950s, these letters allow for first-hand insights into his personality and background. This definitive edition is fully annotated, offering context with substantial commentaries on the correspondence, illustrations by Joy Finzi, a chronology, bibliography and a catalogue of works.
IMPORTANT NOTE:
Hampstead is hilly! The first part of the walk will involve walking up to Whitestone Pond (Inner London’s highest point!) from the tube station. We will take things at a leisurely pace and will pause outside several places of interest on our route, but it is a steep road.
Feel free to join us at around 1.50 at the Pond if that is preferable.
Then we descend down to the church and its burial ground(s), where you can wander at will.
This is a free event, but it will help with organization to know if you intend to attend. Please email: martinbussey296@gmail.com