Famous Composers Celebrated at Thaxted Festival

17/10/2025

One of the joys of the Thaxted Festival is its wide-ranging repertoire. Each summer, audiences experience a programme that spans centuries of music - from Baroque brilliance and Romantic intensity to 20th-century innovation and contemporary voices. The 2025 season was no exception, with a line-up that brought together the giants of the past alongside today’s most compelling creators.

Here’s a look at some of the composers and songwriters we celebrated, grouped to show the breadth and depth of this year’s musical journey.

Baroque Masters

Thaxted’s candlelit church setting is the perfect stage for the grandeur and intricacy of the Baroque era. The 2025 season shone a spotlight on:

• J. S. Bach - the father of counterpoint and timeless beauty.
• Handel - master of oratorio and dramatic flair.
• Vivaldi - famed for his violin concertos and vibrant musical colour.
• Purcell - quintessentially English, with music that bridges sacred and theatrical worlds.

Classical Greats

The festival also honoured the elegance and invention of the Classical period, with works by:

• Haydn - the “father of the symphony.”
• Mozart - always a festival favourite, uplifting and deeply human.
• Beethoven - game-changer of the concerto and symphony repertoire.

Romantic Icons

Few things stir the heart like Romantic music, and Thaxted audiences revelled in performances of:

• Robert & Clara Schumann - music of passion, poetry, and personal reflection.
• Chopin - lyrical piano works of dazzling beauty.
• Brahms - rich textures and sweeping Romantic grandeur.
• Fauré - intimate, elegant, and quintessentially French.
• Rachmaninoff - unforgettable melodies and virtuoso brilliance.
• Debussy & Ravel - impressionist soundscapes of colour and nuance.
• Tchaikovsky - master of ballet, symphony, and soaring melody.

20th-Century Voices & Global Inspiration

Thaxted is known for its adventurous programming, and 2025 included an exciting mix of 20th-century and international composers:

• Holst - an English visionary, celebrated for The Planets and intimately connected with our town of Thaxted.
• Vaughan Williams - weaving folk traditions into timeless works.
• Bartók - fiery rhythms and folk-inspired textures.
• Khachaturian - full of colour and energy.
• de Falla - Spanish passion with flamenco flair.
• Demersseman - romantic charm for flute and winds.

Contemporary Creativity

The festival also looked forward, with performances of vibrant contemporary composers whose works resonate with today’s audiences:

• Paul Schoenfield - blending classical with jazz and folk idioms.
• Béla Kovács - inventive clarinet miniatures.
• Reena Esmail - uniting Indian and Western classical traditions.
• Bert Matter & Iain Farrington - showcasing the diversity and creativity of living composers today.

The Great Songwriters

Thaxted has never been about boundaries, and the 2025 programme joyfully embraced the golden age of song and musical theatre:

• Noël Coward - witty, urbane, and quintessentially British.
• Cole Porter - American sophistication with unforgettable melodies.
• Stephen Sondheim - a genius of storytelling and modern theatre song.

Tradition Meets Today

This thrilling blend of eras and styles captures what makes Thaxted Festival unique: it’s a space where Beethoven and Bartók, Bach and Broadway can share the same stage. For audiences, that means not just a concert, but an exploration - of history, culture, and the living power of music.

Visit our Events page for a look back at the 2025 summer season