Bach Festivals & Cantata Series
Bach Festival Bath / Bath Bachfest

Name:

Bach Festival Bath (1950-1977)
Chantry Singers Bach Festival Bath (1995-2010)
Bath Bachfest (since 2012)

Location:

Bath, England, UK

Venues:

Assembly Rooms, Central Bath
Bath Abbey, Central Bath
Guildhall, Central Bath

Years:

Since 1950

Months:

October (1950-1977)
March, April, October (1995-2010)
February (since 2012)

Artistic Director:

Artistic Director: Cuthbert Bates (1950-1977)
Artistic Director: Elizabeth Bates (1995-2010)
Festival Patrons: Timothy West (2005); Andrew Marr (2010)
Artistic Director: Amelia Freedman (CBE, FRAM) (2012-Present)
Bath Bachfest Patron: Elizabeth Bates (2012-Present)

Ensembles:

Internationally renowned Baroque performers, ensembles, choirs & orchestras
Chantry Singers (1995-2010) [no longer exist]

Website:

Bath Bachfest (Official Website)
Bath Festival - The Chantry Singers [no longer exists]

History & Mission:

Bach Festivals at Bath have been part of the city’s cultural tradition since 1950. Cuthbert Bates founded the Bach Festival and was the Artistic Director of seven week-long Festivals, until his final presentation in 1977.
Later, in 1995, Elizabeth Bates decided to continue the tradition established by her father and so, with the support of her choir, the Chantry Singers, one of the leading small choirs in the South West, seven more Bach Festivals once again graced the city’s music calendar. They were intermittent events but with a very large and loyal following, culminating with the final Festival in October 2010. These Festivals were a great artistic success, but the finality of the 2010 event was inevitably tinged with sadness for many people.
So, in 2012 the Mozartfest Team is able to continue the Bach Festival tradition in Bath.
In the words of Raymond Leppard, the Chantry Singers’ President: “…. and even if the Chantry Singers has closed its doors, the heritage is there and others will follow ”.

Recent Festivals:

Original Bach Festival Bath:
1^st Festival: Oct 14-21, 1950
2^nd Festival: Oct 9-16, 1954
3^rd Festival: Oct 22-29, 1960
4^th Festival: Oct 23-30, 1965
5^th Festival: Oct 18-25, 1969
6^th Festival: Oct 19-26, 1974
7^th Festival: Oct 15-22, 1977

Chantry Singers:
1^st Festival: Oct 25-28, 1995
2^nd Festival: Mar 27-29, 1998
3^rd Festival: Oct 21-28, 2000
4^th Festival: Mar 28-30, 2003
5^th Festival: Oct 22-29, 2005
6^th Festival: Apr 18-20, 2008
7^th Festival: Oct 16-23, 2010

New Bath Bachfest:
1^st Festival: Feb 24-25, 2012
2^nd Festival: Feb 21-23, 2013
3^rd Festival: Feb 20-22, 2014
4^th Festival: Feb 19-21, 2015
5^th Festival: Feb 18-20, 2016

Logo: