The much-loved Music at the Tower events, which have become a bit of a cult classic since launching during the summer of 2020, are returning this August for a one-off special.

The day-long festival of Baroque music based around Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos takes place on 21 August (with the 22nd as a back-up in case of rain) in the gardens surrounding St Mary’s Church Tower in Hornsey.

Entrance is free and the event will be really informal: audiences are free to wander in and out throughout the day, and dip in and out of the festival’s three performances spaces.

Main events will take place in front of the tower, as well as in a wooded area where smaller chamber groups will perform, and also at the top of the tower, where a lute/theorbo player will join various singers for intimate performances.

Audiences can bring their own picnic, and there’s going to be a food truck on-site, as well as local beers available. You can help make this festival become a reality by donating now to the GoFundMe page.

the performers:

The festival’s core musicians are: Mary Bevan MBE (soprano), Jonathan Byers (cello), William Thomas (bass), Michael Gurevich (violin), Kinga Ujszaszi (violin), Joanne Miller (viola), Leo Duarte (oboe).

They will be joined throughout the day by Trevor Pinnock CBE, Dame Emma Kirkby, Christian Curnyn, Peter Whelan, Joseph Crouch (cello), Tom Foster (harpsichord), Ursula Paludan Monberg (horn), and Alfonso Leal Del Ojo (viola).

the music:

All six of Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, and more.