Five days celebrating the art of the piano.

Well, what an extraordinary five days of Piano playing we had at LPF26!

So many memories made. So many wonderful shows and concerts. So many talented Pianists playing the street pianos.

From the celebrity event with its high standard of playing, great banter and snooker world number 8,Shaun Murphy‘s  fabulous debut on the piano to our festival finale where so many talented amateur players took to the stage before the toe-tapping exuberance of Boogie Woogie Sue sent everyone home on a high. And you have raved about the concerts that didn’t sell out just as much as the ones that did!

And there is more to come. Lucy Parham’s unique and beautifully crafted ‘words and music’ concerts are always hugely popular. In 2023, she performed her show about Rachmaninov with Alistair reading Rachmaninov’s words and moving quite a few of us to tears. Lucy returned in 2024 with Harriet Walter to do her show about Clare Schumann. And Lucy is now returning on September 30th with her show about Claude Debussy. Alistair will again perform alongside her as he takes on the role of Debussy : a man with huge pianistic talent but a complex and shocking personal life (Debussy, that is ; not Alistair). It promises to be a show full of passion – musically and dramatically.

Then a few weeks after that, we return with our next Pop-Up weekend. And we have two fabulous events. The return of Scipione Sangiovanni and his incredible ability mix the likes of Bach and Purcell with Radiohead and Nirvana.

And, if that weren’t enough : have you ever wanted to ask a concert pianist what their chosen career is like? Now, you can!

And, if that weren’t enough : have you ever wanted to ask a concert pianist what their chosen career is like? Now, you can!  Cordelia Williams performs at leading venues all over the world. She is coming to perform at the Assembly Rooms but, during her event, she will also be interviewed by Alistair and take questions from the floor on life as a classical Pianist.

And Open Piano returns! Your chance to play the Steinway in The Church.  Bookings will open in late summer so please ensure you’re on the mailing list.

So, there’s plenty coming up to get excited about, later this year.  And, of course, we are already planning our festival for 2027!  You can now guarantee we will have some big names, some enviable events and will draw people to Ludlow from around the country to play, to listen and to enjoy our fabulous town!

Thanks for all the support. Keep checking your emails – and don’t miss out!

Alistair and the team