About the Festival

‘Sublime’
‘…. a highlight of the Musical Year’
‘To have such easy access to such brilliant performers is really a wonderful bonus’
‘A key date in my Spring diary’

The Investec International Music Festival founded in 2010 brings the very best of classical music performance annually to the Surrey Hills. World famous artists and renowned orchestras have taken part each year, including violinist Nicola Benedetti and singer Dame Sarah Connolly both of whom are now Patrons of the Festival.

Audiences enjoy the variety of intimate venues from historic country houses and baroque churches to splendid auditoriums, mainly located between Guildford and Dorking.

The Festival’s Co-founder, Artistic Director, international pianist and member of the Sitkovetsky Trio, Wu Qian has developed a superb programme for its twelfth season now planned  for September 2021, by which time we hope the country will be out of lockdown. Plans for 2022 and 2023 are well advanced, ensuring the calibre of artists that our audiences know and expect.

This year we will launch our first Youth Composition Competition open to all Surrey under 18’s and in addition to a cash prize the winner’s work will be performed by the internationally renowned Sitkovetsky Trio as part of a Festival Concert in May 2022.

The appeal of the Festival begins with the fact that it is of the very highest artistic quality and is local, no travel to London or flight to Europe is needed. Combine those features with an immensely friendly and supportive community of eager audience goers and we think we have a recipe for something really special and very exciting.

In 2020, to commemorate the Festival’s first decade, we commissioned a new work from the celebrated composer, Charlotte Bray, performed to a live audience with the Philharmonia Orchestra.

Beyond presenting world-class concerts, our Festival Friends, along with the Community Foundation for Surrey support the String Scheme in two local State primary schools where Year 4 pupils receive weekly group instruction on loaned violins and cellos. This plugs the curriculum gap and injects a vital dose of music learning to our local school children.

The Festival is a registered charity, the Surrey Hills International Music Festival, and the Management Committee is most grateful to Investec W&I for their continuing headline sponsorship and to all our corporate supporters, without whom there would be no Festival.

Julia Pearson, Chair IIMF