Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Classical Festival Kimmeridge 26-28 August


The Seranata Festival, set for 30 acres on Purbeck’s Smedmore Estate, overlooking stunning Kimmeridge Bay, will cater for 3,000 people a day this August. Tickets for the top package cost £795 for the three days, while one-day tickets, including camping on the family site, start at just £55. The website serenatafestival.com goes live on Friday 29th Jan.
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15 comments:

Anonymous said...

I make 3 x 55 = 165, what do you get for the top package?

27/1/10 9:26 pm
Anonymous said...

A big bill?

27/1/10 9:57 pm
Anonymous said...

Well, the website was not opened as promised and is now off line. I would hesitate to buy a ticket until I find out more about this.

30/1/10 9:12 pm
Anonymous said...

Tickets for the top package cost £795 for the three days.

Why is this festival costing so much ? Other festivals such as Lamer Tree cost £120 per person, for 3 days.

Bestival £150.

1/2/10 1:57 pm
Anonymous said...

As far as I can see there is no updated website, no programme of events; no comprehensive list of who is performing; only a lot about boutique camping and croissants being delivered to your bell tent in the morning. I am wary of this....

1/2/10 6:08 pm
Anonymous said...

Only get a recording on the phone line before being put through to some agent who hasn't any clue what will be happening at the festival!!

Still nothing on the website!! Maybe no artists will commit????

1/2/10 8:15 pm
Anonymous said...

Tues.

I've just had a look at

serenatafestival.com

I get the feeling that they're checking out how many people want to attend.

They want your Name, Address, number and type of tickets, and how you want to pay, but not actual payment.

They have a few names of performers, but I get the feeling that more will be confirmed as more tickets are bought.

2/2/10 9:40 am
Anonymous said...

This might be a scam.

Be wary until they produce a firm list of events and musicians.

As far as I can tell there is no money, big name or experience behind this.

Seen this sort of thing before!

2/2/10 1:27 pm
Anonymous said...

'....for the most fervent fan to those who don't know their Bach from their Brahms....' - from the still not launched (!) website for this 'boutique' festival.

I know my Bach from my Brahms; I also know my Scarlatti from a Scam!!!

Hey, Mike Hadley - they need your professional expertise to get this thing up and running!!

2/2/10 2:39 pm
The Postman said...

Seems like this is the organiser: one Vincent Poncia (and no jokes about this being poncier than Woodstock):
http://uk.linkedin.com/in/vinceponcia

He talks about:
The first Classical Music Festival in the UK. To be held at a fantastic loaction on the Jurasic coast in Dorset. 26/27/28 August 2010.'Serenata - featuring a stunning line up of top artists, including classical music’s own ‘fab four’ Blake, and leading instrumental soloists and former BBC Young Musicians of the year, pianist Benjamin Grosvenor and clarinetist Emma Johnson playing the great classical concertos with full symphony orchestra. The full line up of artists, concerts, performances by the brightest of young and emerging talents, the sharpest in classical cabaret, and opportunities to play and sing yourself will be announced early in the new year.’This is a proposed programme and is subject to change.

2/2/10 2:57 pm
The Postman said...

This from The Independent, Monday, 25 January 2010

Puccini and Pimm's make for a different kind of festival

Author: By Paul Bignell

Organisers of the Serenata Festival,Britain's first dedicated outdoor classical music festival claim it will be the ultimate in what they call boutique camping and the most civilised festival imaginable. Set on the Isle of Purbeck, on the Dorset coast, the festival has confirmed the likes of Blake, the classical boy group who formed on Facebook, and the teenage mezzo-soprano sensation Faryl Smith, a product of the TV series Britain's Got Talent. It will host symphony orchestras and opera singers; performances will include Beethoven's Seventh and Mahler's Resurrection Symphony in a distinct effort to reach the more energetic Radio 3 and Classic FM listeners.

Festival-goers fortunate enough to afford the tickets,which cost up to £800 for the three nights,will take their pick from locally sourced produce including a hog roast. Those who find the notion of walking across a field to get their dinner a little onerous will be able to call for the on-site butler service to deliver straight to whichever range of Moroccan decorated bell tents they are staying in. There will be a champagne and oyster bar; high tea at four and the daily "Pimm's o'clock" event.

With new festivals cropping up throughout Britain every year, organisers struggle to stand out from the multitude. The founder and managing director, Lesley Malpas, said: "People are looking for a smart festival with a high standard; they want more now. I realised there hasn't been anything of this kind yet, whereby you've actually got all the festival experience, the camping and food, revolving around a classical event.

"It is purely classical, but a broad repertoire for anyone. There will be a core classical element to every evening, but then there'll be a classical crossover, so you'll get performers such as Blake and Faryl Smith, but also the clarinettist Emma Johnson and 2004 Young Musician of the Year competition winner, Benjamin Grosvenor."

While nearby villagers won't have to worry about a Woodstock-style influx of unsavoury types, the site will hold a modest 3,000 people each day on the 30-acre site,security will remain tight to comply with regulations and keep out unwanted riff-raff. However, organisers add that security will remain inconspicuous.

Festival-goers will also be able to get in on the act via musical workshops,such as a scratch orchestra and a scratch choir, with a £10,000 prize on offer for an X Factor style competition, minus Simon Cowell, one hopes. The competition will pit contestants against each other, with one eager musician given a chance to play on the main stage.

2/2/10 3:01 pm
Anonymous said...

Thanks, but these are two articles based upon a press release and assume the organizer's ambitions. The artists mentioned here are young (hence inexpensive) and are not big names, at least the sort of names that command the prices being asked for tickets. I suspect the cost of booking big names would be prohibitive. At least several big names are needed to justify the huge ticket price, especially in this economic environment.

The idea is not without merit; why oh why did they not start off modestly to build up a reputation and base for a few years? If this fails, it will not be repeated. This IS doomed to become a colossal failure, at these prices. I see tickets going for a fraction of what is being asked to get any sort of participation. Forget the champagne image, the 'butler service in bell tents' hype.

2/2/10 6:03 pm
Anonymous said...

Still no updated website. But they will sell you tickets if you phone!

4/2/10 3:36 pm
Anonymous said...

Six days ago a website was promised, to included the lineup of events. Since then - nothing.

Would the organizer like to comment?

5/2/10 5:58 pm
Anonymous said...

I've just found that the site has now launched and does have some extremely good artists. Geoff Sewell and Blake are performing and I've just found you can buy tickets from £55 for a full day with an evening performance and free camping so I've just purchased tickets! I'd suggest people look at the site as it has everything on there about the festival including the artists and the people behind the event - which includes Geoff Sewell.
I hope that helps everyone!

16/2/10 3:04 pm

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