Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall will host a weekend of guitar music curated by Australian classical guitarist Craig Ogden. The mini-festival runs from 20-22 January.
The weekend includes a Bach to Beatles concert performance from Ogden, which mixes work by the great baroque composer with fab four tunes such as Here Comes the Sun, Blackbird and Come Together. He will be accompanied by the Royal Northern Sinfonia.
Other performs are legendary lap-slide guitarist Tom Doughty, flute and guitar combo Da Capo Duo, as well as guitarists Nicholas Maw and Christopher Fox. There is also a family-focussed music and sensory play session for babies and toddlers.
In addition to the strumming of six-strings attendees can learn about more about the art and practice of luthiers, take part in Ogden’s workshop on arranging contemporary works for classical guitar, watch a screening of the documentary film Musicwood (which follows the journey of guitar makers trying to preserve a forest whose trees are famous for their acoustic properties), and a pop-up poetry session for budding lyricists.
Ogden has ties to the Manchester music scene, having received a Fellowship Award from the Royal Northern College of Music. His recording career includes five number one albums on the UK classical chart.