Meyers visit a highlight of classical festival

Walled City Music Festival is back for its seventh year of top-class music-making from some of the world’s top classical musicians alongside a fantastic line-up of some of Londonderry’s up-and-coming talent.
By Staff Reporter
Published 11th May 2015, 12:27 BST
Anne Akiko Meyers, internationally-renowned American violinist, will be performing as part of the Walled City Music Festival, Derry, June 2015Anne Akiko Meyers, internationally-renowned American violinist, will be performing as part of the Walled City Music Festival, Derry, June 2015
Anne Akiko Meyers, internationally-renowned American violinist, will be performing as part of the Walled City Music Festival, Derry, June 2015

The festival will be held from June 4 to 7 with the majority of performances taking place in beautiful surrounds of The Great Hall, Ulster University Magee.

The festival will open on Thursday, June 4, with a two piano recital by leading British pianists Kathryn Stott and Martin Roscoe performing a sumptuous programme of Mozart, Rachmaninov, Debussy and Gershwin. Friday, June 5, in collaboration with Ulster University, will showcase the performing talents of the university’s final year music students alongside special guest artists in a double concert in Christ Church followed by Culturlann.

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Saturday, June 6, will offer a double concert featuring celebrated French harpist Sylvain Blassel performing his own arrangement of J. S. Bach’s Goldberg Variations.

Blassel will be joined by WCMF Co-Artistic Director Sabrina Hu (flute) for music by the sitar master Ravi Shankar, alongside romantic classics from Wagner and Liszt.

A late evening concert will feature Schubert’s sublime String Quintet performed by the outstanding young chamber ensemble Quercus, founded and directed by Derry cellist Kim Vaughan.

The final day of the festival will feature two concerts, an afternoon of late-romantic string sextets with the Quercus Ensemble followed by an evening with internationally renowned American violinist Anne Akiko Meyers performing a stunning programme of Mozart, Pärt and Ravel with WCMF Artistic Director Cathal Breslin.

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Festival Artistic Directors Cathal Breslin and Sabrina Hu, who will perform in a number of events, said: “This year’s festival is a truly diverse mix of musical experiences.

“Our aim is to put outstanding classical music-making at the heart of cultural life in Derry, and we’re confident this is our most exciting line-up so far. 

“A particular highlight is the visit of Anne Akiko Meyers, one of the world’s leading concert violinists, whose instruments include the Molitor Stradivarius, famously rediscovered in Derry in 1988.”

Tickets are now on sale for all festival events and can be purchased in advance via the Millennium Forum Box Office. Call +44 2871 264 455 or visit their website

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