Latest series of free lunchtime concerts in Chichester Cathedral launches

Masterminding the series, which runs from September to November on Tuesdays at 1.10pm (free entry, donations welcomed), is Chichester Cathedral assistant organist Tim Ravalde: “The idea is that the series brings high-quality music free of charge every week in term time to the Cathedral. So that's more than 30 lunchtimes a year of bringing high-quality chamber music to the city centre. There is so much marvellous music around and there are so many terrific performers willing and able to play it that it's difficult to think of a reason why we wouldn't!

“This series is really based on instrumental chamber music. There is already a large amount of singing that goes on in Chichester Cathedral. The cathedral choir sing eight services a week and visiting choirs support our worship during the choir's holidays so really the lunchtime concerts are an interesting opportunity to do something different. We're always looking for excellent performers and we want people with an interesting repertoire. We also seek a good variety within the concerts and also between the concerts. We're always looking for a good and balanced season. My job is to find the performers and book them and arrange the series and negotiate regarding repertoire but I do that with lots of lovely assistance from my colleagues.”

As for finding the performers: “Some people write to us. Some people we find and there are also people that we invite back that we have had before. It is about striking a balance between allowing new people in and inviting people back who have been in the series before. We could run this entire series entirely by inviting people back and it would run for a long time but that would mean closing the door to doing something new which I'm not willing to do.

“We get really good audiences. Our performers love how warm and receptive and appreciative and interested our audiences are, and our colleagues from other cathedrals have expressed envy at the audiences that we manage to get together every Tuesday.”

Concerts coming up include: Tuesday, September 10: Ivan Hovorun, piano: Chopin – Polonaise Fantasie; Berceuse; Barcarolle; Liszt – Hungarian Rhapsody No 2.

Tuesday, September 17: Miriam Teppich, violin, & Pavlos Carvalho, cello: Bach – Chaconne from Partita II in D minor for solo violin; Gaspar Cassado – Suite for solo cello; Reinhold Glière – Three pieces for violin and cello.

Tuesday, September 24: Charles Harrison, organ: Bach – St Anne Prelude in E-flat; Reger – Benedictus; Pastorale; Te Deum; Joseph Bonnet – Romance sans paroles; Deuxième Légende; Etude de concert; Bach – St Anne Fugue in E-flat.

Tuesday, October 1: Imma Setiadi & Nigel Clayton, piano duet: Holst – The Planets arranged for piano duet.

Tuesday, October 8: Anthony Friend, clarinet, & Antonio Oyarzabal, piano. Works for clarinet and piano by female composers.

Tuesday October 15: Trio Lalique. Beethoven – Piano Trio E-flat major, Op 1 No 1; Shostakovich – Piano Trio No 1 C minor.