Dunedin Consort’s 30 Anniversary season celebrates John Butt’s perspectives on Bach, a lost Passion and a new Passion.
Dunedin Consort Ensemble, image courtesy of Dunedin Consort.
- Agile, fresh performances of Matthew Passion, Concertos and Cantatas continue to reveal new experiences of JS Bach
- Lost JS Bach Passion – Markus – in a brand new theatrical collaboration with Bill Barclay’s Concert Theatre Works at Lammermuir Festival
- World premiere of a newly commissioned Passion of Mary Magdalene by the extraordinary composer Tansy Davies
- Concerts span Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Perth, London, Greenock, Milngavie, Oban, Findhorn and Inverness
- Popular Children’s Messiah offers incredible, interactive first experience of concert going and a great introduction to this ever popular piece.
- New Partnership with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RCS) to help develop the future of Historic Practice Performance in Scotland
- Amazing host of new guest directors: Sean Shibe, Ellie Slorach, Kristian Bezuidenhout and Lillian Gordis.
For 30 years Dunedin Consort has been challenging audiences to hear early music with fresh ears. Under the direction of John Butt, the Consort has built a reputation as one of the world’s leading Baroque ensembles, coupling an inquisitive approach to historical performance with a commitment to commissioning and performing new music. It is widely recognised for its vivid and insightful performances and recordings, many of which have been nominated for or won awards.
Fittingly its 30th anniversary season opens with a month performing the music of JS Bach, with which the Consort has become synonymous. Matthew Passion on 10 September at London’s Wigmore Hall, at the start of its prestigious 125th anniversary celebrations, features an all star cast including Rowan Pierce, Hugh Cutting, Marcus Farnesworth alongside Nicholas Mulroy in the role of the Evangelist. Done the Dunedin way, an entirely one-to-a-part performance, all the players and singers become vital co-narrators reflecting on the cosmic and theological consequences of Jesus’s life and crucifixion.
Matthew Passion is revisited at Easter later in the season (April 2026) with Kristian Bezuidenhout directing a cast which includes Carine Tinney and Reginald Mobley across dates in Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Shortly after Bach’s death in 1750, his Markus Passion was hand-delivered by his son C.P.E. to his Leipzig publisher, Johann Breitkopf. Where his John and Matthew Passions have become hugely well-known, his Markus Passion was not noticed missing until a century later. An expert borrower of his own music, it seems likely that Bach recycled material from his Trauer-Ode. This new edition by Malcolm Bruno offers three beautiful and virtually unknown arias to fill the empty places left by the shorter music of the Trauer-Ode, along with a unique role for an actor as Evangelist. This “pocket passion” of just four singers, actor, and single strings brings the intimacy of chamber music. Dunedin Consort led by John Butt and joined by Anna Dennis, Nicholas Mulroy and Matthew Brook, with actor Joseph Marcel to perform this rarely heard Passion at the Lammermuir Festival on 15 September in a theatrical presentation by Concert Theatre Works directed by Bill Barclay at St Mary’s Parish Church Haddington.
September concludes with the Bach’s Italy – performances in Edinburgh (25th), Glasgow (26th) and Perth (27th) of Bach’s Concerto for 2 Violins which showcases the virtuosity and tenderness of Consort virtuosic violinists Matthew Truscott and Huw Daniel. Alongside this monumental work is a programme of Italian music by Corelli and Vivaldi from which Bach borrowed regularly. Bach may never have actually visited Italy, but through his music, he virtually did.
October (Oban, 16th; Findhorn 17th, Inverness 18th and Aberdeen 19th) brings a chance to slow down and immerse in the astonishing clarity of four musicians performing Handel, Biber, Bach. Rising star, soprano Charlotte Bowden lyrically offers up beautifully reflective Handel, taking turns with violin, cello and theorbo in the limelight. Bach’s mesmerising third suite for solo cello then contrasting with Biber’s ‘Guardian Angel’ Passacaglia, the final movement of his astonishing Mystery Sonatas.
Restoration London leaps to life in a programme of music about music – Purcell: Raise the Voice on tour across Glasgow (15 Nov), Edinburgh (16 Nov) and London (18 Nov). It begins and ends with two of Henry Purcell’s odes to St Cecilia, music’s patron saint, and includes a richly chromatic trio sonata by the Anglo-Italian composer Giovanni Battista Draghi. Henry Hall’s ode and John Blow’s memorial setting of verse by John Dryden express the grief felt by Purcell’s friends and colleagues following his tragically early death in 1695. Purcell: Raise the Voice is brought together by director Nicholas Mulroy (tenor), Jessica Cale (soprano), Samuel Boden (tenor), Christopher Webb (bass) and BSL interpreter Paul Whittaker in Glasgow as part of our Deaf Season.
Throughout the day at Arts Space Craigmillar, Edinburgh on 1 November and Beacon Arts Centre Greenock on 2 November, Dunedin Consort invites young people and their families to join a fantastical musical adventure through the magical realms of The Enchanted Snake. Based on an Italian fairy tale collected by Scottish poet Andrew Lang and adapted by the inspiring Kenyan/Scottish storyteller Mara Menzies The Enchanted Snake blends modern storytelling with live performance of Scottish folk and 18th century court music.
Handel’s Messiah continues to thrill audiences each December, and performed as Handel would have first heard it, Dunedin Consort brings its powerful and compelling version with a small orchestra, team of just twelve singers and soloists from the chorus. In this case that chorus and soloists are some of the best singers in the land – Nardus Williams, soprano; Joshua Ellicott, tenor and Dingle Yandell, bass. Catch this seasonal delight in Edinburgh (17 Dec), Perth (18 Dec) or Glasgow (19 Dec) where the performance will also be BSL interpreted by Paul Whittaker as part of our Deaf Season.
Laced among these full-blown Messiahs are performances of Dunedin’s Children’s Messiah, a huge hit in 2024, in which a specially devised 45 minute adaptation of Handel’s masterpiece guides young listeners through some of his greatest hits with plenty of fun and interactive games along the way. This Messiah experience aims to be a transformative experience for those taking their first steps into a concert hall (Edinburgh Dec 17th & Glasgow Dec 19th)
Harpsichordist Lillian Gordis has been described as the Martha Argerich of the harpsichord by ResMusica. In January (Glasgow 29th and Edinburgh 30th) she leads French Connection, a programme of lesser-known music by Jean-Philippe Rameau tantalisingly full of character, Telemann, Bach and Élisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre with Matthew Truscott (violin), Katy Bircher (flute) and Jonathan Manson (viola da gamba).
The National Library of Scotland is full of musical riches from Scottish psalms to music for viol by Marin Marais and Scottish versions of Dowland favourites. On the lute, Sean Shibe, with a handful of string players, guides us through a cosmopolitan and richly-varied musical landscape at the turn of the seventeenth century over three dates in Edinburgh (4 March), Glasgow (5 March) and Perth (6 March).
This season’s commission and world Premiere, a new Passion, sees Tansy Davies join the canon of poets, believers and theologians who have been inspired by these stories; this time told from the perspective of Mary Magdalene, one of the most enigmatic characters in the Passion narrative. Harnessing the musical forces of JS Bach’s John Passion and with texts including the poetry of Ruth Fainlight, audiences will experience something intimate and revelatory. The world premiere takes place on 24 March at the Barbican in London.
The Dunedin Consort’s first visit to Milngavie comes on 24 April followed by dates in Edinburgh and Aberdeen for a programme of music focused on the potential of the human voice. Directed by Ellie Slorach, Foldings & Whirlings brings together contemporary American works by Caroline Shaw - How to fold the wind - and Aaron Jay Kernis - Ecstatic Meditations - alongside John Tavener, John Sheppard and British polyphony from the 15th and 16th centuries set to create a hypnotic and ecstatic atmosphere with the Choir of Dunedin Consort – Scotland’s Professional Choir.
The 30th Anniversary season closes with Dunedin Consort sitting side-by-side with players from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland – the next generation - for a programme of Cantatas & Concertos by JS Bach, Telemann and Graupner (May 6 & 7). Bringing audiences works that would have stunned congregations in Leipzig on a Sunday morning and Telemann and Graupner’s gorgeous writing for flute and oboe d’amore.
John Butt, Music Director of Dunedin Consort, said: “Our new season takes our core repertoire, around the great composers of the late Baroque, and recharges them with fascinating new perspectives. Bach’s Matthew Passion is complemented by a dramatic reconstruction of the fragmentary Mark Passion, and Tansy Davies composes an entirely new passion based around the female viewpoint of Mary Magdalene. These are accompanied by an all too rare visit to the French Baroque and also to that powerhouse of early modern music: Italy. English and Scottish music from the Renaissance and Baroque complete the tour of western European music, with some of the most exquisite compositions for voices, strings and lute.”
Andrew Trinick, Chief Executive of Dunedin Consort, said: “This 30th anniversary season shows the versatility of this incredible group of players and singers. It not only brings simply the best interpretations of Baroque music you will ever be likely to hear, but also looks to the future and shows us that music is for now, the present, as much as the past. With new and exciting collaborations, reaching out all across Scotland, and performing music for all ages, this world class ensemble, based in Scotland, is set to move, entertain, challenge and inspire you at every turn.”
Alan Morrison, Head of Music at Creative Scotland, said: “Dunedin Consort’s reputation as Scotland’s foremost early music specialists is recognised and celebrated around the world. This anniversary season highlights how the ensemble finds new perspectives on old works, bringing an exciting, dynamic approach to the classical canon that opens up this sparkling music to audiences of all ages. As they embark on a new phase of sustainability through Creative Scotland’s Multi Year Funding programme, Dunedin Consort continues to bring gold-star standards of performance to the music calendar.”
Background
About Dunedin Consort
Dunedin Consort is one of the world’s leading Baroque ensembles, recognised for its vivid and insightful performances and recordings. Formed in 1995 and named after Din Eidyn, the ancient Celtic name for Edinburgh Castle, Dunedin Consort’s ambition is to allow listeners to hear early music afresh, and to couple an inquisitive approach to historical performance with a commitment to commissioning and performing new music. Under the direction of John Butt, the ensemble has earned two coveted Gramophone Awards – for the 2007 recording of Handel’s Messiah and the 2014 recording of Mozart’s Requiem, a BBC Music Magazine Award, and a Grammy nomination. In 2021 it was the recipient of the Royal Philharmonic Society Ensemble Award.
Dunedin Consort performs regularly at major festivals and venues across the UK, including the BBC Proms, Edinburgh International Festival and Lammermuir Festival, with whom it enjoys close associations. In 2017, Dunedin Consort announced its first residency at London’s Wigmore Hall, which continues to this day and complements its regular series of events at home in Scotland, as well as throughout Europe and beyond.
The group’s growing discography on Linn Records includes Handel’s Acis and Galatea and Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, both nominated for Gramophone Awards. Other Bach recordings include Mass in B Minor, Violin Concertos, Magnificat, Christmas Oratorio, Matthew Passion and John Passion, which was nominated for a Recording of the Year award in both Gramophone and BBC Music Magazine, and Orchestral Suites released in October 2022. A recording of Handel’s Samson, in its first version of 1743, was released in October 2019, receiving Editor’s Choice accolades across the board. Dunedin Consorts classic Mozart Requiem Linn Records recording reached number 5 in the Apple charts in 2025.
Alongside its performance and recording work, Dunedin Consort is committed to a wide-ranging education programme both in schools and in the wider community. In inspiring and encouraging musical participation, developing vocal skills and fostering a love of classical music, historical performance and new music, Dunedin Consort aims to develop and nurture its potential audience and to encourage the performers of the future.
Dunedin Consort is an enthusiastic champion and commissioner of contemporary music, and in recent years has premiered a new set of orchestral dances at the BBC Proms, a new opera by Errollyn Wallen at the Barbican Centre, and new choral music for its a cappella consort by Caroline Shaw.
As part of a 3 year co-commissioning series, in 2024 it premiered a new guitar concerto by Cassandra Miller for Sean Shibe, and in 2025 it premiered a new cantata by David Fennessy, and the final instalment of this series is in 2026 with music from Tansy Davies.
Creative Scotland
Creative Scotland is the public body that supports culture and creativity across all parts of Scotland, distributing funding provided by the Scottish Government and The National Lottery, which, now in its 30th year, has supported over 14,600 projects with more than £501.9 million in funding through Creative Scotland and its predecessor, the Scottish Arts Council. Further information at creativescotland.com. Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and Instagram. Learn more about the value of art and creativity in Scotland and join in at www.ourcreativevoice.scot.
Media contact
Susie Gray, [email protected] 07834 073795