The Performers

The Allegri Quartet

Founded in 1953 by Eli Goren, William Pleeth, Patrick Ireland and James Barton, the modern Allegri Quartet has built on that foundation throughout its life. The current inheritors of the mantle, Ofer Falk, Rafael Todes, Dorothea Vogel and Katherine Jenkinson, have worked hard to maintain the integrity of their legacy. A strong grounding in the core classical repertoire is balanced with a strong commitment to new music, evidenced by the fact that the Allegri has commissioned and premiered new works throughout it's more than fifty year history.

The Allegri have a loyal following all over the world, attracted by the excitement generated by their concerts and by the Quartet's consistent devotion to musicianship and a thorough understanding of the music they play. Their interpretations always convey their own enjoyment of the music.

The Llanfyllin Festival has been able to bring this splendid music-making to the North Welsh borders for more than thirty years. Long may it continue!

Guest Artists

Timothy Orpen

Since winning the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition in 2005 Timothy Orpen has established himself as one of the leading clarinettists of his generation. Described by The Times as a 'blazing talent', he has performed as a soloist at the Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall and with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.
He made his Wigmore Hall debut in 2005 supported by the Musicians Benevolent Fund. He also appeared at the Purcell Room as an award winner of the Park Lane Group and the Philharmonia Orchestra's Martin Musical Scholarship Fund. Timothy has performed widely as a soloist in Europe, including concerto performances in Italy and Switzerland. As a chamber musician Timothy has collaborated with sopranos Elizabeth Watts, Lucy Crowe and Sally Matthews and the Badke, Heath, Sacconi, Barbirolli and Doric String Quartets.
Timothy studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London and in Karlsruhe, Germany with Wolfgang Meyer.
Timothy is the co-Principal clarinet of the London Chamber Orchestra and has performed as guest principal clarinet for many of the UK's leading orchestras. He is also principal clarinet and a founder member of the Aurora Orchestra, with whom he has performed John Adams' Clarinet Concerto Gnarly Buttons.

Matthew Taylor

Matthew Taylor will be joining us on July 10 for the Welsh premiere of his Quartet No 6.
Matthew won a Music Scholarship to Queen's College, Cambridge in 1983, where he studied with Robin Holloway and conducted the University orchestras. In 1986 he was awarded the Conducting Scholarship to Guildhall School of Music and, after further studies as a post graduate at the Royal Academy of Music, gained the Dip RAM, their highest award. He also studied with Leonard Bernstein and conducted with Bernstein at the 1987 Schleswig-Holstein Festival. He subsequently received special encouragement from Robert Simpson and Sir Malcolm Arnold, both of whom proved important influences in his compositional thinking.
To date he has written three symphonies, concertos for clarinet, piano, horn and double bass, seven string quartets, a piano trio, other chamber music and songs.
Matthew has been Artistic Director of the Malvern Festival (1992 -95) and in 2009 he will assume the role of Artistic Director of the St Petersburg British Music Festival.

Ieuan Jones

Ieuan tours the world regularly with his harp. He has performed in more than twenty five countries, given concerto appearance with some of the worlds leading orchestras and has many recordings to his credit.
Ieuan began playing the harp at the age of six. He was brought up in mid-Wales where he discovered the harp at school.
At 13, he was the youngest member of the National Youth Orchestra of Wales, he went on to join the National Youth Orchestra of GB, and then gained a scholarship to study with Marisa Robles at the Royal College of Music.
He has played for Royalty, Ambassadors, Prime Ministers and audiences all over the world. Ieuan was appointed Professor of Harp at the Royal College of Music in 1997. He is also a member of the Assoicated Board of the Royal Schools of Music`s board of diploma examiners and regularly appears on inernational competition panels world wide.

Mavis Nicholson

Mavis Nicholson was a television interviewer, Mavis on 4 being her last Channel Four series. She has been a freelance journalist for the Observer, the Mail on Sunday, South Wales Echo, and Family Circle and is at present the agony aunt in The Oldie magazine. She is the author of three books: Help Yourself, What did you do in the war, mummy? and her autobiography, recently republished, Martha Jane and Me, a girlhood in Wales.