Festivals & Conferences

The Society held a weekend residential conference from Friday 6 – Sunday 8 October 2023 at the Alma Lodge Hotel in Stockport, well known to many as home to a number of recent Conventions of the Gilbert and Sullivan Society.

The programme included the launch of our Chairman, Elaine Richardson’s, new book The Untold Story of Herbert Sullivan, and talks by Stephen Turnbull on Sullivan and Germany; Prof. Ian Bradley on Sullivan’s love of life; and from Martin Yates and Dr. Anne Stanyon. There was also live music, including a recital by the Lydian String Quartet (leader Sally Robinson). Their programme included Sullivan’s Romance in G and String Quartet in D, as well as the first known performance since the nineteenth century of the First String Quartet in A Major, opus 246,  by Hamilton Clarke. Clarke (1840-1912) was one of Sullivan’s assistants and responsible for preparing the overtures to The Sorcerer, The Mikado and Ruddigore. Apart from this he is a forgotten figure and this will be a very rare chance to hear an original work by this prolific composer. In addition, there was a Sullivan-friendly vocal recital by Matthew Siveter (baritone) accompanied by Martin Yates.

We are in the process planning future Society events, details of which will be posted here in due course.