Speak to an expert
020 7593 2288
Open 9 - 6 Mon to Thu, 9 - 5:30 Fri & 9 - 1 Sat
Speak to an expert
020 7593 2288
Open 9 - 6 Mon to Thu, 9 - 5:30 Fri & 9 - 1 Sat
Speak to an expert
020 7593 2288
Open 9 - 6 Mon to Thu, 9 - 5:30 Fri & 9 - 1 Sat
We are looking forward to returning to Alex Polizzi’s hotel in the picturesque and historic village of Alfriston for our second Kirker Music Festival. Our musicians are the well-established, award-winning Sacconi Quartet, equally at home playing with major orchestras and joining colleagues in chamber music concerts. The third and most recent addition to the Polizzi Collection of hotels, The Star is a superbly-managed and welcoming hotel with elegant accommodation and delicious cuisine.
Music is at the core of our stay at The Star, with three concerts in the Old Chapel just across the road and two talks in the lovely Pilgrim’s Room in the hotel. There will also be time to explore the stunning Sussex coastline and the South Downs, with maps for Alex Polizzi’s favourite walks available at the hotel. Duncan Grant’s murals at Berwick Church and the Towner Gallery at Eastbourne with its collection of works by Eric Ravilious are also within a short drive.
We stay at The Star (4*), located on Alfriston’s famously picturesque high street with its selection of galleries and shops. Olga and Alex Polizzi unveiled their latest venture to enormous critical acclaim in the summer of 2021. Dating back to 1345, this was a historic hostelry on the route between Battle Abbey and Chichester, and its 15th century façade remains unchanged, as does the extravagantly beamed bar. Behind this, a charming, leafy courtyard now leads to 30 comfortable and stylish bedrooms, each combining new and antique furniture alongside works by local artists. We will dine each evening in the hotel’s elegant restaurant. There is no lift at The Star but staff are available to help you with your luggage. There is a gated private car park right behind the hotel.
...when you travel with Kirker
barry.cheeseman@kirkerholidays.com
Barry Cheeseman has been the Manager of the Kirker Cultural Tours & Music Holidays programme for over 10 years.
Barry has been an opera lover for more than 40 years and has seen and heard every major singer during this period. He loves the challenges of organising complex arts events and working closely with the musicians. Out of the office, Barry manages to fit in time to organise his own Chamber Music Festival in North Norfolk where he lives
Members of the Marmen Quartet come from the four corners of the globe; the violinists Johannes Marmen from Sweden and Laia Valentin Braun from Switzerland, cellist Sinéad O’Halloran, from Ireland and from New Zealand, the violist Bryony Gibson-Cornish.
The quartet was formed at the Royal College of Music in 2013 and were mentored by a number of leading players including Peter Cropper and Simon Rowland-Jones. The next six years were spent building up their career and in 2019 they won first prize at two of the world’s most important quartet competition – in Banff and in Bordeaux. This led to a series of international engagements around the world including at the Berlin Philharmonie, the Pierre Boulez Saal in Berlin, Lucerne, Dallas, concerts throughout Germany and Austria and at the Gulbenkian Foundation, Lisbon. At home in the UK they will appear at Oxford Lieder Festival, the Sage and many other music festivals.
They are currently Fellows at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama. This season they have given concerts in Milton Court in the City of London, Eindhoven, Sweden, Wigmore Hall and the Lake District Music Festival.
Robert Plane won the Royal Over-Seas League Music Competition in London in 1992 and has since enjoyed a career encompassing solo and chamber work, as well as holding the principal clarinet positions of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Northern Sinfonia and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales. His recording of Messiaen’s ‘Quartet for the End of Time’ with the Gould Trio was praised by BBC Music Magazine as the ‘best modern account’ of this monumental work.
"Performer, editor, composer and teacher, Simon Rowland-Jones has always led a very busy, all-embracing musical life. He was founder violist of the Chilingirian Quartet, in which he played for a total of ten years, and subsequently performed with many other leading chamber groups.
His solo CDs, on the Meridian and Etcetera labels, include the first-ever complete version of the Bach Cello Suites on viola. Peters Edition published his viola transcription of the suites shortly after the recording was made and he then went on to make a new critical/performing edition of the Haydn String Quartets. His many works include pieces for viola, four string quartets, a string trio, a piano quartet, songs and ‘A Turn Outside’, a musical adaptation of a play by Stevie Smith commissioned by Dame Josephine Barstow. He teaches viola and chamber music at the Royal College of Music and is co-director of the North Norfolk Music Festival."
The name Sacconi Quartet comes from the outstanding 20th century Italian luthier and restorer Simone Sacconi, whose book The Secrets of Stradivari is considered an indispensable reference for violin makers. Since its formation at the Royal College of Music in 2001, the Quartet has established a secure and substantial reputation.
They have enjoyed a highly successful international career, performing regularly throughout Europe, at London’s major venues, in recordings and in radio broadcasts. The Sacconi is ‘Quartet in Association’ at the Royal College of Music and Associate Artist at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre.
2023 - Music Programme
Marmen Quartet
Robert Plane, clarinet
7 November 2023
Haydn: String Quartet in D, Op.33 No.6
Takemitsu: A Way A Lone
Beethoven: String Quartet in E minor, Op 59, No.2
8 November 2023
Mozart: String Quartet in B flat, K159
Stravinsky: Three Pieces for solo clarinet
Bliss: Clarinet Quintet
Debussy: String Quartet
9 November 2023
Haydn: String Quartet in B flat, Op.64 No.3
Janacek: String Quartet No. 2 ‘Intimate Letters’
Brahms: String Quintet In F, Op.88
2024 - Music Programme
Sacconi String Quartet
11 November 2024
Mendelssohn: String Quartet in F minor, Op.80 No.27
Smetana: String Quartet No.1in E minor ‘From My Life’
Caroline Shaw: Entr’acte
American composer Caroline Shaw was born in 1982 and won
Pullitzer for Music in 2013.
A Haydn Quartet will be also be included in this concert.
12 November 2024
Beethoven: String Quartet in B flat major, Op.130
The Sacconi Quartet will include a performance of the Grosse Fugue in B flat major, Op.133. Beethoven composed this quartet to include the Grosse Fugue as an integral part of the piece although it is sometimes not included or indeed played separately. Here, the Sacconi Quartet will play the piece as Beethoven intended.
Roxana Panufnik: Heartfelt
Roxana Panufnik was born in 1998 and is one of Britain’s favourite contemporary composers. Her music was included in the Coronation of King Charles. Heartfelt was commissioned and played by the Sacconi Quartet in 2020.
13 November 2024
Brahms: String Quintet in G major Op111
Ravel: String Quartet
Cultural Tours Senior Executive
Barry Cheeseman has been the Manager of the Kirker Cultural Tours & Music Holidays programme for over 10 years.
Barry has been an opera lover for more than 40 years and has seen and heard every major singer during this period. He loves the challenges of organising complex arts events and working closely with the musicians. Out of the office, Barry manages to fit in time to organise his own Chamber Music Festival in North Norfolk where he lives
Our expert reservations team regularly travel to a wide range of destinations to explore new cities, visit hotels and to research museums, galleries and restaurants so that we can offer the most up-to-date advice and recommendations.
You do not have any favourites. Click the star icon on the search or holiday pages to favourite a holiday.
{{ holiday._source.categories['Holiday Type'][0] }}
{{ holiday._source.name }}3 nights from {{ holiday._source.from_prices[esConfig.currency] | as_price }}
{{ holiday._source | first_from_price:"GBP":true }} {{ holiday._source | first_from_price:"GBP" | as_price }}
Prices on request
including {{ holiday._source.categories['Price Includes'] | join_unique: ', ' }} and Kirker Extras
This site uses cookies. By using our website, you agree to our use of cookies. Learn more