If you need an excuse to visit Italy this year look no further than the 2023 Trasimeno Music Festival. Set in Umbria, this marvellous musical gem, created by acclaimed pianist Angela Hewitt, is a wonderful way to immerse yourself in the full glory of an Italian summer.
Imagine warm, hazy days on the shores of Lake Trasimeno or wandering hill towns like Orvieto and Todi. Explore the medieval city of Perugia or visit the Basilica in Assisi to view the stunning frescoes by Giotto and Cimabue. And spend balmy evenings under the Italian stars listening to some of the world’s finest classical performers. Perfect settings such as the courtyard of the Knights of Malta castle in Magione or the Basilica di San Pietro in Perugia provide the backdrop to this year’s Festival, which takes place from June 29th to July 5th 2023.
View of the Basilica of St Francis of Assisi, in the town of Assisi, Umbria, Italy, decorated with frescos by Giotto and Cimabue. Photo by Achim Ruhnau
Hear world class artists perform at this intimate music festival. At the 2023 festival, along with Ms Hewitt and other guest musicians, leading violinist Benjamin Schmid will perform Bach and Beethoven. Canadian baritone Joshua Hopkins will give the European premiere of the song cycle “Songs for Murdered Sisters” by Jake Heggie to words by celebrated Canadian author, Margaret Atwood. Ms Atwood will be a special guest at the festival along with Samuel West, the actor and director known most recently for his role as Siegfried Farnam in Masterpiece Theatre’s “All Creatures Great and Small.”
Package start from E 2550 and include tickets to concerts, authors’ readings, as well as two gala dinners and transportation to the concerts. The range of accommodations include the charming Il Cantico della Natura overlooking Lake Trasimeno; the luxury spa Villa Monte Solare near the charming town of Panicale; the 5-star Brufani Palace in Perugia, set on a cliff with sweeping views of the valley below; Bella Magione, a villa B&B, as well as several beautiful mid-range hotels in the heart of Perugia.
The Story Behind Trasimeno Festival
Pianist Angela Hewitt performs a recital at the Trasimeno Music Festival. (Trasimeno Music Festival)
In 2005, Angela Hewitt launched the Trasimeno Music Festival in the heart of Umbria, Italy. She is Artistic Director of the annual event, which draws an international audience to stunning venues including the Castle of the Knights of Malta in Magione (near Perugia) on the shores of Lake Trasimeno. The evening concerts, which take place each day of the Festival feature Hewitt as recitalist, chamber musician, song accompanist, and conductor, working with both established and young artists. Along with remarkable musicians, writers and actors are included in the programming among them authors Ian McEwan and Julian Barnes and actor Roger Allam. Margaret Atwood is the special guest for 2023.
About Angela Hewitt
Angela Hewitt, concert pianist and artistic director of the Trasimeno Music Festiva
One of the world’s leading concert pianists, Angela Hewitt appears in recital and as soloist with major orchestras throughout Europe, the Americas, Australia, and Asia. Her interpretations of the music of J.S. Bach has established her as one of the composer’s foremost interpreters of our time. Born in Canada in 1958, Ms. Hewitt has won many piano competitions in Europe, Canada, and the USA. In 2006, Hewitt was awarded an OBE from HM Queen Elizabeth II in her 80th birthday honours. A frequent guest on BBC Radio, Hewitt was invited to be the sole live performer in the two hours of classical music broadcast on BBC Radio 3 immediately following the funeral and committal of Queen Elizabeth II on September 19, 2022. In 2015 Hewitt was promoted to a Companion of the Order of Canada – her country’s highest honour. She was “Artist of the Year” at the 2006 Gramophone Awards, “Instrumentalist of the Year” at the 2010 MIDEM Classical Awards at Cannes, and in 2018 received the Governor General’s Lifetime Achievement Award in Ottawa. In 2020, she became the first woman to receive the City of Leipzig Bach Medal. Hewitt is a member of the Royal Society of Canada, has seven honorary doctorates, and is a Visiting Fellow of Peterhouse College, Cambridge.
About Perugia and Umbria
Perugia is the capital of Umbria, the Italian region bordering Tuscany, Lazio and Le Marche. Often called the country’s green heart, it’s known for its medieval hill towns, dense forests and local cuisine, particularly foraged truffles and wines. The region is crossed by the Tiber River and includes Lake Trasimeno and Marmore Falls.
Umbria is characterized by hills, mountains, valleys and historical towns such as the university centre of Perugia, Assisi, Terni, Gubbio, Spoleto, Orvieto, Todi Spello and other small cities. Hilltop Perugia, is the site of medieval Palazzo dei Priori, housing the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria art museum.
For more information contact: Barbara Jesson bjesson@jessonco.com
