Budleigh Music Festival

15/06/2026

What to expect at Budleigh Music Festival 2026

Ten extraordinary days of music in beautiful Budleigh Salterton, from intimate morning recitals to spectacular evening concerts.

Daytime Highlights - Morning and lunchtime recitals featuring rising stars and established artists: organ and piano duets, saxophone, double bass, a clarinet viola and piano trio, and a relaxed concert welcoming families and those who prefer an informal atmosphere.

Evening Spectaculars - International soloists, choral masterworks, and full orchestral programmes. Highlights include the world premiere of Bob Chilcott's Don't Go Extinct!, “Simply Sondheim” filling St Peter's with West End voices, multi-award-winning guitarist Sean Shibe, Elgar and Holst reimagined by Crescent Collective, and the festival finale, Wolf Hall in Concert.
Special Events - Aardman in Concert brings Wallace, Gromit and friends to the screen with live orchestra, and La Vie en Rose returns for a third year by popular demand.

Family and Community - Music For All at the Public Hall and Temple Church on 27 June offers creative workshops for all ages with Duo Tutti and Sound of the Streets. Free Community Music sessions at Temple Gardens run daily from 29 June to 4 July.

A Festival for Everyone - BSL interpretation at select concerts and concessionary tickets available.
Venues open 30 minutes before each concert. Bar available for evening events.
Book now: budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

11/06/2026

Not all of the best festival moments happen in a concert hall.

From Monday 29 June, Temple Gardens at Wesley’s Café comes alive with six days of free outdoor music, running every day until Saturday 4 July. Twenty-two different acts will take to the garden across the week, spanning folk, pop, blues, jazz and plenty more besides. Something for everyone, with no ticket required.

Community Music at Temple Gardens is supported by Budleigh Music Festival and funded by the Creative East Devon Fund. There’ll be a bucket collection each day in aid of Launchpad, and flyers on the High Street with all the details

10:30am to 3:30pm daily. Just turn up!

📅 29 June to 4 July

📍 Wesley’s Café Gardens, Budleigh Salterton 🎶 Free entry, bucket collection for Launchpad

BMF2026 LiveMusic EastDevon

08/06/2026

None of this happens without some very special people.

Behind every concert, every warm welcome at the door, and every perfectly placed programme, there are the volunteers and supporters who make Budleigh Music Festival possible. Our volunteers give their time with such generosity and good humour that their enthusiasm becomes part of the festival itself. And to our sponsors and supporters, whose belief in live music makes it all happen — thank you.

We cannot wait to do this together. It’s almost time!

budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

04/06/2026

Bring your family to our MUSIC FOR ALL session on Saturday 27 June, 11–3pm

Something a little different, and completely wonderful.

Join us for a morning and afternoon of hands-on musical fun, with two incredible workshop groups bringing the joy of making music to everyone, whatever your age or experience.
Duo Tutti (Temple Church, 11am & 12pm) Duo Tutti combine professional musical performance in piano and flute with extensive experience as creative workshop leaders. Their session for us is ideal for Early Years children, young families, and the young at heart.

Sound of the Streets (Public Hall & Temple Church, 11am & 1.30pm) A funky four-piece brass band with serious musical firepower, and they want YOU to join in. Bring an instrument, bring something that makes a noise, or just bring yourself. All ages, all abilities, all welcome. New Orleans street music, improvisation, and an unforgettable shared experience.

No experience needed. No barriers. Make music, together.

Book your place at budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

Tickets are now available for Music for All: Workshops at Temple Church or Public Hall, Budleigh Salterton on Sat 27 Jun 2026 at 11:00AM. Click the link for further information and to secure your tickets now!

01/06/2026

As the sun sets over Budleigh Salterton, the evenings come alive with world-class music at St Peter’s Church. From opera to gypsy jazz, orchestral spectacle to musical theatre, this year’s evening programme has something for everyone.

Here’s what’s on:
Thursday 25 June - Seaside Reflections: an RNLI Benefit Concert in memory of Matthew Upham, featuring an extraordinary line-up from classical saxophone to opera. A moving and celebratory evening for a wonderful cause. 7.30pm

Friday 26 June - Fauré Requiem, conducted by Bob Chilcott in memory of Festival Trustee Dr Janet Keliher. A chamber choir drawn from the finest local voices performing one of the most beautiful works in the choral repertoire. 8.30pm

Saturday 27 June - Simply Sondheim with the English Musical Theatre Orchestra. West End singers and a full orchestra bring Into the Woods, Sweeney Todd, Company and more to life in a night of soaring melodies. 7pm

Monday 29 June - Sean Shibe: Guitar. One of the most exciting guitarists of his generation, bringing his extraordinary artistry to the intimate setting of St Peter’s Church. 7.30pm

Tuesday 30 June - Bellot Ensemble. The newly appointed BBC Radio 3 New Generation Baroque Ensemble in a vivid programme of music from the courts of England and France, 1600–1700. 7pm

Wednesday 1 July - Ryan Wang: Piano. BBC Young Musician 2024 winner, performing Mozart, Chopin, and Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition and more. 7.30pm

Thursday 2 July - Crescent Collective: Elgar’s Cello Concerto and Holst’s Planets Suite, reimagined for chamber orchestra and accompanied by mesmerising NASA imagery on screen. 7.30pm

Friday 3 July - La Vie en Rose. The south-west’s favourite gypsy jazz and hot swing band, back for a third year by popular demand. An irresistible evening of Django-inspired joy. 8pm

Saturday 4 July - Wolf Hall in Concert. The perfect finale. Composer Debbie Wiseman, soprano Grace Davidson and actor Anton Lesser bring Hilary Mantel’s world to life in the town she called home. 7.30pm

Tickets at budleighmusicfestival.co.uk

26/05/2026

One month to go!

Budleigh Music Festival 2026 kicks off on 25 June, and we cannot wait to welcome you back to Budleigh Salterton for ten days of exceptional music.

This summer brings BBC Young Musician winner Ryan Wang, a world premiere conducted by our Festival Patron Bob Chilcott, with over 100 local schoolchildren; 50 years of Aardman celebrated with a live orchestra; rising stars on trumpet, double bass, clarinet, and more; and much, much else besides.

Whether you’re planning a full festival week or picking out a concert or two, now is the time to book.

📅 25 June to 4 July 📍 Budleigh Salterton, Devon 🎟️ Book now: budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

22/05/2026

22/05/2026

This summer, a much-loved film comes to life.

The Wrong Trousers - screened in full with live orchestra at St Peter’s Church, Budleigh Salterton.

Part of a joy-filled celebration of 50 years of Aardman, blending five decades of iconic characters, classic humour and unforgettable music into one unmissable evening.

A cinematic and musical celebration of clay, comedy, and creativity — for all ages, right here in Devon.

🗓 Friday 3 July | 5:30pm | St Peter’s Church, Budleigh Salterton 🎫 Tickets at budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

Video © Carrot Productions. Images © and TM Aardman/W&G Ltd. All rights reserved.

18/05/2026

🌿 DON’T GO EXTINCT!

We are proud to present the world premiere of this work, commissioned by Budleigh Music Festival in collaboration with Devon Music Hub. 

Our Festival Patron Bob Chilcott conducts his brand-new song cycle for young voices, with words by children’s author Timothy Knapman. It is an uplifting reminder that the future of music, and of our planet, belongs to the next generation.

Over 100 children from local schools will take to the stage alongside professional jazz musicians in a celebration of nature, hope, and the power of collective singing. Alive with colour, rhythm, and heartfelt storytelling, this is music-making at its most joyful and most meaningful.

This will be followed by a performance in Plymouth on 30 June.

📅 26 June | 5:00 pm 📍 St Peter’s Church 🎟️ Book now: budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/how-to-book/

14/05/2026

On Christmas Day 2025, the sea took two lives from our community. One of them was Matthew Upham, a beloved friend of Budleigh Music Festival, a patron of the arts, and a man who loved music with his whole heart.

On 25 June, we gather in his memory to raise money for the RNLI.

🎵 Seaside Reflections: Memories and Dreams is a very special RNLI benefit concert at St Peter’s Church, featuring soprano Sky Ingram, saxophonist Huw Wiggin, the wonderful Rebecca Smith and her Palm Court trio, and award-winning composer and pianist Mark Chait.

The programme is as beautiful as it is carefully chosen; from Purcell and Puccini to Bernstein’s “Somewhere” and Arvo Pärt’s luminous “Spiegel im Spiegel” - music to comfort, uplift, and connect us.

All proceeds go to the RNLI, in honour of the courageous crews who serve coastal communities like ours.

📅 25 June | 🕖 7:30pm | 📍 St Peter’s Church, Budleigh Salterton

Tickets: www.budleighmusicfestival.co.uk/event/seaside-reflections-memories-and-dreams/

🌊 RNLI Exmouth