News, events and schools' information for families across Bath and West Wiltshire

Crescendo Concerts is taking its production Story of the Nutcracker on the road in a special production suitable for children aged 3-11 years.

Crescendo Concerts’ own Julie Payne explained, “Think of the famous Nutcracker ballet by Tchaikovsky… Now turn it on its head and engage your wildest imagination… Add six amazing classical musician/actors, fantastic live music, plenty of silliness and interaction, plus a roller-skating Sugar Plum Fairy and you might be beginning to scratch the surface!”

The tour dates for The Story of a Nutcracker are:

Sat 14 Dec – Nailsea
Sun 15 Dec – Thornbury
Fri 20 Dec – Chepstow
Sat 21 Dec – Salisbury
Sun 22 Dec – Bath
Fri 3 Jan – Devizes
Sat 4 Jan – Street
Sun 5 Jan – Chippenham

What’s more, Crescendo Concert’s sister group, Music for Miniatures, which offers live classical concerts for babies, toddlers and young children aged 0-4 years, is performing a series of events at St Swithin’s Church in Bath. You can catch them at on –

Wed 13 Nov – Flute, oboe and piano
Sat 16 Nov – Horn quartet
Sat 7 Dec – Christmas Brass
Wed 11 Dec – Christmas with the choir

Tickets are available at www.musicforminiatures.co.uk or on the door.

‘Music for Miniatures started playing concerts in Oct 2014 and has since given over 150 concerts with a wide range of music, including folk, world, classical, jazz,” said Julie. “Crescendo Concerts have a much more interactive element and introduce children to the instruments in an engaging and inspiring way. We have given over 100 performances, varying from music-only concerts to immersive theatrical performances.

“We believe that access to live music is incredibly important for children of any age, so they can be inspired to learn and become musicians of the future. The development of our work has seen Music For Miniatures become a CIC in Feb 2016 and converting to a charity in July 2019. We aim to expand to cover more rural areas where there is limited access to the arts and deliver more multi-art form projects alongside our regular concerts.”

For more details, go to www.musicforminiatures.co.uk and www.crescendokidsconcerts.co.uk