The Leeds Festival, officially known as the ''Leeds Triennial Musical Festival'', was a

classical music Classical music generally refers to the art music of the Western world, considered to be distinct from Western folk music or popular music traditions. It is sometimes distinguished as Western classical music, as the term "classical music" also ...

festival which took place between 1858 and 1985 in

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

West Yorkshire West Yorkshire is a metropolitan and ceremonial county in the Yorkshire and Humber Region of England. It is an inland and upland county having eastward-draining valleys while taking in the moors of the Pennines. West Yorkshire came into exi ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

History

The first festival celebrated the opening of

Leeds Town Hall Leeds Town Hall is a 19th-century municipal building on The Headrow (formerly Park Lane), Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. Planned to include law courts, a council chamber, offices, a public hall, and a suite of ceremonial rooms, it was built be ...

Queen Victoria Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...

on 7 September 1858. A second festival was held in 1874, then it was held every three years until 1970. For the two festivals in the 1870s, Sir Michael Costa was principal conductor. For the next seven festivals, until 1898, the principal conductor was

Sir Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

King George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until his death in 1936. Born during the reign of his grandmother Que ...

was the festival's

patron Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...

in 1922; his daughter,

The Princess Royal Princess Royal is a style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been sev ...

, sister of

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

, and her

husband A husband is a male in a marital relationship, who may also be referred to as a spouse. The rights and obligations of a husband regarding his spouse and others, and his status in the community and in law, vary between societies and cultures, ...

also became patrons in anticipation of their wedding in 1922. From the 1920s, Princess Mary had attended the opening nights and many of the festival's performances, and later, with her son,

George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood George Henry Hubert Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood, (7 February 1923 – 11 July 2011), styled The Honourable George Lascelles before 1929 and Viscount Lascelles between 1929 and 1947, was a British classical music administrator and author. He ...

, and his wife, the Countess of Harewood, née Marion Stein, a former concert pianist. Lascelles was a noted music critic whose career included the role of artistic director of the Leeds Triennial Musical Festival (1958–74). In April 1953, members of the public were for the first time told by the festival's chairman, Sir George Martin, that they may not be permitted to attend the rehearsals of some of the performances. In 1949, Sir George, an ex- Lord Mayor of Leeds (1947), had been president of the Leeds Chamber of Commerce. Leeds woollen manufacturer and solicitor, Mr R. Noel Middleton, was a member of the Executive Committee of the Festival and, in 1937, 1947 and 1950, he was chairman of the Programme Committee. Middleton was also chairman of the Northern Philharmonic Orchestra, of which the Princess Royal was patron. The Northern Philharmonic Orchestra first played at the Leeds Festival in 1937.

Dissolution

The last Leeds Triennial Musical Festival was held in 1985. The

Leeds Festival Chorus The Leeds Festival Chorus is based in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. It has 160 singing members in soprano, alto, tenor and bass sections. Presenting classical choral music of a professional standard in Yorkshire and elsewhere, including at the B ...

, which was founded for the first festival, became independent in 1976, and continues to perform, broadcast and make recordings.

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History

Dissolution

References

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Further reading