Bath Festival Orchestra Renamed The Chromatica Orchestra

The newly renamed ensemble will make its debut at London’s Battersea Arts Centre this October

Based in London, the Bath Festival Orchestra has rebranded and renamed itself the Chromatica Orchestra, and will make its debut at the Battersea Arts Centre on October 8, 2024. 

The Chromatica Orchestra focuses on talented early-career musicians under the direction of emerging conductors; the 2024/25 season will also feature two inaugural Emerging Conductor Fellows, Charlotte Politi and Tess Jackson.

Politi was a Fellow Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra for 2023/24 and is the Constant Lambert Associate with the Royal Ballet; Jackson is currently Associate Conductor of the National Youth Orchestra.

For Chromatica’s debut, Politi will lead a program including Barber’s Violin Concerto with Kristine Balanas as soloist, de Falla’s El amor brujo with Georgian mezzo-soprano Natalia Kutateladze, plus music by Copland and Prokofiev. 

On November 11, Jackson will conduct Chromatica in Strauss’ Horn Concerto No. 1 with soloist Ben Goldscheider and works by Butterworth and Shostakovich at Cadogan Hall.

“I am thrilled to welcome Charlotte and Tess as our inaugural emerging conductors,” said Peter Manning, Choramtica’s founding artistic director. “Both are very exciting artists who have quickly gained recognition for their exceptional talents. I am confident that their contributions will not only inspire our musicians but also resonate deeply with our audiences.”

Additionally, the ensemble has welcomed a new executive director in Alison Tedbury, who was formerly Interim CEO at the Academy of St Martin’s in the Fields, and worked as Orchestra Manager at The Royal Opera House.

“I’m excited to join Chromatica Orchestra for its inaugural season,” Tedbury said. “This is an organization that pushes boundaries, and its inventiveness and aspiration are together a draw and a testament to the whole team. I look forward to shaping its exciting future.”

Chromatica Orchestra’s upcoming projects include Britten’s Les illuminations with tenor Robin Tritschler in February 2025. Jackson will also conduct Saint-Saens’ Carnival of the Animals in an interactive performance, where school-age musicians from across the country will play side by side with the orchestra on stage and in rehearsals. For this initiative, the orchestra is collaborating with the David Ross Education Trust and Music in Secondary Schools Trust.