About us

Forty years ago, in the autumn of 1967, the first steps were taken to start a Festival in the twelfth century church of St Michael and All Angels, in Lower Machen. Then, as now, Lower Machen itself was a rural idyll – just nineteen houses (no shop, not even a pub!) with an incomparably beautiful small church, blessed with a perfect acoustic. In the intervening 41 years, little has changed and this year sees our 41st Festival.

We’ve moved a long way from the Festival’s early concerts (often ambitious with a rare spirit of adventure), but our aims remain the same – the highest possible quality of music-making in an atmosphere that brings together what a member of our audience recently described as “a unique atmosphere, in which setting and music complement each other perfectly – the ideal way to spend a summer’s evening.”

Midsummer has always been a time for celebration and we hope that you’ll take up our invitation to leave behind the four walls of your home and make the most of the long days and evenings that stretch before us. This year we are looking forward to a wonderful array of concerts at St Michael’s Church and beyond, with festival events also taking place at The Riverfront, Newport and a clutch of local libraries. We look forward to extending a warm welcome to you.

Please note: The gardens of Machen House will be open before and during the interval of each concert by kind permission of Mrs Mary Adams.

The creation and development of this website was made possible by project funding from The Arts Council of Wales

Lower Machen Festival is a registered charity and company limited by guarantee
Registered in Wales No 3739816 Charity No: 1075159