Play the Field was a great success in 2009, thousands of people from near and far enjoying two-days of world-class music in a wonderfully friendly festival atmosphere - BUT we now need a new venue so we can grow the festival in future years.

Play the Field will not therefore be taking place this year but will be back in the future and in the meantime we wish you all the best for 2010!

Don't forget to enter your email address in the box at the top of the page to join our 2010 festival mailing list.

If you're interested in sponsoring next years event or would like to discuss the options for private hospitality we would love to hear from you. Please click here to contact us.

Play the Field is a new breed of world-class orchestral festival backed by Deborah Meaden from Dragons' Den and hosted by world renowned conductor Charles Hazlewood, from the rural splendour of his Somerset farm, near Glastonbury.

At each concert Charles presented an iconic piece of classical music with one of his orchestras; the London based symphony orchestra Excellent Device! and the period instrument orchestra Army of Generals, fresh from their starring role alongside Charles in his recent BBC2 TV series.

Saturday night's concert was Holst's The Planets but with a contemporary twist from Charles’s All Star band of Glastonbury ‘regulars’ including Will Gregory (Goldfrapp) and Adrian Utley (Portishead). On Sunday, there was a relaxing afternoon discovering the delights on offer at our local food fair whilst listening to the Army of Generals and Russian violin virtuoso Alexander Sitkovetsky rehearsing for their truly breathtaking evening performance of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons.

As well as world class, open air classical music concerts there was a Global Food Village offering an eclectic choice of quality food and drink to enjoy in a relaxed, friendly and open environment.

"I just wanted to email to say we had a wonderful Saturday evening with you, we thought that the being 'in it' and watching two stages was fantastic and the mix of classical and contemporary was electric. Please do it again...soon....! Many thanks once again"
Nina Gronw-Lewis

"Just a quick note to say we thought Saturday night was fantastic - the music, the atmosphere and, luckily, the weather. I'm a massive fan of Glastonbury Festival and had a great time there this year. However, I don't think I enjoyed a three-hour chunk of it as much as Play the Field."
Matthew Manning

"We attended the Saturday night performance of Play the Field and just wanted to let you know that we had the most wonderful evening listening to the fantastic music.  We felt very privileged that we had the opportunity to come to this event and especially as it is so close to where we live! 

Everything about the evening was perfect - the atmosphere, the facilities, and the insight into the music that Charles gave was fascinating and of course the weather couldn't have been better!  Thank you also to the astronomers and their telescopes!"

Please Please Please make it an annual event!"
Hugh and Elaine Graham

"I just wanted to say that we had a wonderful time on Sunday. It was a fabulous event and I am sure everyone must be so pleased with the way it went."
Sarah Ford

"I went on Saturday for Holst and my mother went for the Sunday. We both loved it - especially the contrast between the rural setting and the superb music. Charles was so informative and welcoming and the musicians were wonderful. The sound was excellent too and the food/drink stalls a real bonus."
Liz Leshon

Below you will find a small selection of images taken at Play the Field. To view the entire gallery please click here to visit the festival images website, click on the Gallery 2009 link and select Play the Field from the drop down festival menu. If you would like copies of any of the pictures please contact Festival Images and they will be happy to supply you with prints for just £5 each.