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Dartington 100: Beauty is Ours with Dartington Community Choir
Celebrate the legacy of the original Dartington Community Choir's founder, Imogen Holst.
Dartington Community Choir celebrates a century of music at Dartington with a programme of works composed by Imogen Holst and others – opera, folk songs and much more. Join the choir in bringing Dartington’s musical history to life on a summer’s evening.
When Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst bought the Dartington Hall Estate in 1925 their vision was for a place of creativity, change and community. They welcomed all manner of distinguished people in the arts and sciences from around the world to Dartington, to share new ideas, as well as encouraging involvement by the local community.
And so, it was in 1942 that Imogen Holst arrived in Dartington and three years later she set to work on an elaborate puppet opera to be performed in Dartington Hall. This was to be a celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the Elmhirsts’ acquisition of the Dartington Estate and was inspired by their collection of rare puppets. Her librettist, the flamboyant Beryl de Zoete, encouraged the use of folk songs and exoticism, and “Young Beichan” was indeed performed in the Great Hall. However, that was its only performance before the scores were lost.
Then in 2024, DCC’s Director of Music and our Concert Manager re-discovered a handwritten score in the Dartington archives; two scenes from the opera have been transcribed and DCC can now bring this music back to life in celebration of the Elmhirsts’ vision, and to honour the legacy of the original Dartington choir’s founder, Imogen Holst.
Dartington Community Choir celebrates a century of music at Dartington with a programme of works composed by Imogen Holst and others – opera, folk songs and much more. Join the choir in bringing Dartington’s musical history to life on a summer’s evening.
When Dorothy and Leonard Elmhirst bought the Dartington Hall Estate in 1925 their vision was for a place of creativity, change and community. They welcomed all manner of distinguished people in the arts and sciences from around the world to Dartington, to share new ideas, as well as encouraging involvement by the local community.
And so, it was in 1942 that Imogen Holst arrived in Dartington and three years later she set to work on an elaborate puppet opera to be performed in Dartington Hall. This was to be a celebration of the twentieth anniversary of the Elmhirsts’ acquisition of the Dartington Estate and was inspired by their collection of rare puppets. Her librettist, the flamboyant Beryl de Zoete, encouraged the use of folk songs and exoticism, and “Young Beichan” was indeed performed in the Great Hall. However, that was its only performance before the scores were lost.
Then in 2024, DCC’s Director of Music and our Concert Manager re-discovered a handwritten score in the Dartington archives; two scenes from the opera have been transcribed and DCC can now bring this music back to life in celebration of the Elmhirsts’ vision, and to honour the legacy of the original Dartington choir’s founder, Imogen Holst.
Monday 7 July
The Great Hall
Dartington Estate
Totnes Devon TQ9 6EL
7.30pm, Monday 7 July 2025Great Hall, Dartington
£15 | Under 16s £7.50
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