Edinburgh International Festival 2014 Creates 'Soundbites'

With over 50 concerts to choose from at the Edinburgh International Festival, people often ask about what the music will sound like or which concert they would most enjoy.

To help Festival goers explore the concerts on offer, the Festival and Sinfini Music have been working on "SoundBite" podcasts, articles, films, opera cartoon strips, interviews with musicians and short filmed sessions to share and explain the music and performers featuring in this year's concert programme.

This weekend the Festival website throws its focus on the music and musicians at Edinburgh International Festival 2014 and guides visitors through this incredible free resource.

www.eif.co.uk/music

You can download a playlist, listen to artists explaining their choice of music and what it means, as well as sample music from the concerts to help you figure out whether Beethoven or Britten is more your cup of tea. There will also be competitions at eif.co.uk/music to win tickets to the spectacular Opening Concert.

Today we are adding Pavel Haas Quartet, four young players from the Czech Republic, sharing their music in a specially filmed short performance, which you can watch online ahead of their appearance at Queen's Hall this August.

And from tomorrow visitors online can enjoy a beautifully illustrated comic strip by William Elliot telling the story of Berlioz's epic and awe-inspiring opera Les Troyens (which takes a company of nearly 300 people to perform), while the composer's bold music is further explored in a podcast interview with music journalist Kate Molleson.

All these resources are free and available on both the Festival and Sinfini Music's sites. And at The Hub, home of the Edinburgh International Festival, we've installed a listening pod so those on the move and in the city can sample the podcasts, artists and music.

Sinfini Music's General Manager, Tina Poyser, said: "Our digital media partnership with the Festival is dedicated to breaking down barriers to classical music, and there's plenty more great content to come to get you excited about this year's stellar line-up of world class musicians."

BBC Radio 3 presenter Sara Mohr-Pietsch, who introduces many of the SoundBite podcasts, commented: "Artists, it turns out, are human beings. All too often we think of them as another species altogether, but when I started my professional life as an Edinburgh International Festival concert manager I discovered that they're not. All those years ago, working backstage at Usher Hall, I met some of the world's greatest musicians for the first time, and was struck by what lovely, down-to-earth people they were, despite the unusual lives they lead.

"In this series of podcasts, in which I introduce some of the music and performers you can hear at EIF 2014, I was really keen to hear their voices. Sometimes they talk about the friendships they have with collaborating musicians, or their excitement at performing in Edinburgh; sometimes they speak thoughtfully and in depth about the way they've put their programmes together.

"I hope each one gives you an insight into the musical world you'll be stepping into - and above all, a chance to meet some exceptionally lovely human beings."

Festival Director Jonathan Mills added: "That we have amazing artists stepping onto our stages every August is a given, but sometimes that's not enough to help people choose which of the many and varied concerts they should go to. Through this ground breaking partnership with Sinfini Music we are putting a wealth of samples, explanations direct from the artists, bite-sized and entertaining short video and sound clips online. We want to help guide people less familiar with live classical music and help them find the right concerts and events for them. The power and thrill of a live music experience is a risk worth taking and a discovery well worth making."

eif.co.uk/music

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