Swaledale Festival

Swaledale Festival is a joyful celebration of music, arts, creativity and walking in the stunning hills and dales of North Yorkshire.

Founded in 1972, Swaledale Festival takes place each year in and around the three most northerly Yorkshire Dales - Swaledale, Wensleydale, and Arkengarthdale - beginning on the late May Bank Holiday and running for two wonderful weeks.

Over 15 days, we present a kaleidoscope of exceptional music, alongside compelling visual art, film, literature, creative workshops, and a wealth of guided walks that explore the rich scenery, culture, and stories of the northern Dales.

The Festival takes place in an array of locations across the stunning Yorkshire Dales National Park and surrounding area. Venues include tiny chapels, charming churches, homely village halls, arts centres – and of course the great outdoors.

Our Festival is locally rooted and could only happen here – while globally minded and inclusive in its ambition.

Home-grown, international, and rising young artists fill our stages with creativity and collaboration. Audiences from across the region and beyond come to enjoy great art, good company and the excitement of discovering something new.

The eclectic programme includes world-class classical concerts, folk, jazz, brass, and global music. There are performances by fine young graduate musicians, as well as poetry, film, dance, drama, comedy, family events, talks, workshops, masterclasses, art exhibitions, themed guided walks - and usually a few surprises (think steam train trips, bat watches, archaeology and astronomy sessions!). The festival also celebrates the extraordinary landscape, stories, and communities of the northern Dales and brings high-quality arts to care home residents and to young people in isolated rural areas.

In 2023, Swaledale Festival proudly announced its first Patrons: writer, lecturer, and arts advocate Kadiatu Kanneh-Mason and antiques expert Ronnie Archer-Morgan.

Over the years the programme has included luminous artists and ensembles such as John Williams, Dame Emma Kirkby, The Hallé, Royal Northern Sinfonia, Peter Donohoe, Stephen Hough, Alexander Markov, Red Priest, James Gilchrist, Iestyn Davies, Sheku Kanneh-Mason, London Mozart Players, The King's Singers, VOCES8, the Carducci, Ligeti, Brodsky, Villiers, and Skampa string quartets, Black Dyke Band, Antonio Forcione, Niamh Ní Charra, Clare Martin, Marie Schreer, Martin Taylor, Kathryn Tickell, Matilda Lloyd, Fretwork, Ruby Hughes, Shiva Feshareki, Amjad Ali Khan, Martin Simpson, Lau, Adel Salameh, Seckou Keita, Simon Armitage, The Young'uns, and Aurora Percussion Duo.

The festival has also commissioned new works from leading composers and artists such as Sally Beamish, Sir Richard Rodney Bennett, Roxanna Panufnik, Jonathan Dove, Alan Plater, and Michael Kusz, while providing a vital platform for local performers and creators.

Rooted in this remarkable landscape yet open to the world, Swaledale Festival is a creative gathering like no other. Come among the late-spring wildflowers, walk the dales, and find your own moments of wonder, music, and connection in this special place.