How to apply
We are currently reviewing submitted proposals and putting the finishing touches to the 2027 Festival which will explore the theme of Secrets, Ciphers and Skytales.
Our 2028 theme working title is Out of Silence, and you can read more information below. Proposals for 2028 should be submitted via our Concert Proposal form but there is NO URGENCY TO DO SO. We will begin reviewing proposals towards the end of 2026.
BREMF's programming ethos and 2028 Festival theme
Our theme for 2028 is Out of Silence and the festival will take place in October 2028.
Before music, there is silence: an intake of breath, a moment of expectation. Silence may offer peace or contemplation, but it can also be unsettling, charged with tension, absence and the unknown.
In 2028, BREMF explores the powerful relationship between silence and sound. Composers across the centuries have used silence to heighten emotion, create suspense and give weight to what has just been heard or what is still to come.
Silence is never truly empty: the sounds of the surrounding world become the music. It also draws attention to the silence of listening, the shared stillness of an audience gathered together, each person listening alone yet collectively; creating an expectant silence.
Beginning in stillness, we invite audiences to listen differently: to the spaces between sounds, to what has been withheld and to what suddenly breaks through. As music fills the silence, it carries us out of the present and into other times and places.
Applying to perform at BREMF - general information
- The Festival takes place across several weekends in October each year.
- Proposals to perform in BREMF will only be considered if they are submitted via our concert proposal Google Form.
- We programme around specific themes for each Festival.
- Although we do programme young artists in the festival, we also run a full Emerging Artists scheme for singers and ensembles. For more information, please click here
- We are unlikely to take off-the-peg programmes unless they work within our theme. We often collaborate with ensembles to build programmes that will resonate with our themes and stimulate new ways of presenting and contextualising music.
- With no core funding, we operate on a tight budget. Proposals from ensembles based outside of the UK are likely to be more possible if they are subsidised or part of a funded tour that coincides with our festival dates.