Chorlton Arts Festival: On the Fringes

Among its art and performance programming, Chorlton Arts Festival offers a few tasty musical morsels. We 'ave a gander

Preview by Jacky Hall | 03 May 2013

In the midst of all its artisan foodstuffs, South Manchester's leafy and tram-accessible suburb of Chorlton hosts an annual arts festival, now in its 13th year (and this year held 17-26 May). As you'd expect from a community-led event, live music throughout the 10-day festival – which also features a mix of visual art, performance and comedy – is diverse. As festival manager Ella Byford says: “We hope there's something for everyone” – and indeed there is, from Irish music knees-ups in The Beech Inn to recitals for mums and dads in local schools. We picked a few events more up The Skinny's street.

First up is the festival launch night, featuring journalist, author, DJ and all-round Manc type Dave Haslam in conversation with I Am Kloot frontman John Bramwell (Wilbraham St Ninian's Church, 17 May). Bramwell will surely have many stories to share, from tales of his former life as performer and Granada television presenter Johnny Dangerously to booking bands for Northern Quarter venue Night and Day in the 90s.

Another highlight looks to be Chorlton Radiophonic Workshop in a performance of analogue synths and bleepy-bloopy machines that promises to be somewhere between a psychedelic Summer of Love-era happening and Doctor Who theme tune (St John's RC Church, 23 May). Elsewhere, _scape and The Noise Upstairs collaborate for Fuse, an evening of improvised live electronics (St Werburgh's Church, 25 May). This will definitely be an esoteric event, as there is an underscore in one of the entities' names.

Gigs at St Clements Church include Brighton's brooding Esben and the Witch (24 May) with support from Mancunian krautrockers Ghosting Season, and, on 25 May, New Yorkers Jeffrey Lewis and Peter Stampfel with their lo-fi folk and comic book art. Londoners Toy – all big hair, FX pedals and hype – play at the same venue the following night, supported by local lasses PINS.

The classical world gets fair representation, with the Hallé string soloists Lyn Fletcher (violin), Nick Trygstad (cello) and Roberto Carrillo-Garcia (double bass) performing works by Rossini, Ravel and Bach in the afternoon at St Werburgh's Church on 26 May, and Royal Northern College of Music alumni Kwangho Lee (viola) and David BaMaung (piano) appearing as a duo (St Werburgh's Church, 24 May).

Tactfully rounding up the programme on Sunday 26 May is an all-dayer (well, 1-5pm, at least) at long-reigning folk and cheese hangout Dulcimer, which always provides a good excuse for a mid-afternoon pint. Acts for a suitably lazy end-of-weekend finale include Liverpudlian daydreamers Science of the Lamps and bearded folk-blues peddlars Meadow.

Chorlton Arts Festival, various venues, Chorlton, Manchester, 17-26 May, Over half of the events are free http://www.chorltonartsfestival.com