Music lovers can now use their smartphones to buy tickets for a top music festival.
They can download bar codes that will be scanned using a specially created app when they arrive at the North Wales International Music Festival at St Asaph Cathedral.
Organisers have teamed up with Brown Paper Tickets who also run the box office for a host of prestigious events, including the Edinburgh Festival.
According to Ann Atkinson (pictured), Artistic Director of NWIMF, it was an exciting development for the festival which is celebrating its 39th anniversary this year.
She said: “Festival goers will obviously still be able to book their tickets using more traditional methods but we felt that it was right to go with the technological flow.
“We have also launched our new website which has been designed to be very user friendly as well as being attractive on the eye.
“The main thing is that we want to make it as easy as possible for people to book their tickets.
“We have been selling tickets online for some time but being able to use a smartphone to buy tickets gives festival-goers an additional high tech option.
“So many people have smartphones these days that it seemed to be a very logical progression.
“It means that they can buy a ticket via the mobile site from wherever they are – even if they’re on top of a mountain so long as they have a signal.
“They will receive the ticket to their phone as a bar code which we will then scan when they arrive for the concert.
“I can vouch that it is extremely easy to do because I gave it a trial run and it was fantastic.
This year’s festival opens on September 24 and runs until October 1. The first concert features the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, who appeared in the very first festival and have returned many times since, and baritone Roderick Williams.
Strings feature strongly in the week’s programme, with artists including Welsh triple harp virtuoso Robin Huw Bowen, classical guitarist Dimitris Dekavallas, the ensemble Blazin’ Fiddles and the Vida Guitar Quartet along with the harp quarter, 4 Girls 4 Harps
In addition, Mid-Wales Opera are going to be performing the Puccini favourite, Madam Butterfly.
Among the other highlights are a recital by the world-class pianist Llyr Williams, from Rhos, near Wrexham, and a Portrait of Composer Dr Paul Mealor featuring Ensemble Cymru, Aberdeen University Chamber Choir and mezzo-soprano Ann Atkinson, who is also the Festival’s talented Artistic Director.
Dr Mealor, who shot to global fame thanks to the sensational Royal wedding anthem he wrote for Prince William and Kate Middleton, will also conduct a choral workshop for mixed choirs.
Unlike a number of other festivals which have struggled as a result of the economic downturn, the North Wales International Music Festival is going from strength to strength.
Audiences last year were up by 14 per cent and early signs show there is also a big demand for tickets already this year.
A £40,000 grant from the North Wales Regional Arts Lottery Fund has helped put the event on a sound financial footing.
Ann Atkinson added: “St Asaph Cathedral is the perfect acoustic environment to showcase our highly talented line-up.
“The cathedral has a very special acoustic – the combination of the stone and the wood creates something really magical somehow.”
“The interior of the Cathedral has changed often over the centuries and the configuration now seems to be just perfect.”
“But we are not confined to the cathedral because once again this year we will be reaching out to the community.
“As part of the community programme, we will be visiting schools to try and introduce new generations to the joys of classical music.
“Our educational links are an important element in making the festival such a special event in the cultural calendar of Wales.”
For more information about this year’s event which is being held between September 24 and October 1.and how to book tickets go to www.nwimf.com
