Musical Festivals Database

, particularly as a celebration of Handel’s oratorios (particularly Messiah), festivals reflected contemporary British tastes with increasing selections from opera in the late 18th century and instrumental music by the mid-19th. Festivals also became an important proving ground for composers, since they offered regular commissions (from the 1830s forward), and the largest immediate audience that many could hope for, until the advent of radio broadcasting. This page will serve as a site to share news about the MFD.