Planning my cultural calendar for 2025

I’m settled in Saumur from January-on for some months, hoping to find and close on a house. But I can’t just sit in one place! I’ve been busy putting things on my calendar and find a lot to look forward to.

When I started my vagabond (“happily homeless”) interval in early 2022, my first stop in Europe was Vienna, where I was going to hear Vittorio Grigolo in Carmen. Now, not quite a full three years later, I’m heading back to Vienna to hear Vittorio G in Il Trovatore. A couple of nights later, I’ll get to enjoy Fidelio, which Beethoven composed and premiered in Vienna.

I’ve booked a couple of events at Saumur’s theater, which seems to host just one-night-only productions. There are some short concert events I expect to attend as well. I’m very curious about the shows and events here, so am looking forward to these first experiences.

Another first for me: I’ll go to Versailles – where I’ve only been once, and when 11 years old – for two concerts this June. It will be back-to-back evenings of Bach cantatas directed by Sir John Eliot Gardiner. (Yes, Bach-to-Bach evenings.) I was terribly disappointed by the cancellation of his week of Beethoven symphonies at St Martin-in-the-Fields last year, and have been wanting to hear more concerts led by him. Since Bach is perhaps his greatest specialty, and I love Bach’s cantatas, this seems the highlight of the year for me. And in Versailles, yet! What a setting.

Aside from classical music events, I’m looking at wine fairs. I’ll be at the festival in Thouars for the third year running. The summer festival in Langon might not work out as I’ve just realized that backs onto American Labor Day and I might be in the States then. But – play it by ear. In the meantime, I’m sure to add more to my calendar and this page.

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