Where folk, traditional and
early music meet
- the common grounds
Welcome to HISS 2025
After the resurgence we enjoyed last year, with more than 80 participants in 2024, we are pleased to announce that HISS 2025 will be packed with the usual range of exciting musical adventures!
We look forward to welcoming you all at HISS 2025 18 - 22 August
with more new friends for this year’s exciting course!
Bookings for 2025 are now open!
18th - 22nd August 2025
We are delighted to welcome back
Robert Hollingworth,
as our Guest Tutor for 2025
Following last year’s splendid workshop day exploring the sumptuous polychoral Missa Tu Es Petrus by Orazio Benevoli, Robert will this time lead a day on Baroque music.
Details are currently being finalised, but this will again be an “all comers” day for singers and players at HISS
We are delighted to welcome Claire McIntyre as sackbut tutor for 2025. Claire studied sackbut and trombone and obtained a Bachelor degree at the University of Birmingham, having participated in early music courses with Susan Addison and Wim Becu she then developed her specialisation as a sackbut player with a Master degree at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, Switzerland, under the tutelage of Charles Toet.
In 2012 she was appointed to her current post at Versailles Conservatoire where she teaches sackbut, trombone and euphonium and directs two of the conservatoire’s early music ensembles. She has created and co-directed several projects involving conservatoire students and external partners including the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, the Sorbonne University, and Guildhall School of Music and Drama. She also teaches at the annual early brass course at the Festival du Monastier, France.
Claire McIntyre performs with many specialised ensembles throughout Europe, including The Orchestra of the Eighteenth Century, Les Traversées Baroques, B’Rock, Ensemble Irini, Concerto Palatino, La Chapelle Rhénane, Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra, La Fonte Musica, Collegium Vocale Gent, Les Talens Lyriques, Vox Luminis, Gli Angeli Genève, Concerto Scirocco, Abendmusiken Basel, Freiburger Barockorchester and Concerto Köln. She has also performed at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre in London.
Please note: the website will be edited and updated in the coming weeks as we prepare for HISS 2025.
Of course, 2025 marks the 500th anniversary of the birth of Palestrina. We are again looking for plenty of singers, to undertake some of the double choir works. Also, the music of Mikolaj Zielenski, born 50 years later in 1575, with a 12 part (3 choirs) Magnificat with voices and instruments. He was born in Płock, in modern day Poland, about 100km west of Warsaw. Like many composers of the period his music was published in Venice. Two volumes of his sacred works, totalling 122 pieces, were published by Vincentius in Venice in 1611.
Watch out for updates to our plans here in the next couple of months!