Co-founded in 2009 by Artistic Director Wu Qian and Tessa Marchington (Festival Director 2009-19), the Surrey Hills International Music Festival is an annual gathering of world class musicians, showcasing the beautiful region of the Surrey Hills. The annual festival gives local music-lovers a chance to hear the very best classical performers right on their doorstep – this year including Tenebrae, The Julian Bliss Quintet, cellist Gary Hoffman and the Sitkovetsky Trio. Hosted in beautiful and intimate venues, each setting is carefully chosen to complement the festival programme, and allows audiences a very real sense of involvement and engagement with the musicians. 

Allianz Musical Insurance proudly continued its sponsorship of the festival this year, becoming the 2023 Young & Emerging Artists sponsor. This focused on the inclusion of two Young Artist Concerts in this year’s festival, which we were delighted to be able to attend in person. 

We’re very proud to have supported the 14^th season of Surrey Hills International Music Festival as the 2023 Young and Emerging Artists sponsor. It has been a real privilege to witness the exceptional young talent shaping the future of the classical music genre. It’s important to all of us at Allianz Musical Insurance that we support the UK music industry - working with our trusted partners to help musicians of any age, background and ability level, find and access to platforms where they can develop, perform and find support.

Julia Pearson, Surrey Hills International Music Festvial Chairman: From its earliest days, the festival has been committed to nurturing young artists and young audiences alongside the presentation of world-class performances in the Surrey Hills. Central to this commitment is our long-term support for the fantastic local String Scheme which provides free tuition and instruments to primary school pupils, and the regular performing opportunities we offer every year to young musicians. But as a small charitable organisation, there's always been a limit to the scope of what we can do within our own modest resources. So the support that we have received from Allianz Musical Insurance in recent years - and in particular this year as our dedicated Young & Emerging Artists Sponsor - has been absolutely invaluable in helping us to expand our outreach programme.