I write this with a mixture of sadness coupled with a sense of anticipation. Sadness that Iain Ledingham’s extraordinary tenure as Artistic Director of the Amersham Festival is drawing to a close, and excitement as we welcome his successor, Chris Hopkins, and look to the future of our much-loved Festival. Iain’s involvement for over 40 years has been marked by a selfless determination to make music accessible to as many people as possible. His own stellar career at the Royal Academy of Music reflects his exceptional musicianship, which he generously brought to Buckinghamshire by establishing the South Bucks Choral Society in 1980. He recognised the transformational benefits, joy and camaraderie of communal singing, taking singers with a wide range of ability, nurturing them and improving their skills. The end-product of his remarkable abilities has been choral singing of which the community can be really proud. In 1983 Iain set up the Amersham Festival of Music. Such was his leadership from the outset that the musicians whom he gathered together for the Festival were always keen to return. Amongst these were young musicians to whom he gave a platform from which to develop their careers. And, in demonstrating the value of music to the community, he attracted a significant bequest which now enables the Festival to offer bursaries to children for their musical studies. Over 100 young people have been supported by the Amersham Festival in this way. As he hands over the baton, he takes with him the immense gratitude and appreciation of the Amersham Festival Society for his immense contribution to music making in the community. His legacy will be a lasting one. All of which leads me now to welcome Chris Hopkins as only the second Artistic Director of the Festival in its 40-plus-year history! Chris brings with him a wide range of experience, most notably having conducted many performances for English National Opera as well as working with English Sinfonia and Orchestra of the City. He has ably developed these ensembles and their audiences over the years to positions of growth and stability through imaginative programming that balances classic repertoire with premieres, rediscoveries, commissions and special projects. Having moved to Chesham five years ago, Chris has already discovered what a wealth of musical talent and interest there is in Buckinghamshire, and he is excited by the prospect of developing the next phase of the Festival. We really look forward to what he has in store for us.