Carpenter Holidays

Culture & Leisure
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About

Stephen Carpenter has enjoyed a 40-year career in orchestral management. In the 1980s he worked with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra before moving to London as Chief Executive of the City of London Sinfonia from 1988 to 2007, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment from 2007 to 2014, and Chineke! from 2015 to 2023. Since 2014 Stephen has developed his passion for Felix Mendelssohn who was inspired by his journey through Scotland in 1829 to write two of his best-loved works, the Hebrides Overture and Scottish Symphony. Stephen’s research into Mendelssohn’s Scottish journey can be seen at mendelssohninscotland.com.

Following his Mendelssohn research, Stephen has planned and led several successful “Mendelssohn in Scotland" holidays since September 2015. This holiday goes to all the beautiful venues in Scotland which Mendelssohn visited nearly 200 years ago, starting and ending in Edinburgh, and taking in Abbotsford (the home of Sir Walter Scott, who was one of the main reasons why Mendelssohn went to Scotland), the Highlands, Fort William, Oban and the Islands of Mull, Iona (see Iona Abbey above) and Staffa (with its spectacular Fingal’s Cave) and Loch Lomond. Reactions to the “Mendelssohn in Scotland Holiday” are included among the testimonials and the holiday will be repeated in October 2024 and May 2025.