Hush – a smaller, quieter music festival – comes to East London this summer

by London-TV in Business

British summers are already packed with music festivals, so why does Simon Raymonde (Cocteau Twins, Bella Union Records) think we need another one? And can it really sustain itself without sponsorship or VIP zones, and with the audience seated rather than jammed in shoulder to shoulder?

It’s something Simon would be happy to discuss if you were interested in interviewing him about Hush Festival, the all-seated, sponsorship-free event taking place in East Ham from Wednesday 29 July to Sunday 2 August.

Co-founded by Simon and local residents Peter and Shabira Cassidy, Hush is inspired by slow movement, a cultural initiative which urges us to live more deliberately. It features stripped back performances by indie, folk, classical and jazz musicians, talks on awareness and meditation, and a series of brunches built around slow food and music, all in a setting surrounded by trees.

Simon first became aware of the slow movement in 1986, when he was on tour with the Cocteau Twins in Italy – where the initiative was born in reaction to the arrival of McDonald’s.

What was once a niche ideology is now entering the mainstream, as millions of us realise the need to push back against burnout, constant connectivity and the sense that cultural experiences must always be bigger, louder and faster.

As Simon puts it: “As city life seems to get noisier, more chaotic and hectic almost by the day, Hush comes along at a perfect time. We need alternatives and we want our communities to shine.”

Performers across the festival include Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Cat Le Bon, This Is The Kit, Scott Matthews, SOHN, anaiis, Vieux Farka Touré, Julianna Barwick and Mary Lattimore, Steve Gunn, Ashley Henry, John Francis Flynn and Gwenifer Raymond, alongside daily talks on awareness and mindfulness and a series of sound meditations.

In the run-up to the main event, there will be opera at sunset in Central Park on Wednesday 29 July, soundtracked by the Gasparo String Quartet, followed on Thursday 30 July by Syrian musician Maya Youssef and Egyptian multi-instrumentalist Joseph Tawadros. Across the weekend, Hush Brunches from 11.30am to 2pm will feature piano recitals and performances by the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.