CLASSICAL Cleveland, one of the region's smallest music groups, has announced a season of 11 concerts running from February to the summer break.

There will be four lunchtime recitals and a full length evening concert at Stokesley, four lunchtime recitals at Redcar and two Sunday afternoon concerts at Saltburn.

Concerts at Stokesley are generally on the first Thursday of the month, those at Redcar on the second Wednesday. Both venues provide light lunches prior to the concerts.

Concerts at Saltburn are on Sunday afternoons, filling the musical void while the outdoor bandstand concerts hibernate until after Easter.

Stokesley welcomes the return of the outstanding guitarist James Girling, this time partnered with London-based flautist Meera Maharaj; together they are en route to the Swaledale Festival a day or so later.

The Italian guitar maestro Giulio Tampalini returns yet again in June – a guaranteed treat for all his North-East fans. Stokesley opens the season with a return visit by the outstanding Russian pianist Yulia Vershinina playing Schubert's Sonata in B-flat major on Thursday 1st February.

With the exception of Croatian guitarist Antonio Persak, Redcar presents an "oriental season" with a violinist and three pianists from China.

The concerts at Redcar's Tuned In Centre begin with Lu Liu, violin and Tianyang Han, piano playing Shostakovich's Violin Concert no.1 and Saint Saëns' Caprice in the form of a Waltz (op.52, no.6).

Saltburn's season opens with the harp and cello duo of Sarah Paterson and Jeremy Harbottle, both well known throughout the region as ensemble and orchestral musicians. The following month Azusa Tanner, a pianist already well known to North-East audiences plays music by Chopin and Shostakovich.

Tickets at all the daytime concerts are priced at £7.00 and available at the door of the concert venues. All the details are online at sotherans.wix.com/classical-cleveland.