A musical classic that has introduced generations of children to the sounds of an orchestra is returning to North Wales to mark its 90th anniversary.

Sergei Prokofiev's much-loved Peter and the Wolf will be performed at St Asaph Cathedral on Thursday, September 17, as part of this year's North Wales International Music Festival.

The performance will combine live orchestral music, storytelling and British Sign Language interpretation, with acclaimed NEW Sinfonia conducted by Robert Guy and Classic FM presenter and former BBC newsreader Zeb Soanes providing the narration.

First performed in 1936, Peter and the Wolf was specifically written as a musical introduction to the orchestra for children. Each character in the story is represented by a different instrument, allowing young audiences to hear and recognise their distinctive sounds.

Peter is represented by the strings, the bird by the flute, the duck by the oboe, the cat by the clarinet, Peter's grandfather by the bassoon and the wolf by the French horn.

Prof Paul Mealor, Artistic Director of the North Wales International Music Festival, said the work had remained popular because of the way it combines a compelling story with an introduction to orchestral music.

“Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf is a renowned musical introduction to the orchestra for children,” he said.

The St Asaph performance will also have a distinctly Welsh flavour, with three newly commissioned works receiving their premieres.

The pieces have been inspired by three endangered species found in North Wales – the red squirrel, pine marten and Snowdon leaf beetle.

They form part of this year's festival theme, Macrocosm: Music and Conservation, which explores the relationship between music, the natural world and efforts to protect the environment.

Prof Mealor said the festival would examine the interconnectedness of people, nature and the wider environment.

“Scientists from all over the world have extensively documented the role that music and the arts can play in supporting and encouraging the preservation of our natural environments,” he said.

“We seek to explore these beneficial features for our environment in a specifically Welsh context through a series of concerts, workshops and conversations.”

Zeb Soanes, who is returning to St Asaph after appearing at last year's festival, said he was looking forward to bringing the famous story to a live audience.

“I was enchanted by St Asaph Cathedral on my first visit to last year’s festival and cannot wait to return to narrate Prokofiev’s timeless Peter and the Wolf – the perfect way to introduce children to a live orchestra – celebrating its 90th year,” he said.

Soanes is a familiar voice to radio listeners through his work presenting on Classic FM. He spent 25 years with the BBC, where he became a well-known Radio 4 newsreader and the voice of the Shipping Forecast, as well as presenting the BBC Proms on television.

He has also worked extensively as a concert presenter and narrator with orchestras, ensembles and choirs across the UK.

Prokofiev's musical tale has enjoyed extraordinary longevity since its premiere at a children's concert in Moscow in 1936.

It has subsequently been arranged and performed by orchestras and ensembles around the world, while Walt Disney produced his own adaptation in 1946.

The North Wales International Music Festival performance will surround Peter and the Wolf with other familiar orchestral favourites, including Grieg's Morning and In the Hall of the Mountain King from Peer Gynt, Ravel's Tom Thumb from Mother Goose and Rimsky-Korsakov's lively Flight of the Bumblebee.

The concert is just one of a series of events taking place during this year's festival.

The festival opens on September 10 with international opera star Sir Bryn Terfel, who will perform a selection of favourite songs while sharing stories from his celebrated career.

The following day, The Gesualdo Six, regarded as one of Britain's leading a cappella groups, will perform music from their latest album, Wishing Tree.

Young musicians will also be prominent, with the Pendine Young Musician of Wales Grand Final taking place on September 16.

The competition brings together talented young musicians from across Wales, competing for £4,000 in prize money and the Pendine Trophy.

The judging panel will include Professor Helena Gaunt, Principal of the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, alongside Iwan Llewelyn-Jones and Alun Jones.

There will also be a showcase for young musicians from the North Wales Music Cooperative, following their performances around the Royal Maundy service at St Asaph Cathedral last year.

The service, attended by King Charles III and Queen Camilla, marked the first time in 800 years that the historic ceremony had been held in North Wales.

Another major highlight will be the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, conducted by Tianyi Lu, with harpist Alis Huws.

Their programme will include the premiere of a harp concerto by Cameron Biles-Liddell, alongside Vaughan Williams' The Lark Ascending and Beethoven's Sixth Symphony.

The festival will conclude with a choral concert bringing together Anglesey-based Encor and Cardiff choir Hen Nodiant. The two choirs have long been rivals in National Eisteddfod competition but will perform together for the first time.

The festival has been supported by the Arts Council of Wales and Colwinston Charitable Trust, with additional backing from Pendine Park through the Pendine Arts and Community Trust, Scops Arts Trust, TÅ· Cerdd, St Asaph City Council and Salisburys Chartered Accountants.

The NEW Sinfonia concert is being sponsored by long-term festival supporter Sue Last, who said the festival had played an important role in the orchestra's development.

The festival's return to St Asaph comes after the cathedral attracted international attention last year when it hosted the Royal Maundy service.

This time, however, the focus will be on music, wildlife and one of the world's most familiar introductions to the orchestra – as Peter, his animal friends and a rather troublesome wolf arrive in North Wales for their 90th anniversary.

Tickets and further details about the festival programme and the Pendine Young Musician of Wales competition are available online at https://nwimf.com.

Tickets are also available from Cathedral Frames, St Asaph - 07471 318723 (Weds - Fri, 10 - 4) and Theatr Clwyd - 01352 344101 (Mon - Sat, 10 - 6).