"It'S unusual if not unique for a programme to be released so early," said the director of music at Hereford Cathedral, Geraint Bowen, referring to the advance information about next year's Hereford Three Choirs Festival.

"It's very good discipline to have the artistic programme in place so early, but it's the tip of the iceberg in reality.

"The actual logistics of getting everyone to the right place at the right time will take a lot of work."

Elgar's The Kingdom is the big cornerstone of the week (August 6-11, 2006), significant because it will be the 100th anniversary of its composition.

Hereford Choral Society will perform the piece - not often heard - in March.

"Gerontius comes up most often, but The Kingdom is the last work that Elgar conducted at the Three Choirs in 1933," said Geraint.

Furthering the festival's tradition of commissioning new work, Hereford will premiere James MacMillan's Sun-Dogs - a highly-sought after composer who should prove a big draw (August 10). He will also conduct.

Geraint is very excited about bringing the National Youth Orchestra of Wales to the festival, who bowled him over when they visited Hereford Cathedral last summer.

They will play Mahler's Symphony No 5 - one of Geraint's personal favourites and, to his knowledge, the first time it will be performed in Hereford.

Building on 2003's community choral performance The Gathering Wave, the festival incorporates it into the cathedral for 2006 as a curtain-raiser featuring Denise Leigh, winner of Channel 4's Operatunity.

In addition to new work, Geraint is also keen to revisit previously commissioned work and John McCabe's colourful 1970 commission Notturni ed Alba will be performed at the Monday evening concert.

Anniversaries being celebrated include 150 years since Schumann died and a variety of different genres of his work will be performed including the wonderful and quite rare choral work, Paradies und Peri, which will be conducted by Sydney Opera House's Richard Hickox.

The Three Cathedral Choirs will perform Mozart's Requiem, which offers a slightly rarer opportunity to hear a slightly smaller scale production with period instruments - played by the very highly thought of Cheltenham-based Corelli Orchestra.

Booking lines open in March.