Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto, Tchaikovsky’s Fifth Symphony, and a UK premiere from Julia Adolphe. Big emotions and natural wonders from Kristiina Poska and the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
Julia Adolphe Underneath the Sheen
Sergei RachmaninoffPiano Concerto No. 2 in C minor
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 5
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Kristiina Poska conductor
Gabriela Montero piano
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Tarmo Peltokoski
Feel the energy of Rautavaara’s joyously rhythmic concerto, and journey to Wagner’s fantastical world of gods, giants and river-maidens.
Einojuhani RautavaaraPiano Concerto No 1
Richard Wagner arr Henk de VliegerThe Ring: An Orchestral Adventure
London Symphony Orchestra
Tarmo Peltokoski conductor
Yuja Wang piano
Event
Classical music
Fretwork with Ian Bostridge & Elizabeth Kenny
Tenor Ian Bostridge, lutenist Elizabeth Kenny, and viol consort Fretwork delve into the timeless melancholy and beauty of John Dowland’s music, paired with a modern reflection by Adrian Williams.
Works to include lute solos and songs by John Dowland (1563 - 1626), such as Flow my tears, In darkness let me dwell and Lachrimæs, and Adrian Williams' Teares to Dreams (2004) inspired by Dowland's pavans.
Ian Bostridgetenor
Elizabeth Kennylute
Fretwork viol consort- Emilia Benjamin, Jonathan Rees, Joanna Levine, Sam Stadlen, Richard Boothby
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra: Half Six Fix – Laura Bowler
Kick-start your evening with a 60-minute Half Six Fix concert. Introduced by the performers, with screens in the hall to bring you closer to the action.
Laura BowlerThe White Book (UK premiere)
London Symphony Orchestra
Barbara Hannigansoprano and presenter
Bar Avniconductor and presenter
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Barbara Hannigan
New music by Laura Bowler preludes Ligeti’s ethereal, dreamlike soundworld and Richard Strauss’s colossal, awe-inspiring homage to Nietzsche.
Laura BowlerThe White Book*
György LigetiLontano
Richard StraussAlso sprach Zarathustra
London Symphony Orchestra
Barbara Hanniganconductor & soprano
Bar Avniconductor*
Event
Classical music
Oramo conducts Brahms' Second Symphony
Sakari Oramo pairs flair and exoticism with idyllic cheer in this dual outing of Romantic masterpieces: Saint-Saëns’ fifth piano concerto and Brahms’ Second Symphony.
Event
Classical music
Academy of Ancient Music: Gambarini: English Impresaria
Elegance, exuberance, and one remarkable woman: Academy of Ancient Music travels to Georgian London and the lost world of musical innovator Elisabetta da Gambarini.
Programme to include music written for and by Elisabetta da Gambarini
Academy of Ancient Music
Bojan Čičićdirector & violin
Mhairi Lawsonsoprano
Event
Classical music
Britten Sinfonia: Recycling Concerto
Nature and conservation are at the heart of this uplifting programme of orchestral works.
Einojuhani RautavaaraCantus Arcticus
Ludwig van BeethovenSymphony No 6 Pastoral
Gregor L MayrhoferRecycling Concerto
Vivi Vassilevapercussion
Gregor L Mayrhofer conductor
Britten Sinfonia
Event
Classical music
Stravinsky's Firebird
A magical bird, a dream of England, and the sheer magic of pianist Yeol Eum Son, as Sakari Oramo and the BBC Symphony Orchestra bring a blaze of colour to the Barbican.
Judith Weir The Welcome Arrival of Rain
Béla Bartók Piano Concerto No. 3
Gerald Finzi Eclogue
Igor Stravinsky Firebird Suite (1945)
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Sakari Oramoconductor
Yeol Eum Son piano
Event
Classical musicContemporary music
Hildur Guðnadóttir & Friends: Where to From
Academy award-winning composer Hildur Guðnadóttir, known for her film scores to Chernobyl, Tar and The Joker, makes a rare appearance on stage to perform her new project,Where to From.
Hildur GuðnadóttirWhere to from
Hildur Guðnadóttircello/vocals
Event
Classical music
Tansy Davies: Passion of Mary Magdalene
The third and final work in a cycle of commissions with the Dunedin Consort, British composer Tansy Davies’ Passion of Mary Magdalene receives its premiere at the Barbican.
Tansy DaviesPassion of Mary Magdalene (World premiere of Barbican co-commission)
Dunedin Consort
John Buttdirector
Anna DennisMary Magdalene
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra: Half Six Fix – Dvořák
Kick-start your evening with a 60-minute Half Six Fix concert. Introduced by the performers, with screens in the hall to bring you closer to the action.
Antonín DvořákSymphony No 9 From the New World
London Symphony Orchestra
Anja Bihlmaierconductor and presenter
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Anja Bihlmaier
An American dream: Dvořák’s ode to the US and Bernstein’s gritty portrait of New York frame a new concerto.
Leonard BernsteinSymphonic Dances from ‘West Side Story’
Lowell LiebermannFlute Concerto No 2 (UK premiere)
Antonín DvořákSymphony No 9, ‘From the New World’
London Symphony Orchestra
Anja Bihlmaier conductor
Gareth Davies flute
Event
Classical music
The Tallis Scholars: Mysteries & Miracles
Performed by the world-renowned Tallis Scholars, this programme explores music inspired by miraculous events in the life of Jesus, as told through the works of a diverse range of composers.
Giovanni Gabrieli O magnum mysterium
Tomás Luis de VictoriaMissa O magnum mysterium - Kyrie & Gloria
Giaches de Wert Egressus Jesus
Tomás Luis de VictoriaMissa O magnum mysterium - Credo
Judith Weir Ave Regina Caelorum
Tomás Luis de Victoria Missa O magnum mysterium - Sanctus & Agnus
Thomas Tallis Videte miraculum
Jacobus Gallus Mirabile mysterium
Francisco Guerrero Maria Magdalena
Arvo Pärt Tribute to Caesar
Virgencita
The Tallis Scholars
Peter Phillips director
Event
Classical music
Evgeny Kissin in Recital
Celebrated pianist Evgeny Kissin sweeps us across musical landscapes, revealing the vast breadth of the piano’s expressive range including works by Beethoven, Chopin, Schumann and Liszt.
Ludwig van Beethoven Piano Sonata No 7 in D major
Frederic ChopinMazurkas No 27, 29, 35, 39 and 51
Robert SchumannKreisleriana
Franz LisztHungarian Rhapsody No 12
Evgeny Kissinpiano
Event
Classical music
Arcangelo: St Matthew Passion
The internationally acclaimed period performance ensemble Arcangelo performs J S Bach’s mighty oratorio St Matthew Passion.
Johann Sebastian Bach St Matthew Passion
Arcangelo
Nick Pritchard Evangelist
Alex Rosen Christus
Event
Classical music
Madrid Philharmonic Orchestra: 100 Years of Cinema
In tribute to Oscar-winning composer Ennio Morricone, the Madrid Philharmonic Orchestra takes us on a journey through 100 years of cinema with music from some of the greatest films of all time.
Includes music from:
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Cinema Paradiso
The Mission
Star Wars
The Lord of the Rings
Gladiator
Gone with the Wind
Harry Potter
Titanic
The Hateful Eight
For a Few Dollars More
Once Upon a Time in the West
Chi Mai
Out of Africa
How the West Was Won
The Ecstasy of Gold
Braveheart
The Godfather
Casablanca
Madrid Philharmonic Orchestra
Fernando Furonesconductor
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra: Half Six Fix – Shostakovich
Kick-start your evening with a 60-minute Half Six Fix concert, showcasing two works by Vaughan Williams. Introduced by the performers, with screens in the hall to bring you closer to the action.
Dmitri ShostakovichSymphony No 5
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Antonio Pappanoconductor
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Antonio Pappano
Korngold tugs at the heart in his Hollywood-flavoured concerto, while Shostakovich’s Fifth unleashes big tunes and white-hot intensity.
Imogen Holst Persephone
Erich Wolfgang KorngoldViolin Concerto
Dmitri Shostakovich Symphony No 5
Sir Antonio Pappano conductor
Vilde Frang violin
London Symphony Orchestra
Event
Classical music
Academy of Ancient Music: The Chosen One
Leipzig’s got talent: in 1723 Bach competed for one of Germany’s top musical jobs. Today, Laurence Cummings and Academy of Ancient Music reveal exactly what he was up against.
Christoph Graupner‘Lobet den Herrn alle Heiden’ GWV 1113/23b
Georg Philipp Telemann‘Ich muß auf den Bergen weinen und heulen’ TVWV 1/591
Johann Sebastian Bach‘Du wahrer Gott und Davis Sohn’ BWV 23
Academy of Ancient Musicorchestra & choir
Laurence Cummingsdirector & harpsichord
Rowan Piercesoprano
Helen Charlstonalto
Nick Pritchardtenor
Ben Kazezbass
Event
Classical music
Britten Sinfonia: Re-folking Viennese classics
Chamber music by composers who adored the traditional music of central and eastern Europe re-imagined for orchestra and folk band.
Programme to feature arrangements for orchestra and folk quintet including:
Johannes Brahms Adagio from Clarinet Quintet Op 115
Franz Schubert Scherzo and Trio from String Quintet in C
Britten Sinfonia
ZRI Quintet
Event
Classical music
Maria Joāo Pires and Marc-André Hamelin in Recital
Legendary pianists Maria João Pires and Marc-André Hamelin join forces for the first time to perform seminal works for piano duo.
Felix Mendelssohn (arr Czerny)Songs Without Words Op 67 No 4 in C major
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Sonata in C major K 521
Franz SchubertLebensstürme in A minor D 947
Fantasie in F minor D 940
Maria Joāo Pires piano
Marc-André Hamelin piano
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Antonio Pappano
Elgar’s oratorio includes some of his most deeply felt music, sumptuously scored and plumbing every emotion from anguish to elation.
Edward Elgar The Dream of Gerontius
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Antonio Pappano conductor
Emily D’Angelo mezzo-soprano
David Butt Philip tenor
London Symphony Chorus
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Antonio Pappano
Elgar’s oratorio includes some of his most deeply felt music, sumptuously scored and plumbing every emotion from anguish to elation.
Edward Elgar The Dream of Gerontius
London Symphony Orchestra
Sir Antonio Pappano conductor
Emily D’Angelo mezzo-soprano
David Butt Philip tenor
London Symphony Chorus
Event
Classical music
Making America: Blanchard, Herrmann & Latimer
Hollywood dreams meet all-American nightmares. Fabien Gabel conducts the BBC Symphony Orchestra in music from Vertigo and The Sea Hawk and dives into the myths and memories of a new American century.
Bernard Hermann Suite from ‘Vertigo’
Ryan Latimer Bestia: Concerto for Trumpet and Orchestra
Terence Blanchard Suite from ‘Fire Shut Up in my Bones’ (UK Premiere)
Erich Wolfgang Korngold Sea Hawk
Fabien Gabel conductor
Selina Ott trumpet
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Event
Classical music
Gabriela Montero in Recital
Venezuelan pianist and composer Gabriela Montero performs an assortment of piano pieces from and inspired by Spain.
Antonio Soler Sonata in G Major No 45
Domenico Scarlatti Sonata in G Major K 427
Sonata in c-sharp minor K 427
Antonio Soler Sonata in c-sharp minor No 21
Sonata in F Major No 89
Domenico Scarlatti Sonata in F Major K 438
Enrique Granados 8 Valses Poéticos
Isaac Albéniz Triana from Iberia Book II
Alicia de Larrocha Sueño Infantil
Minué Triste
Impromptu
Frederic Mompou Cançó i dansa No. 6
Isaac Albeniz Sevilla from Suite española
Enrique GranadosAndaluza from 12 Danzas españolas, Ep. 37
Isaac Albeniz Eritaña from Iberia Book 4
Frédéric Chopin Bolero, Op 19
Franz Liszt Rhapsodie espagnole
Gabriela Monteropiano
Event
Classical music
Darkness Visible: Âme x Lawrence Power
Âme Creative Studios make their Barbican debut with Lawrence Power in a concert that breaks down the walls of the concert hall and takes you on a musical journey across the City of London at night.
Lawrence Power viola
Âme Creative Studios
Special guest artists to be announced
Event
Classical music
Making America: Billy Childs’s Saxophone Concerto
Dark ships and shining seas: John Adams’s Harmonielehre is the dazzling climax to a concert celebrating the American dream at its most terrible – and hopeful.
Du Yun Hundred Heads (European Premiere)
Billy Childs Diaspora: Concerto for Saxophone and Orchestra (UK Premiere)
John Adams Harmonielehre
Elena Schwarzconductor
Steven Bankssaxophone
BBC Symphony Orchestra
Event
Classical music
BBC Singers: Bach's B Minor Mass
The BBC Singers join the Academy of Ancient Music under Chief Conductor Sofi Jeannin for one of the ‘greatest musical work of art of all times and nations’: Bach’s monumental Mass in B minor.
Event
Classical music
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Antonio Pappano
Tchaikovsky juggles beauty and suffering, Britten reflects powerfully on grief and conflict, and Bernstein grapples with the modern world.
Benjamin BrittenSinfonia da requiem
Leonard BernsteinThe Age of Anxiety
Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskySymphony No 6, ‘Pathétique’