Welcome to our Summer Events, a season of festivals, discoveries and celebrations.
Prestigious venues
We give a rare performance of Messiaen’s totemic and exuberant symphony, Turangalîla, at the Royal Festival Hall, led by Jac van Steen, and further concerts on London’s stages include our String Showcase, a Song Recital featuring RCM composers through the ages, and the Benjamin Britten scholarship piano recital, all at Wigmore Hall.
Groundbreaking opera
Revolutions sees the return of our biennial mini-opera series: six new operas written by RCM composers and staged in innovative fashion by Bill Bankes-Jones.
Celebratory festivals
The RCM Festival of Percussion offers plenty both to participate in and to enjoy, and rounds off with the RCM Jazz Orchestra and guest drummer, Virgil Donati. FestivALL showcases compositions from under-represented artists across classical music, and wind and brass combine for performances, activities and special guests in our inaugural Festival of Woodwind and Brass.
Chamber music: the full spectrum
Chamber Spotlights feature Viennese connections, with works by Brahms and Mahler, while the Brass Ensemble assails the heights with an arrangement of Richard Strauss’ epic Alpine Symphony. By contrast, we are joined by dancers from the English National Ballet school for a wind ensemble programme including Prokofiev’s dramatic Romeo and Juliet.
A spectacular finale
The summer rounds off with a celebration for our outgoing Director, Professor Colin Lawson, featuring Bartók’s spectacular ballet suite The Miraculous Mandarin alongside Druschetzky’s concerto for three bassett horns and orchestra.
Music for all
With evening performances in the RCM Museum, electronic music, masterclasses from Martin James Bartlett, Tasmin Little and Adam Walker, Ravel orchestral showpieces by the RCM Junior Department, Historical Performance including Jacquet de la Guerre and Michael Haydn, and with partners from Ireland and Austria, there is a wide range of music for all tastes and occasions.
We look forward to welcoming you.
Stephen Johns
Artistic Director
