Strauss and Wagner meet at the height of their expressive powers. Strauss’s Four Last Songs offer a radiant farewell, while Wagner’s Tristan und Isolde: An Orchestral Passion unfolds a magnificent, revolutionary sound world, conducted by Anthony Hermus.

Under Jörg Widmann, this programme spans celebration and an urgent plea for peace. Schumann’s Rhine Symphony surges with life and noble horn calls, while Widmann’s Cantata in tempore belli delivers a searing, uncompromising response to war.

Under Ludovic Morlot, three imaginative voices take centre stage. Stravinsky’s Jeu des cartes sparkles with wit, Britten’s youthful Double Concerto features Ben Baker and Tim Ridout, and Ravel’s Mother Goose Suite closes in glowing fairy‑tale colour.

City energy and sun‑drenched dance meet under Carlos Miguel Prieto. Gabriela Ortiz’s TZAM opens with dialogue and reflection, Ethan Loch brings Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue to life, and de Falla’s The Three‑Cornered Hat closes in brilliant Spanish colour.

Fate and fantasy unfold under Otto Tausk. Anna Clyne’s Masquerade sparkles with colour, Stephen Hough tackles Rachmaninov’s virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 3, and Janáček’s Taras Bulba leads to Strauss’s dazzling Don Juan.

Led by Jaime Martin, this concert pairs MacMillan’s Concerto for Orchestra – Ghosts with Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony. Marking 200 years since Beethoven’s death, the programme journeys from spectral memories to the symphony’s choral finale of joy.