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A WARM WELCOME FROM OUR DIRECTOR
Join us on a new musical journey with the BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales as we launch our 25–26 season of concerts. Whether you’re a lifelong fan of orchestral music or just curious to give it a try, you’re warmly invited to join us for a season full of brilliant music. We’ve got everything from beloved classical works to exciting new pieces making their debut, together with a spotlight on the best of today’s Welsh music scene. This season also brings powerful performances from the BBC National Chorus of Wales, with the Chorus playing a central role in some truly moving and monumental works.
Throughout the season, we’ll be joined by familiar faces and fresh new talent –conductors, soloists, and composers who bring their unique spark to the stage. It’s a season full of energy, variety, and something special for everyone.
You’ll also hear our music far beyond the concert hall – on television, across BBC Radio 3, and over the airwaves of BBC Cymru Wales. And if you can’t be with us in person, you can still enjoy our performances online through our muchloved digital concerts and livestreams from BBC Hoddinott Hall, our home in the heart of Cardiff.
We believe music should be shared far and wide – not just in the concert hall, but out in the community too. That’s why we regularly perform in schools, hospitals, care homes and other local spaces across Wales. Wherever we go, we aim to create a relaxed, welcoming atmosphere where everyone feels at home. Our doors are open to all, and we’d love for you to be part of what we do and help us shape the National Orchestra and Chorus for the future.
I hope you enjoy browsing through this season brochure – have a look around and see what catches your eye. And if you’d like to follow us on social media, you can find us on Facebook and Instagram – we’d love to stay in touch and keep you updated on everything we’re up to and hear about your experiences.
Everyone at BBC NOW is excited to share our music with you – it’s set to be a fantastic season, and we can’t wait for you to be part of it!
Best wishes
HELO A CHROESO TO OUR 2025-26 SEASON
What a thrilling season of orchestral music we have in store for you, conducted and performed by world-class conductors and soloists with your very own BBC National Orchestra and Chorus of Wales.
We see many of our favourite conductors returning this season, including our Principal Conductor Ryan Bancroft, Principal Guest Conductor Jaime Martín and the ever-popular Nil Venditti. We welcome back some of our most celebrated soloists alongside a host of exciting new faces and we continue our journey through some of the most cherished orchestral and choral music written, alongside exploring the new, bold, creative works of today. We travel far and wide across Wales and beyond, including to Spain where the orchestra will tour in April, and continue our commitment to young audiences with our schools and family shows and numerous other community projects with our
wonderful partner organisations. We also continue our recording work for both BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio Wales, BBC Radio Cymru and commercial partners, whilst maintaining a busy schedule of film and television soundtracks.
Enjoy flicking through this brochure, discover the huge variety and scope of music we offer and celebrate the outstanding group of musicians that we have the pleasure to call our very own, delivering endless brilliant performances for our audiences across Wales and beyond via our broadcasts. This is my last season programming for this amazing orchestra and chorus and for you – our wonderful audience! It has been the greatest privilege and pleasure. Enjoy!
Matthew Wood Outgoing Head of Artistic Planning and Production
ABERYSTWYTH CASTLE
A BREATHTAKING SUNSET VIEWED THROUGH THE CASTLE RUINS
NORTH WALES INTERNATIONAL MUSIC FESTIVAL
Based on folk tunes and featuring the lullaby Huna Blentyn at its heart, Welsh composer Grace Williams’ Hen Walia kicks off our performance at this years North Wales International Music Festival.
We discover the music of HRH Prince Albert in his Liederkreis, written to be performed at Windsor Castle and orchestrated here by renowned Welsh composer Paul Mealor, and delve into one of the most famous works by Felix Mendelssohn, his Hebrides Overture –full of rising and falling dynamics, subtle harmonic shifts and a kaleidoscope of instrumental colour, the music is a stunning depiction of both the sea, the Hebrides and Fingal’s Cave – before launching into possibly the most famous opening of any piece of classical music, that of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Driving rhythms combine with drama, darkness and brilliance in this showcase of a symphony.
ICONIC KALEIDOSCOPIC STUNNING
Hen Walia PAUL MEALOR
Liederkreis: Seven Songs by HRH Prince Albert MENDELSSOHN
The Hebrides Overture ‘Fingal’s Cave’ BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5 –
NIL VENDITTI
Conductor
GWILYM BOWEN
Tenor
DVOŘÁK 9
BBC NOW audience favourite Nil Venditti takes to the podium in Newtown this September with a programme featuring the ingenuity of Dvořák, but opening with Barry-born Grace Williams’ Hen Walia which takes its inspiration from folk tunes, in particular the lullaby Huna Blentyn which forms its shining centrepiece.
After thrilling audiences during his BBC NOW debut we’re delighted to welcome violinist Inmo Yang back to perform Dvořák’s warmly romantic Violin Concerto, before we explore his symphonic letter from America, the New World Symphony. Embarking on adventures new, Dvořák embraces the sound world of his new life in New York, whilst never quite leaving behind the enriching beauty of his native Bohemia in the breathtaking Symphony No. 9 ‘From the New World’.
ROMANTIC BREATHTAKING EFFERVESCENT
SATURDAY 20/9/25 4PM
Hafren, Newtown
WILLIAMS
Hen Walia
DVOŘÁK
Violin Concerto
DVOŘÁK
Symphony No. 9
‘From the New World’ –
NIL VENDITTI
Conductor
INMO YANG
Violin
BEETHOVEN 5
BBC NOW audience favourite Nil Venditti takes to the podium in Newport this September with a programme of popular classics.
Barry-born Grace Williams’ Hen Walia takes its inspiration from folk tunes with the lullaby Huna Blentyn as its shining centrepiece. After thrilling audiences during his BBC NOW debut we’re delighted to welcome violinist Inmo Yang back to perform Dvořák’s warmly romantic Violin Concerto, before launching into possibly the most famous opening of any piece of classical music – that of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Driving rhythms combine with drama, darkness and brilliance in this showcase of a symphony.
In a programme putting our fantastic musicians front and centre we kick off our 2025-26 season in BBC Hoddinott Hall with a showcase for our brass section – Schumann’s Four Marches, originally written for solo piano, makes a mighty first impression in this arrangement by our Principal Trombonist Donal Bannister. Premiered in Hereford at the 1949 Three Choirs Festival, Finzi’s Clarinet Concerto remains one of his best-known and most popular works and to perform this soulful and virtuosic work BBC NOW’s very own Principal Clarinet, Nicholas Carpenter steps into the spotlight.
Championed by tonight’s conductor, Gergely Madaras, Franck’s Symphony in D minor was his last major work and only symphony. The gently lyrical and radiantly joyous themes of the first movement contrast with a hybrid second movement which fuses gentle pizzicato strings beneath a haunting cor anglais solo with two scherzo trios, before joyousness pervades the final movement which ingeniously reworks previous themes to round out this magnificent symphony.
RESPLENDENT
THURSDAY 25/9/25 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
SCHUMANN ARR. DONAL BANNISTER
Four Marches
FINZI
Clarinet Concerto
FRANCK Symphony in D minor –
GERGELY MADARAS
Conductor
NICHOLAS CARPENTER
Clarinet
SUNRISE AT THE WELL KNOWN COASTAL BEAUTY SPOT
DINORWIC, ABOVE LLYN PERIS, NEAR LLANBERIS
THE RUINS OF THE ANGLESEY BARRACKS
CELEBRATING SHOSTAKOVICH
Fifty years after his death we celebrate the mastery of Shostakovich in a concert featuring his Violin Concerto and the mighty Seventh Symphony under the baton of our much-loved Principal Conductor, Ryan Bancroft.
From its broodingly dark opening Nocturne to an almost demonic Scherzo featuring a Jewish Klezmerstyle dance for clarinet, and a grand Passacaglia to the brilliantly virtuosic Burlesque the First Violin Concerto is an artistic showcase on a mighty scale. Similarly powerful is his Leningrad Symphony –weightily eloquent and grand this symphony treads the line between Stalinist expectation and personal expression surrounding war. Playfully rhythmic, lamentingly tragic and sweepingly resolute themes rally with tremendous climaxes depicting defiance and heroism in the face of the invasions of war.
FRIDAY 3/10/25 7.30PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
SHOSTAKOVICH
Violin Concerto No. 1
SHOSTAKOVICH
Symphony No. 7 ‘Leningrad’ –
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
CLARA-JUMI KANG
Violin
THEME & VARIATION
In a second nod to Shostakovich in the 50th anniversary year of his death BBC NOW’s Principal Guest Conductor Jaime MartÍn presents a programme including his Theme and Variations and Second Piano Concerto.
Written whilst still a teenager, Shostakovich’s charming Theme and Variations features an original theme and 11 variations atypical of his later style, but no less ingenious or self-assured. His Piano Concerto, written some 25 years later however is filled with his distinctive musical personality – from the charmingly hectic and restlessly athletic themes and tempos, to colourful orchestration and unbridled lyricism, this light-hearted concerto was written as a birthday gift for his son Maxim.
In continued exploration of Theme and Variations we turn to Brahms and his Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn. Fascinated by both music manuscripts and the music of Haydn it was the score of the Chorale St Antoni that forms the theme for this attractive and fascinating work. But first we turn to Brahms’ muse himself, Joseph Haydn and his programmatic Sixth Symphony, Le Matin.
THURSDAY 16/10/25 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
SHOSTAKOVICH
Theme and Variations
SHOSTAKOVICH
Piano Concerto No. 2
HAYDN
Symphony No. 6 ‘Le Matin’
BRAHMS
Variations on a Theme of Joseph Haydn –
JAIME MARTÍN
Conductor
ALIM BEISEMBAYEV
Piano
PORTMERION, PENRHYNDEUDRAETH COLOURFUL HOUSES AND FLOWERS IN THE VILLAGE
ST DAVIDS, PEMBROKESHIRE
THE MEDIEVAL BISHOPS PALACE RUINS NEXT TO ST DAVIDS CATHEDRAL
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES AT ST DAVIDS CATHEDRAL
Brahms’ lyrically uplifting Requiem stands as one of the world’s greatest choral works. Written following the death of his mother and marking a turning point in his career, this non-liturgical but sacred Requiem stands in clear contrast to other well-known requiems based on the Latin Mass, like those of Verdi or Mozart. A powerful calm and serenity is marked with hope and spirituality which speaks on a truly human level that resonates with audiences as strongly today as when it was written.
SATURDAY 18/10/25 7PM
St Davids Cathedral
BRAHMS Ein deutsches Requiem –
ADRIAN PARTINGTON Conductor
Join BBC National Chorus of Wales and their Artistic Director, Adrian Partington, in St Davids this October as they perform this gentle and deeply personal Requiem in the idyllic setting of St Davids Cathedral, accompanied by current and former accompanists to the chorus Chris Williams and Steve Kings.
UPLIFTING SPIRITUAL POWERFUL
CHRIS WILLIAMS & STEVE KINGS Accompanists
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES
HALLOWEEN SPOOKTACULAR
Join us this October for the much anticipated return of our Halloween Spooktacular!
Featuring some of the spookiest music ever written, these spooktastic concerts are back by popular demand to offer tricks and treats for all the family. So prepare for your spidey-senses to tingle and to be thrilled by the weird and wonderful sounds of a symphony orchestra as you join us for the fun.
PS. Don’t forget to wear your best Halloween costumes, we dare you!
FAMILY SPECTACULAR THRILLING
THURSDAY 30/10/25 3PM & 7PM BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
ELLIE SLORACH Conductor ONLY
SOUNDS OF NATURE
We turn to nature in tonight’s concert, opening with Vaughan Williams’ overture to The Wasps. Revelling in the majesty and serenity of England’s countryside, the overture, based on the Aristophanes comedy of the same name, opens with the raspy buzz of swarming wasps sent to rescue the imprisoned father of the works narrative.
Ester Mägi’s Bukoolika takes its inspiration from herding songs and birdcall in this inwardly gentle, wistful and sometimes awestruck contemplation of nature, before we discover Helen Grime’s depictions of nature at night, in particular its sweeping nocturnal gardens and the natural world after dark. To perform we’re delighted to welcome trumpet sensation Matilda Lloyd to make her debut with BBC NOW. Of his Fourth Symphony Nielsen said “In case all the world was devastated… then nature would still begin to breed new life again, begin to push forward again… These forces, which are ‘inextinguishable,’ I have tried to represent.” and it is with this masterpiece we draw tonight’s concert to a close.
DEPICTIVE RADIANT ENCHANTING
THURSDAY 6/11/25 7.30PM Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
VAUGHAN WILLIAMS
The Wasps: Overture
ESTER MÄGI
Bukoolika [UK premiere]
HELEN GRIME
Trumpet Concerto (night-sky-blue)
NIELSEN
Symphony No. 4 ‘The Inextinguishable’
–
ARVO VOLMER
Conductor
MATILDA LLOYD
Trumpet
SUNBEAMS ON A WELSH RIVER
HORNS & HORIZONS
Finland meets the French Horn as we travel to Aberystwyth and Bangor this November as French Horn superstar Ben Goldscheider joins us on the road for two concertos, those of Huw Watkins and Mozart. Written for Ben, Huw Watkins’ concerto explores the athleticism and lyrical characteristics of the horn – qualities Huw hugely admires in Ben’s playing –while Mozart’s Fourth Concerto embraces charm and a cheeky energy. Vivacious and lively outer movements envelop a graceful central Romanza. We open with a work unfamiliar to most but certainly deserving of wider exposure on the concert stage – Finnish composer Ida Moberg’s Sunrise Suite, a stunning tone poem evoking nature and the human connection to it. And to close, fellow Fin Sibelius also turns to the theme of nature in his paean to the countryside of his homeland, his powerful and uplifting Fifth Symphony – listen out for one of the most famous orchestral horn motifs of all time in the triumphant finale as he paints the image of a flock of swans flying.
THURSDAY 13/11/25 7.30PM
Aberystwyth Arts Centre
FRIDAY 14/11/25 7.30PM
Prichard-Jones Hall, Bangor
MOBERG
Soluppgång Tondikt för
Orkester (Sunrise Suite)
HUW WATKINS
Horn Concerto
MOZART
Horn Concerto No. 4
SIBELIUS
Symphony No. 5 –
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
BEN GOLDSCHEIDER
French horn
FLYING SWANS AGAINST A DRAMATIC SUNSET SKY
Celebrating 90 years of BBC broadcasting in Bangor SAVE THE DATE
BBC BANGOR AT 90
Join BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Radio Cymru this November as we celebrate 90 years of broadcasting from BBC Bangor.
SATURDAY 15/11/25 8PM Pontio, Bangor
‘GRACE’
In our annual ‘Grace’ series exploring both the music of Grace Williams and modern women in music, this November we showcase works by living composers Salina Fisher, Anna Semple and Julia Wolfe, all under the baton of Stephanie Childress. Written for the Malcolm Street Orchestra, Anna Semple’s The Gates plays with the ideas of recall and memory, specifically the musical illustration of an image of a set of gates seen up close, then reimagined from afar but not remembered exactly. Julia Wolfe’s Pretty is inspired by the distortions and reverberations of rock and roll and is a raucous celebration of the connotations of what being “pretty” means; and we delve into the world premiere of Salina Fisher’s Violin Concerto performed by the sublime Geneva Lewis. But first we turn to the series’ namesake, Grace Williams and her Ballads for Orchestra
THURSDAY 20/11/25 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
WILLIAMS
Ballads for Orchestra
SALINA FISHER
Violin Concerto [world premiere]
ANNA SEMPLE
The Gates
JULIA WOLFE
Pretty –
STEPHANIE CHILDRESS Conductor
GENEVA LEWIS
Violin
INNOVATIVE FRESH PICTORIC
BLACK ROCK SANDS, NORTH WALES
CASTLE COCH, CARDIFF
ICONS & REIMAGINING’S
Nil Venditti returns to BBC Hoddinott Hall this November with another programme featuring Respighi and Rossini, this time alongside the iconic Violin Concerto by Barber and the UK premiere of María Huld Markan Sigfúsdóttir’s Oceans
Written in the 1930’s when atonality was vying for attention, the traditional melody, rhythm, harmony and orchestration of Barber’s music was met with more than mild enthusiasm. Expansive and at times moody themes dominate in Barber’s dazzling Violin Concerto, with hints of orientalism, folk and Russian grittiness; syncopation and distinctive counterrhythms drive an exciting narrative and virtuosity prevail at every turn. To perform the solo role tonight we’re thrilled to welcome Stella Chen. In Rossiniana, Respighi again turns to Rossini’s music as his muse. Based on four piano pieces from Sins of Old Age, Respighi colourfully repaints Rossini’s music into an orchestral suite of vibrant and expressive depths – the perfect pairing for a work which needs little introduction – Rossini’s overture to William Tell.
COLOURFUL IMPRESSIONISTIC PUNCHY
THURSDAY 27/11/25 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
MARÍA HULD MARKAN
SIGFÚSDÓTTIR
Oceans [UK premiere]
BARBER
Violin Concerto
RESPIGHI
Rossiniana
ROSSINI
William Tell: Overture
–
NIL VENDITTI
Conductor
STELLA CHEN
Violin
THE RIVER NEATH, NEAR PONTNEDDFECHAN A SMALL CAVE AT THE SIDE OF SGWD DDWLI ISAF WATERFALL SAVE THE DATE
NIL VENDITTI
Conductor
SUNDAY 30/11/25 3PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
FAIRYTALES & FANTASY
Fairytale meets humour and heartbreak in this magical concert conducted by BBC NOW’s Principal Guest Conductor Jaime Martín.
Painting vivid musical pictures of mountains and trolls, death, and dancing, Greig’s Peer Gynt takes inspiration from Norse legend to weave together musical gems in this attractive and fantastical suite, before BBC New Generation Artist Elizaveta Ivanova steps into the spotlight for Nielsen’s playful and provocative Flute Concerto. We then turn to the world of ballet with Tchaikovsky’s Swan Lake and some of the most sublime melodies ever written. This highly artistic score weaves romance and tragedy, lyrical and elegant dance with veils of magic and sublime beauty with tremendous drama – this is certainly a concert not to be missed.
MAGICAL PLAYFUL VIVID
GREIG
Peer Gynt Suite No. 1
NIELSEN Flute Concerto
TCHAIKOVSKY
Swan Lake (selections from)
–
JAIME MARTÍN
Conductor
ELIZAVETA IVANOVA Flute
CAROLS FOR CHRISTMAS
Is there anything better than Christmas Carols in cosy jumpers, children joyfully singing, and the chance to sing-along to your festive favourites?
No, we didn’t think so either! Couple this with readings by your favourite BBC Wales presenters, and splendid accompaniment by the brass and percussion of BBC NOW and you’ve got the perfect Sunday afternoon Christmas treat for all the family.
Join BBC National Chorus of Wales with their artistic director Adrian Partington, alongside a massed Children’s Choir from schools across Wales for this glittering, annual Christmas festivity.
SEASONAL HEARTWARMING JOYFUL
SUNDAY 14/12/25 5PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
ADRIAN PARTINGTON Conductor
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES
MASSED SCHOOLS CHOIR
CHRISTMAS CELEBRATIONS
Continue your festive season with BBC National Orchestra of Wales this Christmas with a cracker of a concert featuring all your favourite Christmas songs –from White Christmas, Let It Snow, Sleigh Ride and It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas, to Santa Baby, When a Child is Born and All I Want for Christmas
With sparkling symphonic arrangements from music director and conductor Richard Balcombe, and performances by singing sensations Katie Birtill and Graham Bickley, this concert is sure to ignite the spirit of Christmas.
GLITTERING FESTIVE FUN
THURSDAY 18/12/25 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
FRIDAY 19/12/25 7.30PM Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
RICHARD BALCOMBE Conductor
KATIE BIRTILL & GRAHAM BICKLEY Soloists
ONLY 18/12/25
MUSICAL PAINTING, IMPRESSIONS & INTRIGUE
Exploring the principles of Cadavre exquis – that of writing a line on a piece of paper, folding it down and passing it on to the next person to add theirs –Alders Hillborg takes quotes from other composers and moulds them together in his chaotic yet intriguingly beautiful music collage, Exquisite Corpse, before the esteemed Alban Gerhardt returns to BBC NOW by popular demand to perform the world premiere of Augusta Read Thomas’ Cello Concerto.
With its inspiration taken from the runes of the Kalevala, Sibelius’ Lemminkäinen Suite is drenched in Finnish adventure. Originally conceived as a mythological opera, the resulting symphonic poems are nothing short of entrancing. Magically evocative, the mysterious and darkly brooding opening makes way for joyous folk dance, explosive climaxes and shimmering excitement along the way, not forgetting the haunting melody of the sacred Swan of Tuonela floating through the realm of the dead, exquisitely voiced by a solo cor anglais.
THURSDAY 8/1/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
ALDERS HILLBORG
Exquisite Corpse
AUGUSTA READ THOMAS Cello Concerto [world premiere]
SIBELIUS
Lemminkäinen Suite
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
ALBAN GERHARDT
Cello
PENMON LIGHTHOUSE, PENMON POINT, ANGELSEY
WAVES STRIKE THE ROCKS ON A WINDY DAY
CLASH OF THE TITANS
Inspired by the Italian sun and hearty dances he played with his Hungarian violinist friend in his youth, Brahms’ gloriously lyrical Violin Concerto seems to express the very soul of the violin. From its soaring, dreamy and majestic melodies to the boisterous lilt of the finale, its uncompromising demand for virtuoso playing makes it the perfect showcase for any violinist, and we’re delighted to welcome back the acclaimed Johan Dalene in the solo role.
It was also nature which inspired Mahler’s First Symphony, this time the beauty and folklore of the Alps and Austrian forests. A spirited, earthy dancefeel opens this masterful symphony, whilst we hear notes of a funeral procession and the stormy dark to light in this ambitious first symphony from the master symphonist to come. To conduct Principal Conductor Ryan Bancroft returns to the podium.
RESONATING PICTURESQUE SPELLBINDING
BRAHMS
Violin Concerto
MAHLER
Symphony No. 1 ‘Titan’ –
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
JOHAN DALENE
Violin
PATHÉTIQUE
Symphony No. 1 ‘Classical’
RACHMANINOV
Conductor Gemma New returns to BBC NOW this January with a programme of Russian masterpieces, starting with a work which needs little introduction, Prokofiev’s exhilarating Classical Symphony. Although short, this much-loved work is an explosive demonstration of the modest forces of a ‘classical orchestra’ and remains amongst the most popular of Prokofiev’s works with performers and audiences alike. Similarly popular are Rachmaninov’s piano concerti, and here we experience the harmonically dazzling, cinematic and fiery rollercoaster of his Fourth. Back by popular demand, we’re delighted to be joined by multi-award-winning Ukranian pianist, Vadym Kholodenko as soloist. Closing the concert with a sweepingly emotional gesture is Tchaikovsky and his Sixth Symphony. Bleak despair abound with crushing intensity, jaunty dance and blazing marches impose and the Pathétique dies to nothing in this unusual mature masterpiece.
EXHILIRATING PASSIONATE LIVELY
Piano Concerto No. 4
TCHAIKOVSKY
Symphony No. 6 ‘Pathétique’ –
GEMMA NEW Conductor
VADYM KHOLODENKO
Piano
HARLECH BEACH, HARLECH
EVENING SUN OVER THE SAND DUNES
GLORIA
Old meets new in Górecki’s Three Pieces in Old Style
Inspired by papers on old Polish music and heavily influenced by modal music combined with folk these charming pieces encapsulate the sonorous charms of both Górecki’s music and his writing for strings. From the energetic forward drive and rhythmic fervour of the opening movements to the serenity and elegance of the Domine Deus, Poulenc’s playful and theatric Gloria is not only an expression of his deep devotion to faith, but showcases his unique musical style – punchy rhythms and ingenious harmonies blaze with intensity in a work tinged with mischief and intrigue. Bursting with catchy tunes and drenched in joy, Dvořák’s firecracker Eighth Symphony pulses with life and vigour, and to conduct we’re delighted to welcome globally renowned Polish conductor Michał Nesterowicz as he makes his debut with BBC NOW.
SATURDAY 7/2/26 3PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
SUNDAY 8/2/26 3PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
G Ó RECKI
Three Pieces in Old Style POULENC
Gloria
DVOŘÁK
Symphony No. 8
–
MICHAŁ NESTEROWICZ Conductor
SOPHIE BEVAN
Soprano
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES
DRAMATIC STRIKING CHARACTERFUL
ONLY 8/2/26
DAFFODILS IN THE WELSH LANDSCAPE
COMPOSITION WALES
Discover the latest in composition in Wales this spring as composers deserving of wider exposure have the opportunity to work with Jac van Steen and Composer-in-Association Gavin Higgins on their latest orchestral composition, and hear it come to life with BBC NOW.
These free workshops and culmination concert are run in association with Nimbus Lyrita Arts, Tŷ Cerdd, Composers of Wales, Vale of Glamorgan Festival and Welsh Music Guild, and this annual project supports the development and exposure of Welsh, and Walesbased, compositional talent.
OPEN WORKSHOPS
WEDNESDAY 11/2/26
2-5PM & 6-9PM
THURSDAY 12/2/26
10AM-1PM & 2-5PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
CULMINATION CONCERT
FRIDAY 13/2/26 7PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
JAC VAN STEEN Conductor
CULMINATION CONCERT
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BBC CARDIFF SINGER OF THE WORLD: A CELEBRATION
Experience world-class voices at a dazzling Gala Concert at Wales Millennium Centre for Llais, part of the Cardiff Music City Festival.
Joined by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales, this one-night-only event is your chance to enjoy Cardiff Singer before its 2027 return.
Filmed for BBC Four and BBC Two Wales – don’t miss it!
BBC NOW – NOW!
BBC NOW – NOW! is back this spring bringing you the best in new music from around the world. Presenting five UK premieres we kick off the evening with Isabella Gellis’ Valedictions which explores the sensation and fascination of entering an imaginary forest with its gentle whispers playfully weaving around skilfully crafted melodic lines, before we move onto Deborah Pritchard’s Trombone Concerto ‘Light Circle’ written for and performed by tonight’s soloist Peter Moore.
Confluere, meaning to flow together in Latin, melds two main motifs exploring the colours and sounds of the orchestra to create unique layers and textures of sound in this premiere by Juste Janulyte, whilst Hannah Eisendle’s Azinheira explores through music the changeability of the holm oak leaf as it sprouts in spring. We end with Katherine Balch’s musica pyralis where we discover nature at night in Connecticut, from the fireflies which bashfully illuminate the sky to the cacophony of frogs and crickets, all captured through ingenious orchestration. To conduct we’re delighted to welcome Jack Sheen as he makes his debut with BBC NOW.
Left handed piano sensation Nicholas McCarthy makes his debut with BBC NOW in Ravel’s emotionally powerful and highly virtuoso Piano Concerto for the Left Hand.
Inhabiting a medieval world of dream and fantasy, Pelléas et Mélisande tells of a fated love triangle and its impending doom as heard in Maeterlinck’s melodrama of the same name. Densely sonoric, darkly rich and harmonically turbulent, this masterpiece remains as one of Sibelius’ most popular concert works. A student of both Massanet and Franck, Chausson was a prolific writer of song, but it is his only symphony that stands as one of his most important works. From the wholesome exuberance of the opening movement, to the hushed intensity of the slow movement and sparkling drama of the finale, this imaginatively colourful, grand and melodically masterful symphony is the perfect package.
RICH BRILLIANT IMPASSIONED
THURSDAY 26/2/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
SIBELIUS
Pelléas et Mélisande
RAVEL
Piano Concerto for the Left Hand
CHAUSSON
Symphony in B-flat –
CLELIA CAFIERO
Conductor
NICHOLAS MCCARTHY
Piano
IVOR NOVELLO
A CELEBRATION OF IVOR NOVELLO
Cardiff born star of stage and screen, David Ivor Davies, known to millions as Ivor Novello, composed over 230 published songs in his lifetime, many from his eight West End Musicals which dominated British Musical Theatre for three decades.
Join BBC NOW and two star singers, conducted by Novello specialist Ian McMillan-Davidson, 75 years to the day of his premature death on March 6 1951 to celebrate this Welsh composer’s legacy in a special Gala Tribute of the BBC’s longest running live music show, Friday Night is Music Night, live from BBC Hoddinott Hall and on BBC Radio 3.
FRIDAY 6/3/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
CLEVELAND, OHIO, USA
DOWNTOWN CITY SKYLINE ON THE CUYAHOGA RIVER AT TWILIGHT
LOVE & TRANSFORMATION
Marrying unmistakeable Britten with flavours of Copland and hints of jazz, Britten’s American Overture launches this evening conducted by the acclaimed Tomas Djupsjöbacka, before saxophone sensation Steven Banks joins BBC NOW for the UK premiere of Joan Towers’ Love Letters – whilst loss and sadness exude, it is grace and delicacy that flow endlessly in this dedication to her late husband.
To celebrate 100 years since his death, we experience Weber through the eyes of Hindemith as we turn to the Symphonic Metamorphosis on Themes by Weber, in which Hindemith takes some of Weber’s most obscure themes and, whilst directly quoting the music, radically changes everything around them, from the harmony and accompanying secondary melodies to the melodic extensions and orchestrations. But first, a performance of Weber’s own quirky and charming Second Symphony.
THURSDAY 12/3/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
BRITTEN
An American Overture
JOAN TOWER
Love Letters [UK premiere]
WEBER
Symphony No. 2
HINDEMITH
Symphonic Metamorphosis of Themes by Carl Maria von Weber
–
TOMAS DJUPSJÖBACKA
Conductor
STEVEN BANKS
Saxophone
MAGIC & MELODIES
Opening with the most magical and expressive of themes, Sibelius’ Violin Concerto bristles with tension and brooding harmonies, paired with exquisitely beautiful melodies and a formidable energy. Exhilaratingly masterful in its writing and truly virtuosic for any performer, we’re delighted to welcome the prodigiously talented violinist Liya Petrova to audiences in Aberystwyth and Bangor this March.
Dazzling woodwinds tarry with bustling strings, folklike melodies weave with vibrant dance and climactic rushes make way to stately grandeur in Tchaikovsky’s charmingly wintery First Symphony, oozing his trademark symphonic craftsmanship from the off. But first we hear Barry born Grace Williams’ bold and virtuoso Concert Overture – an early exhibition of her exquisite talent for writing in a genre she loved, for Orchestra.
EXQUISITE STYLISH SPIRITED
THURSDAY 19/3/26 7.30PM
Aberystwyth Arts Centre
FRIDAY 20/3/26 7.30PM
Prichard-Jones Hall, Bangor
WILLIAMS
Concert Overture
SIBELIUS
Violin Concerto
TCHAIKOVSKY
Symphony No. 1
‘Winter Dreams’
–
NIL VENDITTI
Conductor
LIYA PETROVA
Violin
MARGAM COUNTY PARK, PORT TALBOT SUNSET OVER THE BLUEBELLS IN THE TEN
Celebrating 90 years of BBC broadcasting in Bangor SAVE THE DATE
AN EVENING WITH BBC RADIO CYMRU
Hold the date for a spectacular evening with BBC National Orchestra of Wales and BBC Radio Cymru in Pontio this March. Artists to be announced.
SATURDAY 21/3/26 8PM Pontio, Bangor
JOHN QUIRK Conductor
ACRE WOOD
BRAHMS REQUIEM
Bringing the power of opera to the concert platform, Mozart’s penultimate symphony is a passionate masterclass in tension and release. The darkly intense opening movement gives way to a lighter more lyrical Andante, and light and shade abound as a terse Minuet leads to a colourful Trio before the anguishingly turbulent finale ramps this masterpiece to a close.
In a gentle and deeply personal work, Brahms’ lyrically uplifting Requiem stands as one of the world’s greatest choral works. Written following the death of his mother and marking a turning point in his career, this non-liturgical but sacred Requiem stands in clear contrast to other well-known requiems based on the Latin Mass, like those of Verdi or Mozart. A powerful calm and serenity is marked with hope and spirituality which speaks on a truly human level that resonates with audiences as strongly today as when it was written.
UNMISTAKABLE UPLIFTING BREATHTAKING
THURSDAY 26/3/26 7.30PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
MOZART
Symphony No. 40
BRAHMS
Ein deutsches Requiem
–
THOMAS ZEHETMAIR
Conductor
ELIZABETH WATTS
Soprano
ANDREW FOSTERWILLIAMS
Bass-Baritone
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES
OGWEN VALLEY, BETWS-Y-COED A MISTY SUNRISE
ENIGMA
Although written during her years in London, it is a longing for the seaside of her hometown of Barry that inspires tonight’s concert opener, Grace Williams’ Sea Sketches. Violinist Akiko Suwanai returns to perform Saint-Saëns elegantly dramatic, songfully melodious and deeply contrasting Third Violin Concerto, before we turn to Elgar’s iconic Enigma Variations, all under the baton of our Principal Guest Conductor Jaime Martín.
Striking a balance between the light-hearted and the noble, Elgar’s Variations are an ingenious collection of musical sketches of his friends plus an astute self-portrait; an enigma hidden within the score as each variation is tagged with the initials of the friends’ nicknames.
SATURDAY 18/4/26 3PM Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
SUNDAY 19/4/26 3PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
WILLIAMS
Sea Sketches
SAINT-SAËNS
Violin Concerto No. 3
ELGAR
Enigma Variations
JAIME MARTÍN
Conductor
AKIKO SUWANAI
Violin
ELEGANT GRAND ILLUSTRATIVE
ONLY 19/4/26
FOUR MILE BRIDGE, ISLE OF ANGLESEY SUNSET AND REFLECTIONS ON THE INLAND SEA
TANYPISTYLL, LLANRHAEADR-YM-MOCHNANT, OSWESTRY PISTYLL RHAEADER, THE TALLEST WATERFALL IN THE UK
DEATH AND TRANSFIGURATION
Beethoven’s Violin Concerto is so popular with audiences today that its perhaps surprising it hardly made an impact at it’s premiere. Opening with an almost jazz drum tap the expansively elegant opening movement makes way for a set of theme and variations, serene and beauteous, before a catchy and lively Rondo bursts into energy to round off the work, performed by the inimitable Veronika Eberle.
George Benjamin’s Concerto for Orchestra captures the spirit, humour and undimmable energy of its dedicatee, the late Oliver Knussen, in this varied and dynamic tour de force, gleaming with clarity and detail as each member of the orchestra becomes its soloist, before earthly travail lead to heavenly bliss in Strauss’ Death and Transfiguration. To conduct we welcome back award-winning French conductor Alexandre Bloch.
THURSDAY 14/5/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
FRIDAY 15/5/26 7.30PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
BEETHOVEN
Violin Concerto
GEORGE BENJAMIN
Concerto for Orchestra
STRAUSS
Tod und Verklärung (Death and Transfiguration)
–
ALEXANDRE BLOCH
Conductor
VERONIKA EBERLE
Violin
ST DAVIDS, PEMBROKESHIRE
PANORAMIC VIEW OF ST DAVID’S CATHEDRAL.
ST DAVIDS CATHEDRAL FESTIVAL
The ever-popular Martyn Brabbins returns to BBC NOW this May as we travel to St Davids for the annual Cathedral Festival.
Written for the 1898 Three Choirs Festival, Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Ballade brims with inventiveness and explosive energy. Ivan Karizna debuts with BBC NOW in Huw Watkins’ Cello Concerto – wonderful expressivity and deeply lyrical tunes encapsulate a mercurial scherzo in this work written for his brother and BBC NOW during his years as the Orchestra’s Composer-in-Association – and we explore Beethoven as he transitions from the Classical to Romantic eras in his ‘Eroica’ Symphony. From its thundering opening chords to its epic scale and emotional impact, Beethoven’s Third Symphony was grander and more dramatic than audiences were accustomed to at the time of its premiere, but this masterstroke, inspired by the heroic Napoleon Bonaparte, remains one of his most celebrated works, full of energy and drama.
ENERGETIC IMPACTFUL HEROIC
SATURDAY 23/5/26 7PM
St David’s Cathedral
COLERIDGE-TAYLOR
Ballade
HUW WATKINS
Cello Concerto
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 ‘Eroica’ –
MARTYN BRABBINS
Conductor
IVAN KARIZNA
Cello
THE PATH UP DARREN MOUNTAIN, YSTRADGYNLAIS
SUNLIGHT THROUGH THE WOODS
SEASONS & STORIES
Conductor Paweł Kapuła brings a work from his native Poland to the stage of BBC Hoddinott Hall as he makes his debut with BBC NOW this May –Marta Ptaszyńska takes the sounds of Vivaldi and transforms them into a new, almost surreal sound picture in A Winter’s Tale, written in 1984. BBC Radio
3 New Generation Artist Sterling Elliott also debuts with the Orchestra in Schumann’s intensely lyrical and meditative Cello Concerto, and we explore Mendelssohn in cinematic fairytale form in his overture to A Midsummer Night’s Dream
Although less frequently performed that some of his other symphonies, Beethoven’s Second Symphony is a snapshot of Beethoven at his most humorous. Unpredictability and playfulness tally with a bold explosion of joy in this vividly contrasting symphony.
ENTERTAINING TUNEFUL VIVACIOUS
THURSDAY 28/5/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
FRIDAY 29/5/26 7.30PM
Theatr Brycheiniog, Brecon
MARTA PTASZYŃSKA
A Winter’s Tale
SCHUMANN
Cello Concerto
MENDELSSOHN
A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Overture
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 –
PAWEŁ KAPUŁA
Conductor
STERLING ELLIOTT
Cello
BRACELET BAY, GOWER PENINSULA
DAWN LIGHT AT THE LIGHTHOUSE
SYMPHONIC DANCES
Principal Conductor Ryan Bancroft takes to the podium for his final concert in the title role as we draw our 2025-26 Season to a close, starting with Stravinsky’s symphonic poem Song of the Nightingale. Based on Hans Christian Andersen’s fairytale, we hear the story of an emperor in his ornate Chinese palace and the glorious singing of nightingales that accompanies his life.
BBC NOW Leader Lesley Hatfield then steps into the spotlight alongside former principal cellist Alice Neary for Brahms’ Double Concerto, and we explore Rachmaninov at his most inventive in his Symphonic Dances. With luscious shifting harmonies and the rhythmic vitality characteristic of his later style, Rachmaninov’s final complete composition, his Symphonic Dances, uses motifs derived from Russian Church music alongside quotes from his own first symphony, creating a stirring mix of nostalgia versus the big city bustle and driving energy of ‘Modern America’.
CAPTIVATING VIBRANT THEATRIC
SCHOOLS CONCERT
Calling all teachers… on Wednesday the 25th June BBC NOW will be performing its annual schools concert at BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff. Make a note for your diary and keep an eye out on our social media for updates in the new season.
THURSDAY 4/6/26 7.30PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
FRIDAY 5/6/26 7.30PM
Brangwyn Hall, Swansea
STRAVINSKY
Song of the Nightingale BRAHMS
Concerto for Violin & Cello
RACHMANINOV Symphonic Dances –
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
LESLEY HATFIELD
Violin
ALICE NEARY
Cello
SAVE THE DATE ONLY 4/6/26
THURSDAY 25/6/26 12.45PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
GRAND TETON NATIONAL PARK, WYOMING, USA
THE GRAND TETON MOUNTAIN RANGE SEEN FROM A BEND ALONG THE SNAKE RIVER
AN AMERICAN SOUNDSCAPE
We mark the 250th anniversary of the signing of the document of independence with an all American programme featuring some of the most famous American composers in history, from Copland, Barber and Bernstein to William Grant Still and Christopher Tin.
Probably best known for his soundtracks to film, television and video games, Christopher Tin is a popular name in cinematic music today, and his Piano Concerto, written for and performed by Lara Downes, receives its UK premiere, only a week after its world premiere. William Grant Still’s Festive Overture gives a celebratory flavour to the evening, whilst Copland’s Appalachian Spring encapsulates dance and frontier spirit. BBC National Chorus of Wales step front and centre in Barber’s own vocal arrangement of the Adagio for Strings set to the words of the Agnus Dei, and the combined forces of Orchestra and Chorus resound in Bernstein’s boldly spiritual and exuberant Chichester Psalms. To conduct we welcome celebrated African American conductor Kellen Gray.
SUNDAY 5/7/26 3PM
BBC Hoddinott Hall, Cardiff
DISTINCTIVE JUBILANT INSPIRATIONAL
COPLAND
Appalachian Spring
CHRISTOPHER TIN
Piano Concerto [UK premiere]
WILLIAM GRANT STILL
Festive Overture
BARBER
Agnus Dei
BERNSTEIN
Chichester Psalms
–
KELLEN GRAY
Conductor
LARA DOWNES
Piano
BBC NATIONAL CHORUS OF WALES
AROUND THE UK
HULL CITY HALL
THURSDAY 23/10/25 7.30PM
Hull City Hall
CHLOE ROOKE
Conductor
TOBIAS FELDMANN
Violin
BEETHOVEN
Egmont Overture
MENDELSSOHN
Violin Concerto
SCHUBERT
Symphony No. 9
OPENING CONCERT OF THE NEW GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL ORGAN
SATURDAY 13/6/26 7PM
Gloucester Cathedral
ADRIAN PARTINGTON
Conductor
THOMAS TROTTER
Organ
JONGEN
Symphonie Concertante
SAINT-SAËNS
Symphony No. 3 ‘Organ’
GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL, ENGLAND THE GOTHIC ARCHITECTURAL SPLENDOUR OF GLOUCESTER CATHEDRAL
ALDEBURGH FESTIVAL
JUNE 2026
SAVE THE DATE
SAVE THE DATE
LICHFIELD
CATHEDRAL FESTIVAL
SATURDAY 18/7/26 7PM
Lichfield Cathedral
RYAN BANCROFT
Conductor
Copy Copi: Amy Campbell-Nichols
Design Dylunio: BBC Wales Graphics
Photography Ffotograffiaeth: Amy Campbell-Nichols, James Fear and Kirsten McTernan
