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A train entering a station, or the quiet roar of a people awakening to freedom? For Antonin Dvořák, it was simply the beginning of his Seventh Symphony: what follows is forty minutes of irresistible dance tunes and gripping action. For many, it’s even greater than the “New World” symphony: but then, this concert with the rising Estonian star Anu Tali is all about unexpected voices – whether the quiet revolution of Arvo Pärt’s hugely popular Fratres or fellow-Estonian Eduard Tubin’s lyrical post-war concerto for the most under-appreciated of instruments, the double bass. It's a giant with the soul of a poet – but hear for yourself, as the BBC SSO’s superb new Principal Double Bass Kai Kim steps into the spotlight.

The princess Salome knows her own powers, and strikes a terrible bargain. Cleopatra rules like a goddess, and dies like a queen. And in ancient Greece, Elektra nurtures a murderous obsession – until, to some of the most shatteringly violent music ever composed, she witnesses heaven and earth rain vengeance upon her tormentors. Tonight, under guest conductor Anja Bihlmaier, the BBC SSO encounters incredible women – and none more remarkable than the pioneering 19th century French composer Mélanie Bonis. It’s a gripping contrast to Mozart at his most graceful, as Javier Perianes brings all his charisma and imagination to a concerto that Mozart once played himself. Music simply doesn’t get any wittier - or more lovely.

The princess Salome knows her own powers, and strikes a terrible bargain. Cleopatra rules like a goddess, and dies like a queen. And in ancient Greece, Elektra nurtures a murderous obsession – until, to some of the most shatteringly violent music ever composed, she witnesses heaven and earth rain vengeance upon her tormentors. Tonight, under guest conductor Anja Bihlmaier, the BBC SSO encounters incredible women – and none more remarkable than the pioneering 19th century French composer Mélanie Bonis. It’s a gripping contrast to Mozart at his most graceful, as Javier Perianes brings all his charisma and imagination to a concerto that Mozart once played himself. Music simply doesn’t get any wittier - or more lovely.

Sometimes art imitates life so closely that you can almost feel its breath. “With passion and desire” wrote Tchaikovsky on the slow movement of his Fifth Symphony, and the whole piece is a struggle between love and despair, told in elegant waltzes, bittersweet songs and melody after sweeping melody. Gemma New is always a popular guest conductor here in Scotland, and she knows exactly how to get to the heart of a masterpiece – whether Lera Auerbach’s fiery retelling of the myth of Icarus, or the shadows, secrets and burning truths of Shostakovich’s powerful First Violin Concerto. Rosanne Philippens is the soloist today: a violinist who believes that every note should convey emotion, and forge a connection.

Imagine...a journey from darkness to light. Struggles between love & despair inspire a pulse-raising masterpiece that stirs the soul. Sometimes art imitates life so closely that you can almost feel its breath. “With passion and desire” wrote Tchaikovsky on the slow movement of his Fifth Symphony, and the whole piece is a struggle between love and despair, told in elegant waltzes, bittersweet songs and melody after sweeping melody. Gemma New is always a popular guest conductor here in Scotland, and she knows exactly how to get to the heart of a masterpiece – whether Lera Auerbach’s fiery retelling of the myth of Icarus, or the shadows, secrets and burning truths of Shostakovich’s powerful First Violin Concerto. Rosanne Philippens is the soloist today: a violinist who believes that every note should convey emotion, and forge a connection.

Sometimes art imitates life so closely that you can almost feel its breath. “With passion and desire” wrote Tchaikovsky on the slow movement of his Fifth Symphony, and the whole piece is a struggle between love and despair, told in elegant waltzes, bittersweet songs and melody after sweeping melody. Gemma New is always a popular guest conductor here in Scotland, and she knows exactly how to get to the heart of a masterpiece – whether Lera Auerbach’s fiery retelling of the myth of Icarus, or the shadows, secrets and burning truths of Shostakovich’s powerful First Violin Concerto. Rosanne Philippens is the soloist today: a violinist who believes that every note should convey emotion, and forge a connection.

Sometimes art imitates life so closely that you can almost feel its breath. “With passion and desire” wrote Tchaikovsky on the slow movement of his Fifth Symphony, and the whole piece is a struggle between love and despair, told in elegant waltzes, bittersweet songs and melody after sweeping melody. Gemma New is always a popular guest conductor here in Scotland, and she knows exactly how to get to the heart of a masterpiece – whether Lera Auerbach’s fiery retelling of the myth of Icarus, or the shadows, secrets and burning truths of Shostakovich’s powerful First Violin Concerto. Rosanne Philippens is the soloist today: a violinist who believes that every note should convey emotion, and forge a connection.

Scotland’s most esteemed violinist – the peerless Nicola Benedetti – joins charismatic Principal Conductor Maxim Emelyanychev for an end-of-Season celebration full of romance and adventure.

The orchestra throws down a challenge, and the piano strides forward with one of the grandest tunes Tchaikovsky ever wrote. Seabirds wheel and soar, and jet-streams trace fabulous patterns across the blue Pacific sky. And in the silence of dawn, a young artist walks out on a lifelong voyage: a tale of struggle and joy, turmoil and triumph. Three very different composers, and three different openings – but each one is just the start of an adventure, told today by the BBC SSO and conductor Tito Muñoz, who created such a buzz at City Halls in 2022. Pianist Alim Beisembayev is the soloist; this 2021 Leeds International Piano Competition winner has been described as “positively luminous”.

“God, what beauty!”. Once upon a time in Finland, Sibelius saw a flight of swans and felt his imagination take wing. That’s the story behind the unforgettable horn theme that crowns his Fifth Symphony: music as astonishing, and as inevitable, as nature itself. Those vaulting horns are a spine-tingling way to end the season. So what could be more natural than Ryan Wigglesworth inviting Stefan Dohr, a legend among living horn players, to perform another Scandinavian masterpiece: the playful, utterly original concerto that our Composer in Association (and master-storyteller) Hans Abrahamsen wrote especially for him. Ludwig van Beethoven ties it all together, with wit, splendour and irrepressible life-force. You’d expect no less.