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Kantos is a trailblazing vocal ensemble, performing at the cutting edge of the creative scene. Kantos think voices are a powerful gateway to our past, present and future, unveiling countless emotions, identities, and experiences. The doors to their performances are always open to everyone, whether you’re a veteran concertgoer or seeking something new.

Refractions brings together two leading forces in contemporary music: Manchester Collective, one of the country’s most exciting music ensembles, and electronic artist Chris Clark. This show brings together repertoire drawn from across the last 1,000 years with newly created compositions, layered into a sonic tapestry that shows how music resonates, reflects and refracts across the ages. Enter a musical time warp as electronic musician Clark and Manchester Collective team up for an explosive collaboration. Clark’s career spans a quarter of a century, encompassing the full spectrum of electronic – from hard-hitting techno to soft ambient and found sound. It’s seen him play Berghain, work alongside Thom Yorke, and more recently score films, TV shows and games. Known for their boundary-pushing performances of classical and contemporary music, Manchester Collective can be found everywhere, from underground nightclubs to the concert hall. The shape-shifting ensemble defies expectations with unexpected artistic collaborations, crafting their own brand of ‘radical human experiences’.

Now recognised as one of the country’s leading mixed-voice youth choirs, the Hallé Youth Choir was established in 2003 for young singers from across the North West and beyond. This is a rare opportunity to hear these talented young voices perform a varied programme of music from around the world, within the amazing setting of Hallé St Peter’s.

With its beautifully broad ranges of tonal colour, tinged with the trials of the American Civil War, it is easy to see why Copland’s score for Appalachian Spring earned him a Pulitzer Prize. Following this work, Alena Baeva will step onto the platform to perform Barber’s Violin Concerto, a piece which similarly vacillates between contentment and conflict.

80s legends Go West join us for a special orchestral performance celebrating the 40th anniversary of their self-titled debut album.

It’s Saturday Night Fever every night with The Australian Bee Gees Show, paying tribute to one of the most successful and adored acts in musical history in this 75-minute multi-media concert event. You’ll hear hits like Staying Alive, You Should Be Dancing, How Deep Is Your Love, and Jive Talkin’, the performers authentically taking on the trio’s clothes, style and dance moves as they showcase five decades of the Gibb brothers’ success as rock and disco legends.

Richard Strauss’s colossal ‘An Alpine Symphony ’is one of his largest, non-operatic works, calling for no fewer than 125 players. Traversing 22 sections, reflecting the scenes encountered on the ascent and return, it was largely inspired by the composer’s childhood experience of climbing mountains with friends. From the serene sunrise to the ominous storm, Strauss masterfully employs orchestral colours to depict nature’s majesty and challenges.

Jess Gillam is celebrated as a leading figure of the saxophone. With her electrifying performances, vibrant stage presence and magnetic personality, the ‘uniquely mercurial’ (The Times) Jess Gillam has been invited to play on the world’s major stages since becoming the youngest ever soloist to perform at the Last Night of the Proms and was hailed for her ‘effortless virtuosity and limitless expressiveness’ (Arts Desk). Equally at home behind the microphone, Gillam has shattered glass ceilings as the youngest ever presenter for BBC Radio 3 with her award-winning weekly show, This Classical Life.

Alexandre Bloch, Music Director of the National Orchestra of Lille, takes to the podium in this programme celebrating French music from the 19th and 20th centuries. Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique has long been a favourite since its premiere in 1830. It was first performed at the Paris Conservatoire, where Louise Farrenc was enrolled in the previously all-male composition class, at the age of just 15. Her powerful and vivacious Overture in E flat, written a few years after the Berlioz, opens this programme.

Concertgoers can expect to enter a parallel musical universe where modern-day earworms and iconic pop hits alike are reimagined in classic genres like 1920s jazz, Swing, Doo-wop and Motown, and brought to life by a cast of some of the world’s best singers, dancers, and instrumentalists. Think ‘The Great Gatsby’ meets ‘Sinatra at the Sands’ meets ‘Back! …To The Future’.