Name: Stravinsky, Poulenc and Beethoven at Victoria Hall, Hanley
Start: 2025-05-02T19:30:00
Location: Victoria Hall in Stoke-on-Trent

The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra’s 2025 concert series promises an exceptional array of musical performances across the UK. With a lineup that includes iconic compositions from Wagner, Rachmaninov, and Beethoven to contemporary pieces celebrating International Women’s Day, each event brings together renowned conductors, soloists, and breathtaking orchestrations. As these concerts unfold at venues like Victoria Hall and The Bridgewater Hall, audiences are set to experience the brilliance of artists like Clemens Schuldt, Simon Callaghan, and Jennifer Pike, making this series a remarkable celebration of orchestral music.

A Symphony of Sounds: BBC Philharmonic's 2025 Musical Showcase

In a remarkable series of orchestral events, the BBC Philharmonic showcases a stunning array of classical masterpieces across the UK. From Beethoven to Mahler, and including the works of revolutionary modernists like Ravel and Gubaidulina, these performances reflect a diverse tapestry of musical genius. Each event, led by world-renowned conductors and performers, promises an unforgettable experience, weaving a narrative that transcends time and culture. Join us as we delve into the highlights and unique contributions that make these concerts a celebration of both music and the human spirit.

A Symphony of Celebrations: BBC Philharmonic's Unforgettable Orchestral Journey

The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra's latest concert season offers a compelling mix of fantasy, folklore, and musical mastery. From honoring French musical legends Maurice Ravel and Pierre Boulez in 'Pictures at an Exhibition' to a poignant celebration of International Women's Day with works by trailblazing female composers, this season is packed with unique experiences. Adding to the excitement is a series of concerts featuring iconic works from composers like Grieg, Saint-Saëns, and Mahler, all performed by renowned conductors and soloists.

BBC Philharmonic's Orchestral Season: A Symphony of Celebrations

The BBC Philharmonic brings a stunning array of orchestral concerts, celebrating diverse cultures and musical mastery. From the spiritual sounds of Sofia Gubaidulina at the International Women’s Day celebration to the Nordic themes of Sibelius and Grieg, and the powerful anti-war sentiments of Britten, this season promises an unforgettable musical journey. Join us as we delve into the stories behind each performance, showcasing the talents of renowned conductors and performers across iconic venues in the UK.

Harmonies of Culture: BBC Philharmonic's Orchestral Marvels

Experience an orchestral voyage with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, featuring celebrated works by Poulenc, Beethoven, and Mahler. From the atmospheric Victoria Hall in Hanley to Manchester's reverberant Bridgewater Hall, join remarkable artists like Anna Lapwood, Elena Schwarz, and Jess Dandy as they bring to life rich symphonies and captivating narratives. These performances promise to resonate deeply, whether through the powerful chords of Poulenc's Organ Concerto or Mahler's soul-stirring Symphony No. 3, creating unforgettable evenings of music that transcend time and space.

BBC Philharmonic's Musical Odyssey: From Beethoven to Mahler

The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra brings together a dazzling array of orchestral performances in 2025, showcasing the genius of composers like Poulenc, Beethoven, and Mahler. With renowned conductors and performers like Adam Hickox, Anna Lapwood, Elena Schwarz, and John Storgårds taking the stage, audiences are set for an unforgettable musical journey. These events, spanning from the evocative notes of Poulenc's Organ Concerto to the elemental power of Mahler's Symphony No. 3, promise to captivate music lovers across Stoke-on-Trent and Manchester.

BBC Philharmonic's 2025 Musical Odyssey: From Beethoven to Mahler

Anna Lapwood

Adam Hickox

BBC Philharmonic

Camille Pépin is making waves. A brilliant new voice in contemporary music, her addictive, luxuriant work sits somewhere between the seemingly opposite worlds of French impressionism and American minimalism.

Rachmaninoff’s Symphonic Dances

The Bridgewater Hall

Violist Lawrence Power returns to perform Cassandra Miller’s acclaimed Viola Concerto, a piece heralded on its 2022 premiere as an instant classic. Miller weaves her personal attachments into music, creating a work that is delicate, emotionally charged, and deeply human.

Romeo & Juliet

When it comes to symphonies, Beethoven's Third symphony was a real game changer and several centuries on has lost none of its sense of drama. Beethoven originally named his work for Napoleon but famously tore out the dedication after Napoleon crowned himself Emperor.

Beethoven’s ‘Eroica’

MediaCityUK

Who knew Haydn and hot cross buns might be related? “The Father of the Symphony”, Haydn’s staggering 104 symphonies are a legacy of brilliance. His final work, Symphony No. 104, known as The London Symphony, first dazzled audiences in 1795. Some have linked its finale to London street tunes, but its melodic roots lie in Haydn’s Austro-Croatian heritage, not the bakery aisle. We then descend into darker corners with Schubert’s Symphony No. 8, known as his ‘Unfinished Symphony’, with only two movements, this piece takes the listener on an emotional journey that feels altogether complete.

Schubert’s ‘Unfinished’

Nicholas Carter, one of the leading opera conductors of his generation, makes his Bridgewater Hall debut.

Four Last Songs

Puccini first showcased his operatic voice through the orchestra alone with his Capriccio Sinfonico. Marking the start of his signature musical style, it blends the lyrical and dramatic qualities that later came to define his iconic operas.

The Cunning Little Vixen

Grit courses through Julia Wolfe’s Anthracite Fields, her Pulitzer Prize-winning oratorio for choir and ensemble that serves as a musical memorial to American miners and their struggle.

Anthracite Fields

Influenced by Czech folk and expressionism, Haas’s Study for Strings is an energetic, introspective work now seen as a key piece of 20th-century Czech music. Themes of fate, migration and Martinů’s own journey echo through The Rock, reflecting nature, strength, and the enduring human spirit. Dissonance and overlapping melodies define Ives’s Three Places in New England – a bold blend of American folk and modernist experimentation. For our curtain call, Bernstein’s On the Town bursts with energy, fusing classical with popular jazz styles to make a dazzling finale.

Bernstein’s ‘On the Town’

Joshua Weilerstein makes his triumphant return to the Philharmonic in this musical postcard celebrating the 250th anniversary of American Independence. Three joyous works each cast a different light on the sights and sounds of the USA, culminating in a performance of Antonín Dvořák’s love letter to America – his ‘New World’ Symphony. One of the most beloved and enduring works in the orchestral repertoire, Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 explores themes of identity, belonging, and the emotional pull of home.

New World Symphony

Elegant and virtuosic, Haydn’s Cello Concerto in D Major is celebrated for both its charm and technical brilliance, filled lyrical melodies, high-register passages and rapid runs.

Spring Symphony

Wolfe was two blocks from the Twin Towers when the planes hit on September 11, 2001. Big Beautiful Dark and Scary is the sound of that aftermath: an ominous, awesome wall of sound. When he wrote his Violin Concerto, Tchaikovsky was also recuperating from personal turmoil: after a collapsed marriage and a failed suicide attempt, he escaped to the shores of Lake Geneva. In the company of a violinist muse – Josef Kotek – Tchaikovsky created a concerto of romance, peace and jollity, and a celebrated classic of the repertoire.

Big Beautiful Dark and Scary

We continue our thrillingly up-close series at the RNCM with a heavyweight artistic collaboration – our Chief Conductor John Storgårds joins the acclaimed pianist Tamara Stefanovich in this exploration of the pure power of the piano.

Grand Pianola Music

RNCM (Royal Northern College of Music)

Conductor Adam Hickox joins the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at Victoria Hall Hanley. A brilliant opportunity to hear rising star Anna Lapwood perform Poulenc's Organ Concerto.

Stravinsky, Poulenc and Beethoven at Victoria Hall, Hanley

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