The annual Three Choirs Festival in Hereford, celebrated its historical roots and musical grandeur with a series of spectacular performances by the Philharmonia Orchestra. The festival opened with Mathias's 'This Worlde’s Joie', continued with Howells’s poignant 'Hymnus Paradisi', honored Coleridge-Taylor's 'The Atonement', and concluded with Mendelssohn’s epic 'Elijah'. Each concert featured exceptional artists and highlighted the power of choral music to express joy, grief, and spiritual transcendence, captivating audiences with their emotional depth and artistic mastery.

Harmony and Heritage: The Immersive Experience of the Three Choirs Festival 2025

The 2025 Three Choirs Festival promises a captivating exploration of choral music's grandeur and emotional depth. Held at the historic Hereford Cathedral, the festival features an eclectic lineup, from William Mathias's exuberant 'This Worlde’s Joie' to Mendelssohn's dramatic 'Elijah.' Audiences will be treated to performances by acclaimed artists like Eleanor Dennis and Geraint Bowen, with works by Dvořák and Howells adding to the festival's rich tapestry. Join us as we delve into each event's unique offerings and the timeless beauty of choral compositions.

Three Choirs Festival 2025: A Celebration of Choral Masterpieces

The Philharmonia Orchestra, known for its vibrant performances and musical excellence, is set to dazzle audiences in 2025 with a series of captivating concerts and events. From the premiere of new works by emerging composers at the Composers’ Academy to the majestic finales of renowned festivals, this year’s lineup promises an exhilarating range of experiences. Join us as we explore the highlights and unique contributions of the artists involved, making this a year to remember in the world of classical music.

Philharmonia Orchestra's 2025: A Year of Unforgettable Musical Journeys

As the summer sun casts its warmth over Hereford, the Three Choirs Festival 2025 unfolds with a symphony of voices and orchestral brilliance. From the jubilant tones of Mathias’s 'This Worlde’s Joie' to the poignant strains of Howells’s 'Hymnus Paradisi', this year's festival promises a choral feast that transcends the ordinary. The Philharmonia Orchestra, accompanied by a stellar lineup of performers, brings to life the works of Dvořák, Coleridge-Taylor, Mendelssohn, and more, creating a tapestry of sound that resonates with both historical depth and contemporary artistry.

Echoes of Harmony: A Journey Through the Three Choirs Festival 2025

The Three Choirs Festival 2025 in Hereford promises a profound journey through the realms of choral music. From the exuberance of Mathias’s 'This Worlde’s Joie' to the profound depths of Howells’s 'Hymnus Paradisi', and the celebration of Coleridge-Taylor's legacy, the festival's line-up is a testament to the power of musical storytelling. Join us at the majestic Hereford Cathedral as we explore these emotive performances, which culminate in the epic drama of Mendelssohn’s 'Elijah'.

Voices of Harmony: A Journey Through the Three Choirs Festival 2025

In the summer of 2025, the melodious soundscapes of choral music will resonate across Hereford, United Kingdom, as the Three Choirs Festival returns with a series of spellbinding performances. Featuring an array of masterpieces, the festival's highlights include Mathias’s spirited 'This Worlde’s Joie' and Howells’s poignant 'Hymnus Paradisi.' With the Philharmonia Orchestra as the driving force, the festival offers an exploration of human emotions through music, culminating in Mendelssohn’s epic 'Elijah.' Beyond Hereford, the Philharmonia Orchestra's journey extends to the vibrant Mikkeli Music Festival and the grand Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, where renowned artists join to celebrate the universal language of music.

A Symphony of Voices: Exploring the 2025 Three Choirs Festival and More

Matthew Brook

Anthony Gregory

Geraint Bowen

Jess Dandy

Katherine Broderick

Philharmonia Orchestra

Three Choirs Festival Chorus

“For me, the sound of the violin reflects the soul,” says Lisa Batiashvili. 

Tchaikovsky may well have agreed. He wrote his Violin Concerto on holiday by Lake Geneva with the young student he hoped would premiere it, and poured equal parts emotion and virtuosity into his fiercely difficult and beautiful score. This afternoon it’s in the hands of exceptional violinist Lisa Batiashvili, whose last performance with the Philharmonia was acclaimed as ‘compelling from the very first bar’ (The Guardian). 

Lisa Batiashvili plays Tchaikovsky

Southbank Centre

The theme of the 2025/26 Orchestra Unwrapped concerts is centered around the history of the Philharmonia Orchestra, which was founded in 1945 by Walter Legge and celebrates its 80th birthday in 2025. Legge worked for a company called EMI, who was responsible for making recordings of classical music. 

The pieces you’ll hear take us on a journey through time linking to the exciting history of the Philharmonia, from 1945 to today – a history you are all part of by being part of Orchestra Unwrapped in its 80th year!

London: Orchestra Unwrapped

The Philharmonia’s Principal Viola Scott Dickinson and friends play one of the masterpieces of the Baroque era.  

Johann Sebastian Bach’s music continues to captivate listeners nearly three centuries after it was written. His works for strings showcase his genius for structure, balance, and emotional depth — combining technical brilliance with a profound sense of humanity.

In this free Philharmonia Chamber Players concert, Bach’s masterly counterpoint (music composed from lines of melody that interlock in different patterns) is performed by three of the orchestra’s outstanding string players.  

Philharmonia Chamber Players: Bach

Two classics of the orchestral repertoire contrast with a heartfelt recent work by our Featured Composer Gabriela Ortiz. 

The story goes that Beethoven’s fifth Piano Concerto got its nickname from a comment by an officer in Napoleon’s army, who attended one of the first performances and declared it ‘an Emperor of a concerto’. It gives soloist Denis Kozhukhin the opportunity to display the different facets of his skill, from the rule-breaking creativity of the first movement, through the serenity of the second, to the dancing virtuosity of the finale.    

Denis Kozhukhin plays Beethoven

The Philharmonia and Barts Choir join forces for an iconic piece in the classical canon: Verdi’s epic Requiem.

Verdi poured all his expertise in depicting human emotion into this choral masterpiece. There is violence in the ‘Dies Irae’ movement, and grandeur in the ‘Tuba Mirum’, heralded by eight trumpets. Joyful praise resounds in the ‘Sanctus’, and the ‘Agnus Dei’ opens with a spine-tingling unaccompanied duet for the soprano and mezzo soloists.

Barts Choir: Verdi Requiem

The Philharmonia welcomes outstanding pianist Bruce Liu to Bedford.  

Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G was inspired by the jazz he heard on a tour of the United States. Ravel frames a serenely beautiful Adagio with outer movements of carefree, effervescent energy. It’s the perfect showcase for the “magician’s fingers” (Le Monde) of Bruce Liu, winner of the 2021 International Chopin Piano Competition.  

Tchaikovsky himself said that his Fifth Symphony represented “a complete resignation before Fate”, but that hasn’t stopped it becoming a firm audience favourite. It opens with the sound of funereal footsteps on the clarinet. A singing horn melody gives the second movement a more hopeful mood, but the fateful ‘footsteps’ theme returns in the third movement waltz, and triumphs in the stormy finale.  

Bedford: Bruce Liu plays Ravel

Bedford Corn Exchange

The Philharmonia welcomes outstanding pianist Bruce Liu to Leicester.  

Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G was inspired by the jazz he heard on a tour of the United States. Ravel frames a serenly beautiful Adagio with outer movements of carefree, effervescent energy. It’s the perfect showcase for the “magician’s fingers” (Le Monde) of Bruce Liu, winner of the 2021 International Chopin Piano Competition.  

Tchaikovsky himself said that his Fifth Symphoy represented “a complete resignation before Fate”, but that hasn’t stopped it becoming a firm audience favourite. It opens with the sound of footsteps on the clarinet. A singing horn melody gives the second movement a more hopeful mood, but the fateful ‘footsteps’ theme returns in the third movement waltz, and triumphs in the stormy finale.  

Leicester: Bruce Liu plays Ravel

De Montfort Hall

The Philharmonia welcomes outstanding pianist Bruce Liu back to London.  

Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G was inspired by the jazz he heard on a tour of the United States. Ravel frames a serenely beautiful Adagio with outer movements of carefree, effervescent energy. It’s the perfect showcase for the ‘magician’s fingers’ (Le Monde) of Bruce Liu, winner of the 2021 International Chopin Piano Competition.   

Tchaikovsky himself said that his Fifth Symphony represented ‘a complete resignation before Fate’, but that hasn’t stopped it becoming a firm audience favourite. It opens with the sound of funereal footsteps on the clarinet. A singing horn melody gives the second movement a more hopeful mood, but the fateful ‘footsteps’ theme returns in the third movement waltz, and triumphs in the stormy finale. 

Bruce Liu plays Ravel

Superstar violinist Nicola Benedetti joins the Philharmonia in Elgar’s tempestuous and tender Violin Concerto.  

Nicola Benedetti is one of the best-loved violin soloists of our time, and a regular and popular collaborator with the Philharmonia. Her chart-topping recording of this formidable work was praised for “a sure sense of direction and lots of heart” (The Guardian) – an accurate description of Benedetti’s approach to everything she does. 

Basingstoke: Nicola Benedetti plays Elgar

The Anvil

Superstar violinist Nicola Benedetti joins the Philharmonia in Elgar’s tempestuous and tender Violin Concerto.  

Nicola Benedetti is one of the best-loved violin soloists of our time, and a regular and popular collaborator with the Philharmonia. Her chart-topping recording of this formidable work was praised for ‘a sure sense of direction and lots of heart’ (The Guardian) – an accurate description of Benedetti’s approach to everything she does. 

Nicola Benedetti plays Elgar

Epic. Loud. Flamboyant. Classical music and heavy metal have more in common than you might think.

Drawing inspiration from metal’s industrial roots, the 100-strong Philharmonia Orchestra brings its powerful sound to some of the biggest pieces of orchestral music ever composed – think Wagner’s Ride of the Valkyries –  and orchestral versions of rock and heavy metal anthems.

Forged in Sound: Heavy Metal Orchestrated

Leicester: Orchestra Unwrapped

We close this year’s Three Choirs Festival with Mendelssohn’s masterpiece, Elijah.

A breathtaking oratorio and epic drama of biblical proportions, prepare to be blown away by the full forces of the Festival Chorus and the Philharmonia Orchestra. The story of the prophet Elijah is brought to life through majestic choruses, beautiful solo arias, and dramatic orchestral passages, building to a fiery climax with Elijah’s ascent to heaven in a flaming chariot.

Three Choirs Festival: Mendelssohn’s Elijah

Articles & News