The Aurora Orchestra takes center stage with an exhilarating array of performances this season. From the vibrant streets of Paris circa 1900 to the echoing valleys of Italy, each event promises a unique sonic adventure. Highlights include a transformative 'Carnival' tour, an operatic tale of love and longing, and a deep dive into Shostakovich's Symphony No. 5. Join us as we explore the intricate fusion of music, narrative, and history brought to life by this innovative orchestra.

Aurora Orchestra: A Melodic Journey Through Time and Culture

Delve into a year of extraordinary musical experiences with the Aurora Orchestra as they present a series of events that transport audiences to different times and places. From the bustling streets of 1900s Paris to the tense atmosphere of Stalinist Russia, and the serene yet challenging peaks of the Alps, each concert is a vivid narrative brought to life through masterful performances and innovative storytelling. These events not only showcase renowned compositions but also highlight the creative genius of contemporary artists, offering a unique blend of historical and modern musical expressions.

Aurora Orchestra: Journey Through Diverse Musical Landscapes

Paddle in the stream, explore echoes across the valley and meet some friends along the way in Aurora’s latest adventure in the Far, Far Away Early Years series. Featuring the music of Gustav and Alma Mahler in new chamber arrangements by Harry Baker, and a brand-new story from Aurora’s Writer-in-Residence Kate Wakeling, expect to move, sing and join in with the storytelling.

Mahler and the Mountain Adventure

Kings Place

Nothing lifts the spirits quite like the opening of Mendelssohn’s symphony, which bursts into life with an irrepressible energy that could lift you off your feet. The composer once referred to it as ‘blue sky in A major’ and these postcards in sound from an epic 10-month foreign tour seem drenched in Mediterranean sunshine. Prokofiev’s concerto, written on the cusp of his resettlement in the Soviet Union, melds exquisite surface beauty with dark foreboding in his gripping, emotionally-charged concerto, performed by Chloë Hanslip. And to open, Caroline Shaw’s Entr’acte, inspired by a performance of a Haydn string quartet.

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Mendelssohn 4 – UK Tour

Saffron Hall

Ayres offers a different perspective on mountain life with his extraordinary No. 42 – In the Alps: an ‘animated concert’ which combines a virtuosic and ravishing score with a zany story and projected silent film-style titles. Mary Bevan appears as soloist for this playful, beautiful and often uproariously funny piece which tells the story of a young girl stranded on top of an unclimbable mountain-top, who learns to sing from the mountain animals around her and falls in love with the distant trumpet-playing of a boy in the valley far below.

In the Alps

Put your party clothes on, it’s time to sing, dance, play games and discover orchestral instruments!

Meet the Instruments

Southbank Centre

Written in the shadow of Russia’s Stalinist regime, Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony was by no means a purely rehabilitative work after the composer had been subjected to harsh attacks for his opera Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk. Instead, its ambiguity means it is now regarded as a subtle denunciation of the brutality of the Stalinist regime.

Shostakovich 5 – Germany Tour

Die Glocke

In 1936, Shostakovich’s new opera was slammed by the official Soviet paper Pravda as ‘muddle instead of music’. In Joseph Stalin’s Russia, a review like that could be deadly. Shostakovich knew he had to redeem himself fast. The result was his life-saving Fifth Symphony.

Edinburgh International Festival

Usher Hall

Explore a symphony from the inside out. Nicholas Collon and the Aurora Orchestra reflect this year’s Shostakovich anniversary with a Prom that takes the audience under the hood of a 20th-century masterpiece and into the mind of the man who made it. Actors join our players to bring to life a symphony born in the shadow of Stalin’s regime – music on the edge of life and death by a composer treading a dangerous line between political obedience and artistic defiance.

Shostakovich 5 – BBC Proms 2025

Royal Albert Hall

Explore a symphony from the inside out. Nicholas Collon and Aurora Orchestra reflect this year’s Shostakovich anniversary with a concert that takes the audience under the hood of a 20th-century masterpiece and into the mind of the man who made it. Actors join the players to bring to life a symphony born in the shadow of Stalin’s regime – music on the edge of life and death by a composer treading a dangerous line between political obedience and artistic defiance.

Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony

At the heart of the programme is Harold in Italy, Hector Berlioz’ vivid evocation of a journey through Italy, scored for solo viola and orchestra.

Lawrence Power & Aurora: In Italy

A Visit to Friends is an opera about love. Or, more accurately, about love’s frustrations. Drawing on Anton Chekhov’s short story and William Boyd’s Chekhovian play Longing, Colin Matthews’ opera (with libretto written by William Boyd) is, beguilingly, an opera within an opera, with music strongly influenced by Scriabin.

Aldeburgh Festival Opera: A Visit To Friends

Snape Maltings

Our new production transforms the concert into a museum visit in Paris around 1900, in which the musicians and the instruments are sounding exhibits. Carnival is performed alongside a new work by Richard Ayres, which explores what happens when the carnival is over and just the performers are left. Do you dare enter?

Carnival – International Tour

Kurtheater Bad Kissingen

Nikolaisaal

Stadttheater Ingolstadt

Théâtre Le Reflet

Amare

Brucknerhaus

Distinguished audience members, friends: welcome to a world of sound and movement, of risk and endeavour, of mystery and beguilement. Meet Dr Frompou, a madcap scientist who’s dedicated his life to taming his Most Magnificent Orchestra.

Carnival – UK Tour

arc Shopping Centre

First performed from memory by Aurora in 2023, The Rite of Spring is one of the most influential pieces of the 20th century. Taking away the music stands allows us to communicate more intensely with each other and the audience, an orchestra breathing as one with no barriers.

Aurora Symphony Orchestra

Apr 20, 2026

The Rite of Spring – International Tour

Nov 23 - Dec 6, 2025

Mahler and the Mountain Adventure

Nov 23, 2025

Mendelssohn 4 – UK Tour

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Aurora Symphony Orchestra