Classical music to see in London in spring/summer 2025
London’s classical music scene is flourishing this spring, offering an exciting blend of timeless masterpieces and fresh, innovative performances. Highlights include Mitsuko Uchida’s recital of Beethoven and Schubert’s late piano works at the Royal Festival Hall, alongside the London Symphony Orchestra, led by Sir Simon Rattle, as they celebrate his 70th birthday with an all-British programme at the Barbican. In May, Sir András Schiff will perform Schumann’s Piano Concerto at the Royal Festival Hall, while the Barbican’s Half Six Fix series offers an engaging introduction to classical music with works like Brahms’ Symphony No. 4. Here’s our guide to classical music shows to see in London this spring/summer.
Mitsuko Uchida: Beethoven & Schubert
Mitsuko Uchida. Image credit Justin Pumfrey.
#FLODown: Mitsuko Uchida will perform a concert featuring Beethoven and Schubert’s late works for piano in March 2025 at the Royal Festival Hall. Known for her interpretations of Viennese composers, Uchida will showcase Beethoven’s Sonata in E minor Op. 90, highlighting its contrasts of darkness and light, and Schubert’s final sonata, the B flat major D.960, a poignant and emotional piece. Uchida, a celebrated pianist with multiple Grammy and Gramophone Awards, is renowned for her association with Vienna’s musical legacy.
Date: 7 March 2025. Time: 7pm. Duration: 2 hours (approx). Location: The Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX. Price: from £15.00 +BF. Book now
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Simon Rattle
London Symphony Orchestra to celebrate Sir Simon Rattle’s 70th birthday at the Barbican in January 2025.
#FLODown: To celebrate Sir Simon Rattle’s 70th birthday, the London Symphony Orchestra presents an all-British programme featuring Tippett, Turnage, and Vaughan Williams. Highlights include Ritual Dances from Tippett’s opera The Midsummer Marriage, rich in mythology and symbolism, and the world premiere of Sco, a Guitar Concerto by Turnage, performed by jazz legend John Scofield. The programme concludes with Vaughan Williams’ Symphony No. 5, a deeply emotional work dedicated to Sibelius. Sir Simon Rattle leads the LSO in this vibrant celebration of opera, jazz, and orchestral mastery.
Date: 12 January 2025. Time: 7pm. Location: The Barbican Hall, Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: £18 - £70+ BF. Book now
Wayne Marshall
Wayne Marshall. Image credit Charlie Best.
#FLODown: Wayne Marshall OBE, a renowned conductor, pianist, and virtuoso organist, will perform at the Royal Festival Hall in June 2025. Known for his eclectic programmes and improvisations, Marshall will showcase his improvisations on themes from Bernstein’s West Side Story, closing the recital with his unique interpretation. The performance opens with Andrew Ager’s Toccata & Fugue in C (2009), followed by Roger-Ducasse’s Pastorale, a personal favourite of Marshall’s, described as “romantic and colourful.” The programme also features Schmidt’s Variations & Fugue on King’s Fanfares from Fredigundis.
Date: 28 June 2025. Time: 7pm. Duration: 1 hour and 40 minutes (approx). Location: The Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX. Price: from £20 + BF. Book now
Half Six Fix at the Barbican
London Symphony Orchestra: Half Six Fix – Prokofiev 2 with Gianandrea Noseda to take place in April 2025.
#FLODown: The Half Six Fix concert series by the London Symphony Orchestra offers a 60-minute musical experience, starting at 6.30pm. Each event features one piece of music, with insights from performers about the composition. Upcoming performances include Sir Simon Rattle conducting Brahms’ Symphony No. 4, a focus on Vaughan Williams’ Sea Symphony, and Gianandrea Noseda introducing works by Schubert, Prokofiev, and Berlioz. The series provides a quick yet engaging introduction to classical music. Click here to discover upcoming Half Six Fix concerts in 2025.
Location: Barbican Centre,Silk Street, London,EC2Y 8DS. Price: £15 - £35.
Strings from the Royal Opera House Orchestra and Victor Sangiorgio
Strings from the Royal Opera House Orchestra, Covent Garden.
#FLODown: London Chamber Music Society Sundays will present a concert featuring distinguished string soloists from the Royal Opera House Orchestra, including Sergey Levitin, Jan Schmolk, Amelie Roussel, Judith Busbridge, and Hetty Snell. The programme will begin with Mozart’s early String Quartet in C, K.157, followed by Louise Farrenc’s Piano Quintet in C minor, with pianist Victor Sangiorgio. The concert will conclude with Brahms’s dramatic Piano Quintet in F minor, Op.34, a piece completed in 1865. It promises to be a wonderful evening of classical masterpieces.
Date: 16 March 2025. Time: 6pm. Location: Kings Place, 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG. Price: £8.50- £30 + 12.5% (£6 cap) Transaction fee + £1 Building levy. Book now
Schumann's Piano Concerto
Sir Andras Schiff with Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment. Image credit Belinda Lawley.
#FLODown: In May 2025, Sir András Schiff performs Schumann’s Piano Concerto, a deeply romantic work inspired by his wife Clara. Originally conceived as a single-movement Fantasy, the concerto’s final form reflects Clara’s encouragement to expand it into a larger-scale piece. Its thematic unity blends piano and orchestra, conveying hidden messages understood only by Clara. The concert also features Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream incidental music, with magical opening chords and lively motifs reflecting the enchanted world of Shakespeare’s play. Expect a night of passion, fantasy, and musical brilliance.
Date: 22 May 2025. Time: 7pm. Duration: 2 hours (approx). Location: The Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX. Price: from £15 + BF. Book now
India’s Music of Today: Niladri Kumar
India’s Music of Today: Niladri Kumar at the Barbican in February 2025.
#FLODown: Experience an unforgettable evening of Indian classical music with renowned sitar player Kumar, known for his collaborations with A R Rahman and Ustad Zakir Hussain. He will be joined by the exceptional tabla player Satyajit Talwalkar, whose improvisational skills are shaped by his legendary father. The concert will feature a beautiful programme of evening ragas and talas, blending flawless technique with musical mastery.
Date: 11 February 2025. Time: 6.30pm. Location: Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London, EC2Y 8DS. Price: £20 - £75. Book now
Chineke! Orchestra: Tributes & Triumphs
© Olivia Da Costa.
#FLODown: In April 2025, the Chineke! Orchestra presents Tributes & Triumphs at the Royal Festival Hall. The concert will feature Valerie Coleman’s Seven O’Clock Shout, a tribute to Covid-19 frontline workers, followed by Avril Coleridge-Taylor’s A Sussex Landscape, capturing the essence of the region’s natural beauty. Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto in E flat, with Aaron Akugbo, will highlight the brilliance of the trumpet. The evening will conclude with Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Symphony in A minor, a masterful blend of tradition and innovation that celebrates his enduring legacy. Expect a powerful, emotional journey through resilience, beauty, and musical mastery.
Date: 9 April 2025. Time: 7.30pm. Duration: 2 hours (approx). Location: Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, London, SE1 8XX. Price: from £9 + BF. Book now
The William Christie 80th Birthday Concert at Wigmore Hall
A concert to celebrate William Christie’s 80th Birthday to take place at Wigmore Hall in February 2025.
#FLODown: The William Christie 80th Birthday Concert at Wigmore Hall, taking place in February 2025, celebrates the renowned harpsichordist’s legacy in reviving French Baroque music. The concert features Christie, Les Arts Florissants, and a talented vocal ensemble, including soprano Ana Vieira Leite, mezzo-sopranos Juliette Mey and Rebecca Leggett, tenor Bastien Rimondi, and baritone Matthieu Walendzik, in an extravagant tribute to his contributions to the genre.
Date: 11 February 2025. Time: 7.30pm. Duration: 70 minutes (approx) without an interval. Location: Wigmore Hall ,36 Wigmore Street, London W1U 2BP. Price: £18 - £50. Book now
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – A Family Concert Adventure
Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – A Family Concert Adventure.
#FLODown: Kings Place is hosting family-friendly classical music concerts, including Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – A Family Concert Adventure. Featuring violinist Daniel Pioro and the Manchester Camerata, this event takes audiences of all ages on a journey through Vivaldi’s masterpiece. Part of the Earth Unwrapped series, it’s a musical exploration of sunshine, storms, rain, and snow—so bring your imagination!
Date: 18 January 2025. Time: 3pm. Location: Kings Place 90 York Way, London, N1 9AG. Price: £15 -£20 + 12.5% (£6 cap) Transaction fee. + £1 Building levy. Book now
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/Yunchan Lim
Yunchan Lim. Image credit James Holecrop.
#FLODown: Experience an unforgettable evening at the Royal Albert Hall. Yunchan Lim, the youngest-ever winner of the 2022 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition, performs Chopin’s Second Piano Concerto, a masterpiece of poetic beauty and fiery passion. The programme also features Mussorgsky’s dramatic, soul-stirring music, followed by Vasily Petrenko conducting Strauss’s monumental Alpine Symphony – a vivid orchestral journey through waterfalls, glaciers, and alpine meadows.
Date: 20 May 2025. Time: 7:30pm. Location: Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, South Kensington, London SW7 2AP. Price: form £21.80. Book now
Nash Ensemble and Christine Rice
Mezzo Christine Rice. Image credit Patricia Taylor.
#FLODown: In March 2024, Christine Rice joins the Nash Ensemble for a concert featuring songs by Ravel and Duparc. The programme includes Ravel’s Piano Trio, Debussy’s harp piece Danse sacrée et danse profane, and Fauré’s passionate early Piano Quartet, offering a rich selection of glittering chamber works.
Date: 1 March 2025. Time: 7.30pm. Duration: 2 hours (approx) including an interval. Location: Wigmore Hall, 36 Wigmore Street, London W1U 2BP. Price: £18 - £40. Book now
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra: Orchestral Valentines
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and presenter Petroc Trelawny will preform a Valentine’s Dat concert at Cadogan Hall in February 2025.
#FLODown: Join the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and presenter Petroc Trelawny at Cadogan Hall for a Valentine’s Day concert filled with romantic favourites from film, opera, and the concert hall. The programme features Tchaikovsky, Liszt, and highlights from La Traviata, Thaïs, The Sleeping Beauty, and Spartacus, alongside iconic scores from Out of Africa, Love Actually, and Dances with Wolves. Pianist Clare Hammond adds to the magic with slow movements from Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 2 and Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Perfect for couples, groups, or solo attendees, this enchanting concert promises an unforgettable evening.
Date: 14 February 2025. Time: 7.30pm. Duration: 2 hours (approx). Location: 5 Sloane Terrace, London SW1X 9DQ. Price: from £28 - £65. Book now
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