The best: Classical music concerts to see in Manchester

Manchester Camerata return with the second edition of Here We Are, six days of pop-up performances which will see the renowned organisation’s internationally acclaimed musicians host free concerts and pop-up performances in unexpected public spaces across all ten boroughs of Greater Manchester.

Included in this year’s programme will be a couple of very special performances of Brian Eno’s seminal album, Ambient 1: Music for Airports, within Manchester Airport’s Terminal 2. Additional venues where unexpected performances and musical partnerships will take place this time around include Manchester Museum, Salford Crescent Hospital, Bolton Library, Stretford Carpark and St Andrews Care Home in Tameside.

Kicking off the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra’s 26/27 season in suitably stupendous style, the beauty, terror and joy of nature are all represented, with the evening’s show culminating in Sibelius’ final movement, containing one of the greatest moments in all symphonic music.

One of Europe’s leading chamber ensembles returns to Manchester as the acclaimed Wihan Quartet opens the Manchester Chamber Concerts Society’s 2026/27 season with a programme of towering string quartet repertoire.

Celebrating more than 40 years together, the Czech ensemble has earned international acclaim for its interpretations of Smetana and Dvořák, but here turns its attention to three deeply dramatic works by Mozart, Janáček and Schubert.

Opening with Mozart’s elegant String Quartet No. 15, the evening moves into Janáček’s gripping Kreutzer Sonata, inspired by Tolstoy’s tale of jealousy, passion and murder, before concluding with Schubert’s monumental Death and the Maiden, one of the most powerful works in the chamber music canon.

The Hallé launches into its new season with a deeply personal new symphony from featured composer James MacMillan, which sits alongside what is widely regarded as Beethoven’s greatest-ever piano concerto, Emperor.

In his Sixth Symphony, MacMillan remembers four close family members in musical portraits, each featuring a different section of the orchestra, before a final, fifth movement brings the whole orchestra back together.

The following night, Manchester Camerata returns to the RNCM alongside Conducting Fellow Jacobus de Jager for a concert spanning more than two centuries of orchestral music.

Beginning with the UK premiere of Arthur Feder’s Homestead, the programme also features Tchaikovsky’s achingly graceful Rococo Variations, performed by RNCM cellist Chloe Chen, a work that honours and masterfully embodies the elegance and refinement of the Classical era.

The concert culminates with Beethoven’s revolutionary Symphony No. 3, Eroica, a landmark work that transformed the possibilities of the symphony. Originally dedicated to Napoleon before the composer’s dramatic change of heart, its immense scale, emotional depth and heroic ambition continue to define orchestral music more than two centuries later.

Always a highlight of Manchester’s classical music calendar, The Bridgewater Hall’s International Concert Series returns this September. As ever, the programme is as diverse as it is impressive, with globe-trotting shows from the Ukrainian National Philharmonic Orchestra, Osaka Philharmonic and Stuttgart Phillharmonic, as well as turns from institutions closer to home, with the BBC Philharmonic and Opera North both set to perform.

The world’s biggest selling classical artist of the century returns to town this October, as Katherine Jenkins celebrates 25 years in music with her first UK tour in five years.

Expect a veritable feast of career-defining favourites including Time To Say Goodbye, Jealous of the Angels and I Will Always Love You, performed with the warmth, poise and effortless crossover appeal that have continually reinforced Jenkins one of Britain’s best-loved performers in any genre.

Since breaking through in 2003, Jenkins has amassed 14 number one albums, performed at royal celebrations, international sporting events and the Sydney Opera House, while becoming one of classical music’s most recognisable figures.

The Chamber Series at Hallé St Peter’s is a fantastic chance to get up close and personal to the music with sublime performances in an intimate setting. In October, Saint-Saëns’ Septet for trumpet, piano and strings, is paired with the world premiere of John Casken’s Enchant for trumpet and piano.

A perfect introduction to classical music, this concert is packed with showstopping hits, featuring some of the world’s favourite-ever classical pieces. Stephen Bell leads the Hallé orchestra through a programme that spans everything from Mozart’s Magic Flute Overture and Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto to Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet: Montagues and Capulets.

The RNCM Session Orchestra transforms timeless disco anthems into powerful orchestral creations. Expect to hear reimagined versions of hits by the likes of Chic, Gloria Gaynor, and Diana Ross, expertly arranged for the full sound of an orchestra and soloists from the school’s Pop Department.

Frame Ensemble brings silent-era films back to the screen with brand-new, improvised music created by artists across traditions ranging from jazz and folk to classically trained performers. Coming to the Stoller Hall for a special Halloween show, four musicians will score the unsettling 1924 psychological thriller, The Hands of Orlac.

Promising a night of drama and expansive sounds, the Hallé’s Principal Conductor Kahchun Wong conducts the RNCM Symphony Orchestra. The concert also features soprano soloist Esther Shea and the world premiere of a new work by RNCM composer Amit Manna, conducted by Juan Jose Munoz Borja.

A landmark collaboration with the V&A East Museum and Friday Night is Music Night comes to the BBC Philharmonic Studio at MediaCity, celebrating the impact of Black British music on British culture. The programme is still TBC, but this is certainly one to keep on your radar.

Step into the world of the Brontë sisters with Kantos Chamber Choir in a unique evening of choral music and spoken word inspired by the lives and imaginations of one of literature’s most famous families.

Elizabeth Gaskell specialist Dr Sherry Ashworth joins Kantos as co-curator and presenter for this performance, and the event will feature a pre-concert talk at 7.30pm.

Steve Reich’s minimalist masterpiece, which has inspired a myriad of artists throughout the years, ranging from Bowie to Aphex Twin, is performed by the virtuoso players of Paraorchestra at the RNCM Concert Hall in November. Paraorchestra is a pioneering collective of disabled and non-disabled musicians, renowned for creating unforgettable musical experiences.

Watch Raymond Briggs’ classic animated film, accompanied by the Hallé performing Howard Blake’s magical score. Plus, there’ll be some festive extras thrown in by way of the Polar Express and Frozen.

Experience Jonny Greenwood’s immersive work 605 Years of Reverb, a piece written by the Radiohead star to celebrate the unique legacy of organs in historic buildings. Organists James McVinnie and Eliza McCarthy team up to take on this immense piece, which draws upon influences from Indian music.