Big Band, Jazz and Horror Movies: The RNCM hosts an all-embracing programme of incredible live performances

Hailed as ‘the most influential jazz pianist of the last 20 years’ (The New York Times), Brad Mehldau returns to the RNCM with a solo show which draws on a boundless repertoire spanning exploratory jazz, classical romanticism and irresistible pop. As an unabashed lover of popular music with a startling talent for mixing musical idioms, Mehldau’s sprawling catalogue includes ingenious reworkings of classic songs by The Beatles, Cole Porter, Radiohead, Paul Simon, Nick Drake and others.

Bringing their dynamic, energetic rhythms and authentic charm to the RNCM on Thu 5 Oct, The Easy Rollers present a rollicking setlist of jaunty, joyous hits spanning the Jazz Age (1920-1933) and the Swing Era (1933-1947). Formed in Manchester and comprising several RNCM alumni, the band has enthralled British audiences with sleek speakeasy melodies, galloping ditties and original comedic vignettes since 2016.

As Halloween approaches, the RNCM thrillingly reimagines the unsettling tale of a deranged hypnotist and his homicidal sleepwalking minion. Widely known as the ‘original horror film of silent cinema’, The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari is shown live on a big screen while organist Darius Battiwalla performs a fully improvised soundtrack, imbuing the 1920 German Expressionist masterpiece with a freshly unsettling dimension.

Featuring a specially curated ‘Earth’ setlist of familiar songs adapted into brand new arrangements, each inspired by our planet, the RNCM Session Orchestra invites audiences on an odyssey through six decades of musical evolution in an electrifying night of captivating compositions, led by Director Andy Stott.

Promising a night of infectiously catchy tunes, blistering rhythms and soulful improvisations, celebrated trombonist Dennis Rollins performs with the RNCM Big Band on Fri 15 Dec.