News Story
With the orchestra taking a well-deserved summer break in August, we thought we'd look back on the past year of music-making.
We loved sharing so many exciting concerts with you all throughout the 2025-26 season; from staging operas, welcoming returning and debuting conductors, the first CBSO Orchestral Residency, to exhilarating double concertos and our second year with Kazuki Yamada as our Music Director - where do we even begin by looking back?
Our concert highlights
Take a look at some snapshots from our concerts over the past year: from the beginning of Kazuki Yamada's Mahler cycle, conducting debuts from Gemma New, Carlo Rizzi and Tianyi Lu to staging Puccini's Tosca and welcome returns from Laura Mvula and Ilan Volkov.
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A wonderful performance. This was my first time watching a live orchestra and wow... It certainly hit hard! Can't wait to visit again.
Audience member
That was an awesome concert last night, felt a privilege to be in the hall with a stage full of musicians obviously enjoying themselves. Thank you.
Audience member
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Family fun and inviting thousands of children from across the Midlands
We welcomed over 14,000 young children across our 2026 Schools' Concerts and our Relaxed Concerts had over 8,000 pupils sign up to watch online in May. Take a look at the fun we got up to in our Notelets and Family Concerts, as well as the magic made on stage in Bringing the Light and the first CBSO Orchestral Residency with conductor Edward Gardner.
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Every concert with the CBSO Chorus is wonderful and this was no exception. A night to remember.
Audience member
I just wanted to express our thanks again for allowing our Calthorpe learners to attend the relaxed performance of Wind in the Willows. Both learners and staff were absolutely blown away by the attention to detail in the performance from the lighting, costumes and sensory elements to the incredibly talented musicians. Our learners were smiling and fully engaged throughout and it could not have been more suitable for their complex needs.
Relaxed Concert audience member
Our students and staff were captivated by this year’s KS3 concert. The CBSO’s energy, musicianship, and creativity lit up the hall, and the space-themed programme sparked genuine excitement and curiosity across our students and all other schools who came along at the same time. It was a joyful, inspiring experience that our school is still talking about — a real highlight of this half term for us!
Schools' Concert audience member
An engaging concert that has, undoubtedly, inspired our next generation of musicians. Thank you.
Schools' Concert audience member
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A mega European tour!
We visited 13 venues across Europe in March, joined by our Music Director, Kazuki Yamada and soloist Bruce Liu. From Paris to Hamburg and Linz, we loved sharing our joyful music-making across the world.
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Whether we've helped you to discover new pieces for your orchestral soundtrack or relive the magical moments in the pieces you love most, we hope you've found music that's right up your street this season. Thank you for supporting another year of music with our orchestra.
