Childhood and lullabies weave through this concert, which puts the spotlight on Benjamin Britten to mark the 50th anniversary of his death. Britten composed themes for his Simple Symphony as a child, while A Charm of Lullabies reimagines texts by Blake and Burns.
Timothy Jackson presents a gentle hymn of comfort, and two works by Grammy Award-winning composer Caroline Shaw offer a psychedelic take on fairytales and nature.
Promoted by Liverpool Philharmonic
Elizabeth Dodd is well known as a performer and teacher of the viola da gamba and is in demand as a tutor for early music summer schools and on weekend courses. She also performs and teaches early dance and has advised theatre companies on movement for period drama. She specialises in music for solo unaccompanied viola da gamba ranging from 16th Century Italy, English lyra viola music and music from 18th Century collections from France, Germany and England.
Elizabeth will be playing early 18th Century operatic arias for solo viola da gamba (bass viol), plus tuneful dance pieces; an allemande, sarabande, and ballet by Hotman, and a sonata by Abel, a pupil of J.S. Bach.
Part of the Yoko Ono Lennon Lunchtime Concert Series
Cleopatra, comprised of sisters Cleopatra, Zainam, and Yonah Higgins, burst onto the music scene in the late 1990s as trailblazers in the British pop industry.
Hailing from Manchester, England, these talented siblings quickly captivated audiences with their infectious energy, soulful harmonies, and dynamic performances, earning them a special place in music history as the first black British girl group to achieve mainstream success.
Distinguished British artist and The Guardian’s “original folk voice” Ruth Theodore returns to the UK this November for a rare run of full-band shows amidst an especially expansive and creatively significant period in her international career, which has seen her touring extensively in the US.
Signed to Ani DiFranco’s Righteous Babe Records, Ruth has earned international critical acclaim for her songwriting and recordings, alongside a growing reputation for immersive, audience-connected live performances, most recently wowing audiences across the US at iconic venues and major festivals.
Expect extraordinary lyricism, unique percussive guitar and emotive piano, with politics, playfulness and a sense of joyful rebellion that pushes the boundaries of gender and genre.
This tour will see Ruth joined by award-winning Zimbabwean bassist, singer and songwriter Edith WeUtonga, whose album Varipasi was shortlisted for the 2025 Folk Album of the Year Award; virtuoso pianist Calum Prior on keys and soundscapes; plus the debut appearance of dynamic drummer Tim Amatah, bringing beats and percussion.
Ruth’s latest album I Am I Am received consistent 5-star reviews. The November tour will feature brand-new songs from Ruth’s forthcoming record, fully realised in complete band arrangements for the first time. “you’d be crazy to miss this chance to see her!” — Time Out London
Jim White is a self-taught guitarist and singer who has seen a lot of life. He’s been a European fashion model, professional surfer, boxer, preacher, and dishwasher, culminating with thirteen long years driving a taxicab in New York City, where he crossed paths with David Byrne, who later signed White to his Luaka Bop label.
There followed a succession of critically acclaimed solo records, appearances on major network shows like Letterman and Conan, plus several off-beat side project releases (Hellwood with Johnny Dowd, Mama Lucky, Sounds of the Americans) His music runs the gamut – alt-country, indie pop, experimental music of various kinds. It is by turns deep, catchy, dark, beautiful, sad, and funny. Above all, he’s a brilliant lyricist and storyteller.
Many of his songs have appeared in film and television, (‘Word-Mule’ in Breaking Bad, and ‘Static on the Radio’ in El Camino with Aimee Mann) He starred in the 2003 award winning BBC documentary, ‘Searching for the Wrong Eyed Jesus’, a road movie set in the rural South, which has attained cult status among southern gothic fans far and wide. His first novel, Incidental Contact, is based on his days driving the taxi in New York City. He’s been published in the literary music journal Radio Silence, receiving the prestigious Pushcart Prize for short fiction. He served as literary commentator for the National Endowment of the Arts.
He exhibits visual art in galleries across the US and Europe. Don’t miss the last UK show of Jim White’s European tour, promoting his upcoming album: Gone Forever, Be Back Soon
For more than 20 years, Tommy Blaize has been one of the most familiar and best-loved voices on British television as lead singer on BBC Strictly Come Dancing. Now he takes centre stage with his full live band in a spectacular new show, The Golden Age of Swing.
From Frank Sinatra and Nat King Cole to Louis Armstrong, Ray Charles, Ella Fitzgerald, Dean Martin and many more, Tommy performs the timeless ballroom and Great American Songbook classics that have become synonymous with his voice for millions across the country.
Backed by a hand-picked ensemble of some of the UK’s finest musicians, Tommy brings these legendary standards and era-defining songs to life with all the elegance, authority and unmistakable style that have made him one of the nation’s most distinctive and treasured singers.
Join Tommy for an unforgettable evening of world-class music and hear the voice millions already know.
This exciting concert is book-ended by two of Handel’s most popular works: Zadok the Priest, performed at every coronation since it was written for George II in 1727 and The Water Music, written in 1717 in which the players were seated in barges on the River Thames.
In contrast is the Mass for Choir and Orchestra, a most attractive setting by the well-known local composer, Jim Cooke, who studied at Liverpool Hope University. Another piece by a Hope musician is Idyll by Harriet Blaney-Green, a lyrical work for wind band. HMC gave this piece its first performance in Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. The concert is conducted by Helen Thomas and is the first where the choir has been rehearsed by its new Director, Jess Atkinson.
NB: This concert takes place in the Great Hall at Liverpool Hope University Creative Campus, 17 Shaw Street, Liverpool L6 1HP.
Step into a world where sound becomes architecture and memory dissolves into signal. British electronic musician Robin Rimbaud (Scanner) brings his singular live performance to the stage—an immersive experience that blurs the boundaries between music, surveillance, and storytelling.
Renowned for transforming intercepted transmissions and everyday sonic fragments into richly textured compositions, Scanner crafts performances that feel both intimate and expansive. Pulsing rhythms, ghostly voices, and evolving atmospheres unfold in real time, creating a space where technology meets emotion with striking precision.
This is not simply a concert—it’s a live act of discovery. Each performance is unique, shaped by place, audience, and moment, drawing listeners into a deeply attentive state where the unseen becomes audible.
Scanner will be supported with an opening set by The Metamorph. The Metamorph (Gavin Brick) has been composing and recording with hardware synthesisers since 1982. His work is often ambient and experimental in nature, with a nod to the Radiophonic Workshop and sci-fi film scores. Live performances are predominantly improvised, with past shows including Glasgow Gallery of Modern Art, Galeri Harlech, Victoria Gallery and Museum and FACT in Liverpool. The Metamorph also played synths for Pete Wylie and The Mighty Wah on their sold out UK tour in 2022. Music releases have appeared on Moolakii Club Audio Interface, and the acclaimed electronic label Castles in Space, among others. Scanner made a guest appearance on the Metamorph album The Man on the 99th Floor in 2023.
This concert of contrasts opens with Gluck’s Overture and Dance of the Blessed Spirits from his opera Orfeo ed Euridice. Gluck was an older contemporary of Mozart and his Dance is one of the most moving and exquisite pieces in the repertoire.
Next comes Stephen Pratt’s re-imagining of pieces by the baroque composer Lully, who had total control over music at the court of King Louis XIV of France. It is a strange but well-known fact that he beat time with a long wooden stick – you will hear a reference to this in Stephen’s piece – and died from a severe infection after accidentally hitting his own foot with it.
Quite different is a contemporary piece Lyric for strings by George Walker. This is being played in tribute to the orchestra’s much loved and missed violinist, Mark Julius, who died before his time.
Finally, Mozart’s Jupiter, one of the greatest of all symphonies and the composer’s last as it was written in 1788, some three years before his death. It is a profound and elegant piece with a bubbling Finale with which to conclude the concert.
NB: This concert takes place in the Great Hall at Liverpool Hope University Creative Campus, 17 Shaw Street, Liverpool L6 1HP.
Over three decades, Jo Johnson’s musical path has serpentined from punk through techno to deeply affecting electronic minimalism.
With her first solo album, Weaving (Further Records), she embarked on a new journey into transcendence and catharsis through improvised, generative and composed electronics. Her subsequent releases with Quiet Details (2025), Castles in Space (2024), Mysteries of the Deep (2023) and Going In (2021) show an artist in continual creative evolution.
Known for her immersive live performances as a Freerotation festival resident and regular at Castles in Space’s Levitation events, Jo has appeared at The Purcell Room and Cafe Oto (London), No Way Back (Detroit) and Parallel (Barcelona).
Polypores’ mercurial live performances range from highly textural, intricately woven modular synth tapestries, through to whirling psychedelic freak-outs with hypnotic polyrhythms and fuzzed-up drum machines. A riveting performer in complete symbiosis with his instrument, each Polypores performance is a unique channelling of the weird energies that make up his fractal musical universe.