The 2026–27 programme follows the orchestra’s 75th anniversary year and continues its commitment to bringing ambitious, engaging classical music to audiences across Sheffield.
Across three concerts, listeners can travel from Baroque brilliance to Romantic symphonies, with plenty of musical discoveries along the way.
The season begins on Saturday 5 December 2026 at Ecclesall Parish Church with New Voices, conducted by Gina Hazell. A conductor and performer with experience in symphonic, operatic and choral music, Gina works across the North of England and has collaborated with orchestras and young musicians.
For her Sheffield Chamber Orchestra debut, she will lead a colourful programme opening with Mendelssohn’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream Overture, written when the composer was just 17.
Dvořák’s lively Czech Suite and Handel’s elegant Concerto Grosso in B-flat major, Op. 6 No. 7 provide contrasting sounds, before the concert concludes with Louise Farrenc’s ambitious Symphony No. 1. Farrenc’s music is enjoying a long-overdue revival, making this a chance to encounter a remarkable composer whose work deserves a wider audience.
The second concert takes place on Saturday 13 March 2027, conducted by Sheffield-based John Lyon. Its programme brings together Beethoven, Fauré, Emilie Mayer and John Rutter, exploring orchestral music’s dramatic force, lyrical beauty and imagination. Familiar composers sit alongside Mayer, whose distinctive Romantic voice offers another opportunity to listen afresh.
The season closes on Saturday 22 May 2027 with Accent on Youth 2027, also conducted by Lyon. The concert will showcase emerging musicians, giving young performers the opportunity to play alongside an established chamber orchestra before a live audience. Supporting the next generation is an important part of the orchestra’s contribution to Sheffield’s musical community.
Together, the three concerts span the Baroque, Classical, Romantic and modern eras. Whether audiences are revisiting Beethoven, discovering Farrenc or Mayer, or hearing young performers take to the stage, each event promises something to explore.
Julie Ryan, Chair of Sheffield Chamber Orchestra, says the season reflects the orchestra’s love of great music played with enthusiasm, while introducing audiences to composers and musicians they may not have encountered before.
Full concert, venue and ticket information is available on the Sheffield Chamber Orchestra website. Season tickets are on sale now, with audiences across Sheffield and South Yorkshire warmly invited to join the orchestra for a year of live music and discovery.
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