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RNCM Spring Season 2025

Johnny James, Managing Editor
A musician looking into the distance.
Image supplied by Leeds Inspired.

RNCM Spring Season at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester Until 5 April 2025 Tickets from £8 — Book now

From classical masterpieces to cutting edge contemporary works, world-renowned soloists to homegrown talent, the RNCM spring season has it all.

Eyeing up the standout concerts, we take a closer look at Manchester Collective’s latest high contrast show alongside an off-site performance in one Manchester’s most stunning buildings, and a time-travelling programme from an internationally acclaimed pianist who believes the best art talks across centuries.

We also take a look at symphonic masterpieces, life-affirming gospel, thought-provoking opera, and even a galactic family adventure, soundtracked by one of the most successful contesting brass bands in the world.

Check it all out below.

RNCM Spring Season at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester Until 5 April 2025 Tickets from £8 Book now

Our top picks

Jonathan Biss (piano) at RNCM

Jonathan Biss (piano) at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester, 25 March 2025, from £14.00 - Book now

Known for bridging Classical masterpieces with contemporary repertoire, Jonathan Biss heads to the RNCM to perform two of Schubert’s three last piano sonatas and a specially commissioned piece by Tyshawn Sorey.

Find out more
Male with beard and glasses sitting on chair with leather jacket
Benjamin Ealovega

RNCM Chamber Choir with Clod Ensemble at Victoria Baths

RNCM Chamber Choir with Clod Ensemble at Victoria Baths, Manchester, 27 March 2025, from £12.00 - Book now

The RNCM is making a habit of programming brilliant off-site events in Manchester’s most unique spaces. Last year we had Nature’s Music at Manchester Museum. This year, we get something perhaps even more impressive.

Find out more
Chamber Choir musicians performing
RNCM and Robin Clewley

Britten: Owen Wingrave at the RNCM

Britten: Owen Wingrave at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM), Manchester, 30 March–5 April 2025, from £15.00 - Book now

Can one act of defiance shatter generations of tradition, or will history always find a way to repeat itself? Benjamin Britten’s Owen Wingrave grapples with this question in an opera that feels strikingly relevant in 2025.

Find out more
Ghostly image of solider and manor house
RNCM

What's on at Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)

Male with beard and glasses sitting on chair with leather jacket
MusicManchester
Jonathan Biss (piano) at RNCM

Known for bridging Classical masterpieces with contemporary repertoire, Jonathan Biss performs Schubert sonatas and a specially commissioned piece by Tyshawn Sorey.

from £14.00
Two dancers and orchestra on stage
Until
DanceManchester
Dance:Music at the RNCM

Through a treasure trove of concerts, the RNCM’s initiative Dance:Music explores the symbiotic relationship between music and dance.

from £0.00

Featured in

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Music in the North

We’re championing all things underground this month, with a selection of gigs and festivals that embrace the strange.

Where to go near RNCM Spring Season 2025

Manchester
Restaurant
San Carlo Fumo

San Carlo Fumo may be part of a chain, but it doesn’t feel like it. Right at the top of Oxford Road, it’s lavishly decorated and specialises in cicchetti, or Italian small plates.

Utility Gift Shop
Manchester
Shop
Utility Gift Shop

Utility Gift Shop on Oxford Road is all about products that are new, unique, quirky and cool. High street shopping at its best.

exterior of Contact Theatre building
Manchester
Theatre
Contact Theatre

Following a major redevelopment, the iconic venue on Oxford Road will be reopening its doors to welcome the public back into the building this autumn. 

The Salutation pub in Manchester
Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Salutation

This traditional boozer, surrounded by imposing flats and university buildings, was taken over by Trof (of the Deaf Institute fame). The Sally, as the regulars call it, hosts an energetic, arty crowd – and its recently expanded outside area is another good reason to visit.

Manchester
University
MMU Student Union

Manchester Metropolitan University Students’ Union building houses a bar and various other facilities for students and staff.

See all places

What's on: Music

A black woman sat down looking to the left.
Until
MusicLeeds
Sound Out Leeds 2024/25

Leeds International Concert Season is on a mission to push boundaries, expand horizons, and ask the question: ‘What haven’t we heard?’ as it presents its city-spanning Sound Out Leeds series.

from £10.00
Two dancers and orchestra on stage
Until
DanceManchester
Dance:Music at the RNCM

Through a treasure trove of concerts, the RNCM’s initiative Dance:Music explores the symbiotic relationship between music and dance.

from £0.00
FKA TWIGS
MusicManchester
FKA Twigs at Aviva Studios

One of the must-see gigs of the year comes as GRAMMY-nominated, multidisciplinary artist FKA twigs performs at Aviva Studios.

from £37.50
MusicManchester
The Waeve at Band on the Wall

A year on from their acclaimed eponymous debut album, Rose Elinor Dougall and Graham Coxon AKA The Waeve are back with a new record and a new tour.

from £24.75

Culture Guides

Mohair Man, 1991, by Dave Swindells
Exhibitions in the North

Cinematic sets, 90s nightclub photography and even new gallery - we have a great mix of exhibitions for you this month.

Poet Imtiaz Dharker. Photo by Ayesha Dharker
Literature Events in the North

It's like the Woolies pick'n'mix counter this month in live literature land – so much choice, we're not sure where to start digging in.

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in the North

DaDaFest’s 40th anniversary line-up, contemporary reimaginings and outlandish fringe, check out our top theatre picks for spring onwards.

We shelter here sometimes promo image. Featuring My Dog Sighs inside and abandoned building.
Cinema in the North

David Lynch, International Women's Day and Manchester Film Festival are amongst our cinematic highlights this March.

GROVE
Music in the North

We’re championing all things underground this month, with a selection of gigs and festivals that embrace the strange.

Classical Music in the North

Read our latest highlights from the live classical music offer in Manchester and the North, taking in a number of the region's most cherished orchestral forces and venues.

See all guides