Usher Hall

The recently revamped Usher Hall in Edinburgh's West End opens its doors upon its second structural makeover since opening on a budget of a mere £100,000 way back in 1896. Phew. With a new wing that reflects the tastes of contemporary design, an overhaul of technologies, and massively improved seating and physical access facilities, the Usher Hall has welcomed change where change was needed, whilst retaining the breathtaking circular architectural layout, domed ceiling and imposing, column-flanked entrance of old. Proud of its variety-nurturing ethos, the Usher Hall programme is stuffed with consummate performers, from the Royal Scottish National Orchestra to a recent, and rather immense, gig from the mighty Bon Iver.

• Jack Jones

  7:30pm – 10:00pm, From £27.50
  Usher Hall

  The American jazz singer plays as part of his official Farewell UK Tour, including tributes to Frank Sinatra and Andy Williams.

• RSNO: Dvorák Cello Concerto

  7:30pm – 10:00pm, From £11.50
  Usher Hall

  Norwegian cellist Truls Mørk performs Antonin Dvorák's suitably sweeping and romantic cello concerto.

• Ultimate Eagles

  7:00pm – 10:00pm, £20.00
  Usher Hall

  The Eagles tribute act.

• RSNO: Season Finale

  7:30pm – 10:00pm, From £11.50
  Usher Hall

  Peter Oundjian, Nicola Benedetti and the amassed RSNO choruses come together to end the RSNO season in glitzy fashion.

• The Opening Concert - Alexander Nevsky

  7:30pm – 9:10pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The 2013 Festival opens in thrilling fashion as three great Russian musicians join the Royal Scottish National Orchestra in a pair of seminal masterpieces by Prokofiev. Conductor Valery Gergiev is...

• 20th Century Classics

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  An evening of thrilling 20th-century classics from the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under its chief guest conductor, Ilan Volkov, who is widely renowned for the passion and intensity of his...

• Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra: Tchaikovsky Symphony No 6

  7:30pm – 9:10pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The internationally renowned Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra makes a two-concert visit to the Festival under chief conductor Mariss Jansons, acclaimed for his blistering performances and for his cultured interpretations that...

• Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra: Mahler Symphony No 2

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra performs one of the grandest and most moving pieces in the entire orchestral repertoire: Mahler’s Second Symphony. Tracing a journey from funereal despair to the...

• Mitsuko Uchida

  8:00pm – 9:45pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  A poet of the piano, Mitsuko Uchida is famed for playing that matches elegance and poise with mercurial excitement. Her Festival recital combines gentle lyricism and explosive virtuosity. To begin,...

• Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble 01

  7:30pm – 9:20pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Regarded as one of the world’s great period-instrument orchestras, and acclaimed for its pristine playing and the emotional depth of its performances, Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble brings two concerts...

• Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble 02

  7:30pm – 9:20pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Using instruments and playing styles that the composer himself would have known, Marc Minkowski and Les Musiciens du Louvre Grenoble conclude their survey of Schubert symphonies with the composer’s grandest...

• Chamber Orchestra of Europe 01

  8:00pm – 10:00pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Drawn from the finest players across the continent, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe is widely considered to be one of the world’s greatest orchestras. Its two Festival concerts are directed...

• Fauré Requiem

  8:00pm – 9:50pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  A concert of warmth and lyricism that draws on the refined playing for which the Scottish Chamber Orchestra is renowned. Principal conductor Robin Ticciati is joined by the remarkable National...

• Chamber Orchestra of Europe 02

  7:30pm – 9:20pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The celebrated Chamber Orchestra of Europe delves further into the richly contrasting musical worlds of Strauss and Beethoven in the second of its two Festival concerts under fiery young conductor...

• Russian National Orchestra 01

  7:30pm – 9:15pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Best known from David Lean’s 1945 film Brief Encounter, Rachmaninov’s Second Piano Concerto is one of the most beloved works in the orchestral repertoire, a masterpiece of poignant nostalgia and...

• Russian National Orchestra 02

  7:30pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Russian pianist Nikolai Lugansky, widely acclaimed for his performances of Rachmaninov’s piano music, brings the passionate, fiery Third Concerto to the Russian National Orchestra’s second Festival concert. It is considered...

• The Sixteen

  7:30pm – 9:20pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The Sixteen is one of Britain’s most accomplished choral groups. This wide-ranging concert contrasts the glories of English and Scottish vocal music old and new, from the Renaissance splendour of...

• How a Pipe Organ Works

  5:00pm – 6:00pm, £6.00
  Usher Hall

  Organist extraordinaire John Kitchen of the University of Edinburgh describes and demonstrates the technology behind the magnificent four-manual 63-stop Usher Hall organ.

• Ian Bostridge Tenor Lars Vogt Piano

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Quite simply one of the world’s most respected and admired tenors, Ian Bostridge is famed for the delicate expression and powerful characterisation of his elegant yet probing performances. He is...

• Bang on a Can All-Stars

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Ghosts of the past and present collide through video and sound technology in this evening-long project from the internationally renowned Brooklyn-based Bang on a Can All-Stars, an electric chamber ensemble...

• Tonhalle Orchestra Brahms Violin Concerto

  8:00pm – 10:00pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The rich, Romantic music of Brahms is the focus for the Tonhalle Orchestra’s two Festival concerts under its artistic director David Zinman. Widely considered one of the world’s fi nest...

• Beethoven Prometheus

  7:30pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Celebrated Belgian early-music conductor René Jacobs rejects the academic coolness of some period performance in favour of bright colours, dramatic energy and a sometimes unconventional approach. While remaining faithful to...

• Tonhalle Orchestra Brahms Requiem

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  David Zinman concludes his Festival concerts at the helm of the Tonhalle Orchestra with one of Brahms’s most magnificent creations: the German Requiem. A profoundly humanistic work that offers a...

• Edinburgh: Festival City

  5:00pm – 5:45pm, £6.00
  Usher Hall

  Composer Tod Machover, conductor Peter Oundjian and the Royal Scottish National Orchestra take us through the creation of a new piece of music celebrating the City of Edinburgh and its...

• City Noir

  8:00pm – 10:00pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Inspired by film noir, big-band jazz and the movies of David Lynch, City Noir is a spectacular symphonic showpiece by US composer John Adams that paints a gripping yet sensual...

• Ensemble musikFabrik

  8:00pm – 9:45pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  A concert of blazing energy, infectious rhythms and big sounds as Cologne-based contemporary music group Ensemble musikFabrik celebrates the sometimes outrageous music of US maverick Frank Zappa. Led from the...

• Ensemble musicFabrik

  9:00pm – 10:45pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  A concert of blazing energy, infectious rhythms and big sounds as Cologne-based contemporary music group Ensemble musikFabrik celebrates the sometimes outrageous music of US maverick Frank Zappa. Led from the...

• Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir

  8:00pm – 10:00pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Ambassadors for one of the most exciting choral traditions in Europe, the singers of the Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir are renowned for the warmth, depth and intense spirituality of their...

• Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra is one of the world’s truly great ensembles, famed for the nobility and sophistication of its orchestral sound, its velvety strings, golden brass and gleaming woodwind....

• Verdi Requiem

  8:00pm – 9:30pm, £12.00
  Usher Hall

  The Festival’s Usher Hall concerts come to an epic conclusion with Verdi’s powerful Requiem, its theatricality and gripping emotions making it as suited to the opera house or concert hall...

• There are no comments yet. Why not post one?

Venue Details

• Home
• Site map
• Privacy
• Terms of use
• Cookie policy
• Archive
• Subscribe