Royal Academy of Music announces spring 2026 performances

Here are just some of the highlights to look forward to in the new year:

Students Create Festival, Monday 12-Wednesday 14 January

This year’s line-up includes a new arrangement of Orpheus and Eurydice, a concert exploring the history of asylum seekers and a celebration of Morton Feldman’s 100th birthday. The festival will feature 17 world premieres by students from multiple departments.

The Academy Song Circle at Wigmore Hall, Sunday 18 January

In this annual concert by Academy Song Circle, themes of marriage and new love are woven through a selection of Wolf and Duparc songs, culminating in the ‘happily ever after’ of Strauss’ Morgen!

Academy Jazz Orchestra with Leon Foster Thomas: Expressions of Caribbean Jazz, Wednesday 4 February

The Academy welcomes Leon Foster Thomas for this debut performance of his new arrangements for jazz orchestra. A gifted jazz musician and steel pan virtuoso from Trinidad and Tobago, Leon blends Caribbean music with the harmonic and improvisational complexities of jazz to create a lively and eclectic meld.

Jonathon Heyward conducts the Academy Symphony Orchestra, Friday 13 February

Academy alum and Music Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra Jonathon Heyward conducts two of Respighi’s evocative tone poems about Rome. Fellow alum Grace-Evangeline Mason’s The Imagined Forest takes the audience on a fantastical journey through nature, fairy tales and folklore, inspired by the work of artist Clare Celeste Börsch.

Royal Academy Opera’s production of Rinaldo, Tuesday 17-Friday 20 March

Amid a holy war, crusader Rinaldo must overcome sorcery, deception and his own inner struggle to save the woman he loves. First performed in London in 1711, Rinaldo marked the beginning of Handel’s prolific career in England and features some of the composer’s most famous arias.