Media announcement of interest below. A heads up that Sunday’s post will be a review of tonight’s (Friday’s) Prom.
Leeds Song has announced its 2026–27 concert season, bringing together some of Britain’s most distinguished artists alongside an exciting new generation of singers and pianists, in a programme that celebrates the richness, intimacy and storytelling of song.
Following the success of the 2026 Leeds Song Festival, praised by critics for its ambitious programming and world-class performances, the new season continues the organisation’s commitment to presenting exceptional artistry while championing emerging talent.
Leeds Song Director, and internationally acclaimed pianist Joseph Middleton, has curated a colourful season in which he will partner in recital some of his closest collaborators such as tenor Ian Bostridge, soprano Mary Bevan, baritone Roderick Williams, countertenor Hugh Cutting, and in programmes exploring the breadth and intimacy of the song repertoire. The season also features current BBC New Generation Artist Andrew Hamilton, appearing in partnership with Wesley Chapel Concerts.
Highlights include the return of internationally renowned tenor Ian Bostridge, whose recital will explore masterpieces by Benjamin Britten and Franz Schubert, and soprano Mary Bevan, who brings music from her acclaimed Elegy programme in an evening of poignant reflection and lyrical beauty.
The season also welcomes one of Britain’s best-loved baritones, Roderick Williams, who presents his acclaimed English translation of Schubert’s The Fair Maid of the Mill (Die schöne Müllerin), offering audiences a fresh perspective on one of the defining works of the song repertoire.
Season Highlights
Ian Bostridge & Joseph Middleton | Sunday 4 October, 3:00pm, Leeds Conservatoire
Tenor Ian Bostridge CBE joins Joseph Middleton to open our 2026–27 season with a programme of rare intensity and insight, bringing together masterpieces by Schubert and Britten.
Mary Bevan & Joseph Middleton | Friday 6 November, 7:30pm, Leeds Conservatoire
Soprano Mary Bevan joins Joseph Middleton for an evocative recital built around Elegy, the pair’s acclaimed 2025 release on Signum Records.
Alumni of the Leeds Song Young Artist Programme | Wednesday 18 November, 1:05pm, Leeds Conservatoire
We are delighted to welcome back two duos from our 2026 Young Artist programme to give this special recital.
Andrew Hamilton & Joseph Middleton | Monday 7 December, 1:00pm, Wesley Centre
Baritone, and current BBC New Generation Artist, Andrew Hamilton brings his distinctive warmth, agility, and expressive range to Leeds Song for the first time.
Roderick Williams & Joseph Middleton | Thursday 18 February, 7:30pm, Howard Assembly Room
Roderick Williams and Joseph Middleton give another spellbinding performance of Jeremy Sams’s wonderfully communicative English translation of Schubert’s The Fair Maid of the Mill.
Hugh Cutting & Joseph Middleton | Saturday 27 February, 7:30pm, The Attic Morpheus is a journey through music inspired by sleep, dreams and the night. Bringing together works from Purcell and Schubert to Britten, Hugh Cutting explores the rich imaginative world that emerges when daylight gives way to darkness. The Leeds Song 2026–27 season runs from October 2026 to February 2027. Full programme details and booking information are available at www.leedssong.com.
Leeds Song was founded in 2004 as Leeds Lieder+ and is now recognised is one of the UK’s leading festivals dedicated to the art of song, bringing together exceptional artists and audiences from across the globe to celebrate the power of the human voice in its most intimate form.
With a rich history dating back to its founding, our festival has grown to become a cornerstone of the region’s classical music scene, attracting the finest international talent in the world of art song and growing audiences both in person and on-line.
Praised in The Guardian for its ‘world-class’ programming and lauded in The Times for bringing ‘musical riches to Yorkshire through star performers, engaging new commissions, and bold educational projects… a Northern powerhouse of song,’ Leeds Song is at the forefront of artistic excellence. Each year, we offer a dynamic programme of concert season events with our partners at Opera North, Leeds University, Leeds International Concert Series and Leeds Conservatoire. Our boundary-breaking Festival reaches huge numbers via livestreams, as well as in person, and we take recitals into the heart of the city, juxtaposing work in beautiful concert halls with recitals in unusual spaces not normally associated with classical music.
Our award-winning and constantly expanding education programme in schools begins a pipeline that introduces young people to the joys of singing, and leads on to a Young Artist programme that draws singers and pianists from across the world to Leeds to take place in specially curated series of masterclasses. A rich vein of community work, poetry and song writing workshops, pre-concert talks and study events sit at the heart of our Festivals. We champion the great music that forged the art form, and commission widely to showcase the breadth and beauty of the song repertoire. Major voices of our time have written substantial works for Leeds Song, including Helen Grime, Errollyn Wallen, Daniel Kidane, Mark Simpson, Tansy Davies, Cheryl Frances Hoad, Judith Bingham and Sally Beamish
