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Philip Glass sat at a piano, looking at music sheets

Contemporary Edit

Showcasing boundary-pushing, eye-opening new music

 

Choose from our selection of performances that showcase the wealth of boundary-pushing, eye-opening new music that Southbank Centre has to offer.

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Friday 28 August

Gaia x BBC Concert Orchestra: Sounds of the Earth
Left: A giant inflatable Earth globe among green trees. Right: A full orchestra performing in front of a massive pipe organ.

Gaia x BBC Concert Orchestra: Sounds of the Earth

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall

Saturday 29 August

Gaia x Eric Whitacre: Eternity in an Hour
A man with medium-length brown hair and a denim shirt poses with his hand to his chin against a neutral background.

Gaia x Eric Whitacre: Eternity in an Hour

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall

Tuesday 22 September

Julia Wolfe's Fire in My Mouth with Marin Alsop
A choir of women in blue dresses holds open scissors above their heads

Julia Wolfe's Fire in My Mouth with Marin Alsop

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall
Multi-buy

Wednesday 23 September

The Multi-Story Orchestra: Dreamer
A diverse group of musicians plays stringed instruments in a raw, industrial-style space with concrete ceilings.

The Multi-Story Orchestra: Dreamer

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy

Friday 25 September

Pekka Kuusisto, Ale Carr & Aurora Orchestra: Four Seasons
A man in glasses and a black shirt holds a violin like a guitar against a vibrant purple background.

Pekka Kuusisto, Ale Carr & Aurora Orchestra: Four Seasons

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy

Saturday 26 September

Steve Reich at 90: Triple Quartet + After Dark
Steve Reich wearing a baseball cap and suit, standing on a bridge with the skyline of New York in the background

Steve Reich at 90: Triple Quartet + After Dark

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy
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Last few tickets

Steve Reich at 90: After Dark
Composer Steve Reich in a black cap and jacket, posing in front of a dark tapestry featuring horses and riders.

Steve Reich at 90: After Dark

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy

Sunday 27 September

Steve Reich at 90: Music for 18 Musicians
Paraorchestra performing surrounded by audience

Steve Reich at 90: Music for 18 Musicians

Classical music
Audio Described - The performance includes live narration of visual elements for blind and visually impaired audiences.
The Clore Ballroom
Multi-buy
Steve Reich at 90: London Sinfonietta & Jonny Greenwood
Close-up portrait of an older man in a brown cap and olive jacket looking off-camera against a blurred forest background.

Steve Reich at 90: London Sinfonietta & Jonny Greenwood

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall
Multi-buy
Steve Reich at 90: Music for 18 Musicians
Paraorchestra performing surrounded by audience

Steve Reich at 90: Music for 18 Musicians

Classical music
Audio Described - The performance includes live narration of visual elements for blind and visually impaired audiences.
The Clore Ballroom
Multi-buy

Sunday 4 October

Manchester Collective & Sidiki Dembélé
hazy image of Sidiki Dembélé and Nwando Ebizie

Manchester Collective & Sidiki Dembélé

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy

Saturday 17 October

Zubin Kanga: Ghost in the Machine + After Dark
Zubin Kanga standing in the middle of keyboards in a square around him

Zubin Kanga: Ghost in the Machine + After Dark

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy

Saturday 7 November

Council: Pekka Kuusisto & Gabriel Kahane
Pekka Kuusisto & Gabriel Kahane performing on stage together

Council: Pekka Kuusisto & Gabriel Kahane

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy

Thursday 26 November

Taylor Mac: A 24-Decade History of Popular Music
Taylor Mac in a headdress surrounded by balloons

Taylor Mac: A 24-Decade History of Popular Music

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall
Multi-buy

Saturday 28 November

Brigitta Muntendorf: Last Show
Close-up of a blonde woman with blue eyes and red lipstick posing in front of a textured black wall.

Brigitta Muntendorf: Last Show

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy

Sunday 6 December

Manchester Collective: Black Gold
A close-up profile of a young man leaning forward, his face illuminated by a dramatic, warm orange glow against a dark backdrop.

Manchester Collective: Black Gold

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy

Friday 29 January

Pavel Kolesnikov: Feldman's Triadic Memories
A young man in a grey sweater leans against a grand piano in a classic room with a large mirror and paintings.

Pavel Kolesnikov: Feldman's Triadic Memories

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy

Saturday 30 January

Philip Glass at 90: Music in 12 Parts
Musicians of Riot Ensemble performing in a dark space

Philip Glass at 90: Music in 12 Parts

Classical music
The Clore Ballroom
Multi-buy

Sunday 31 January

Philip Glass at 90: Brooklyn Rider – Quartets
A member of Brooklyn Ryder pretending to kick a violin

Philip Glass at 90: Brooklyn Rider – Quartets

Classical music
Queen Elizabeth Hall
Multi-buy
Philip Glass at 90: Manchester Collective
Musicians of Manchester collective blurred in motion

Philip Glass at 90: Manchester Collective

Classical music
Purcell Room
Multi-buy
Philip Glass at 90: Symphony No.15
Composer Philip Glass sits at a piano, looking intently at sheet music in a dimly lit, workspace setting.

Philip Glass at 90: Symphony No.15

Classical music
Royal Festival Hall
Multi-buy

Wednesday 9 June

Sean Shibe & Aidan O'Rourke: Lùban
Aidan O'Rourke (pink raincoat, holding fiddle) and Sean Shibe (yellow coat, holding lute) sit together

Sean Shibe & Aidan O'Rourke: Lùban

Classical music
Purcell Room

While you're with us

Jeppe Hein: Appearing Rooms
People enjoying the Jeppe Hein Fountain at the Southbank Centre

Jeppe Hein: Appearing Rooms

A summer favourite returns to our site with water fountains to splash around and cool down in.

Shopping
Wooden displays in the Southbank centre shop, featuring books, plushies, and colourful merchandise

Shopping

A vibrant range of inspiring books, homeware, prints, accessories and more.

Klaus Weber: Thinking Fountains
Two statues; a green human body with water spouting from its neck and another of human legs with water pouring down from above displayed outdoors

Thinking
Fountains

Water cascades and spouts over Klaus Weber’s bronze figures.

Modified Social Benches
Two children eating ice cream on a red cirrcular bench

Modified Social Benches

Benches that challenge the space and distance we place between one another.

William Pye's Zemran
A photograph showing Riverside Terrace at Southbank Centre, with the metal sculpture Zemran in the foreground, next to Queen Elizabeth Hall

William Pye's Zemran

Pye’s beautiful stainless steel sculpture sits overlooking the Thames.

Natura Nostra Forest
Bright sunlight bursts through green leaves with a lens flare, set against a blue sky and a textured concrete building.

Natura Nostra Forest

Our growing pocket forest creating a natural oasis.