Scottish Chamber Orchestra announces 2025/26 Season

  • SCO performances for everyone - with a New Dimensions series, dementia-friendly concerts, matinees, family events and a digital season

  • Maxim Emelyanychev brings his supreme artistry to his seventh Season as Principal Conductor

  • Three world premieres by SCO Associate Composer Jay Capperauld

  • Star soloists including Nicola Benedetti, Steven Osborne, Colin Currie and Pekka Kuusisto

  • International performances in Amsterdam and Zurich as well as at the Gdansk Music Festival and Edinburgh International Festival

2025/26 Press Area | Download images here

Watch the 2025/26 Season Trailers here

The Scottish Chamber Orchestra (SCO) is delighted to announce its 2025/26 Season, presenting a programme that showcases the breadth of the Orchestra’s musical horizons through diverse collaborations, expanded concert experiences, classical masterworks and new music.

 The SCO family

Alongside Principal Conductor Maxim Emelyanychev and Principal Guest Conductor Andrew Manze, the SCO’s players are the beating heart of the 2025/26 season, with many of the Orchestra’s own musicians performing centre stage as soloists throughout the year, including clarinettist Maximiliano Martín in a performance of John Adams’ Gnarly Buttons (11 – 12 December) and cellist Philip Higham in Schumann’s Cello Concerto (7 – 9 May).

Watch short interviews with SCO musicians here.

Maxim Emelyanychev continues to strengthen his artistic bond with the SCO as Principal Conductor, presenting 10 programmes with the Orchestra this year. Maxim says: ‘I can hardly believe that 2025/26 will be my seventh season with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra! I love being in Scotland, where I know I’ll always receive an enthusiastic welcome – and I’m excited, of course, to continue my musical relationships with the SCO’s musicians.

 The concerts I’ll be directing in the 2025/26 Season allow me to perform as conductor, pianist, and more. Our opening concert traces a profound journey from darkness to light – from wartime grief in Strauss’ Metamorphosen to the blazing light of triumph in Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. Just as dazzling is Vivaldi’s joyful Gloria, which I’ll be directing alongside the far more cosmopolitan Gloria by Poulenc, both with the excellent SCO Chorus. 

 I’ll be looking forward to the festive season with two magnificent – and very different – pieces: Berlioz’s sumptuous oratorio L’Enfance du Christ, and Tchaikovsky’s magical The Nutcracker. I felt privileged to conduct the SCO in Mozart’s final three symphonies at the BBC Proms in 2021, and I’m looking forward to bringing that trio of remarkable works to Scotland this Season – and our annual Baroque Inspirations concert is always a highlight of my musical year! 

 I’ll also be joining colleagues from within the Orchestra in two warm-hearted chamber pieces by Schumann, as well as accompanying the SCO’s fantastic Principal Cello Philip Higham in the same composer’s lyrical Concerto, and the wonderful Nicola Benedetti in Mendelssohn’s beautiful Violin Concerto. I’ll be bringing the new Season to a colourful conclusion alongside another cherished colleague, when Steven Osborne joins us for Shostakovich’s madcap Piano Concerto No.1.’ 

 Andrew Manze continues his role as Principal Guest Conductor in four programmes across the Season: he joins South Korean pianist Yeol Eum Son for two Mozart concertos - the profoundly expressive No.21 and deeply dramatic No.24 (30 October – 1 November); a New Dimensions programme exploring the music of John Adams (11 – 12 December); and he leads the SCO’s traditional Viennese New Year celebrations (1 – 5 January). Finally, Andrew presents an evening of rapturous British music, including works by Vaughan Williams and Elgar as well as the world premiere of SCO Associate Composer Jay Capperauld’s The Language of Eden, a choral work that reimagines the birth of language itself (26 – 27 March).

Star soloists

As always, the SCO presents collaborations with some of the world’s most renowned musicians throughout its 2025/26 Season.

 Scottish percussionist Colin Currie is the soloist in Sir James MacMillan’s joyful and visionary percussion concerto Veni, Veni Emmanuel – a dazzling celebration of new life and new hope (1 – 3 October), as well as leading one of the Season’s New Dimensions concerts, exploring the music of his close friend and musical collaborator, Steve Reich (6 – 7 November).

Baritone Roderick Williams performs in two concerts – lending his voice to Berlioz’s lavish operatic oratorio L’Enfance du Christ (27 – 28 November) and in his own orchestral arrangements of Butterworth’s bittersweet A Shropshire Lad (26 – 27 March). The Chorus also take on one of his own works as a composer – O Adonai – in their seasonal concerts at Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Kirk (21 – 22 December).

 Also during the Season: violinist Alina Ibragimova leads audiences through a deeply emotional concert featuring a concerto she has long championed – Hartmann’s Concerto funèbre (10, 23 and 24 October); Yeol Eum Son returns to the SCO to perform two of Mozart’s most compelling concertos with Andrew Manze (30 – 31 October and 1 November); Nicola Benedetti presents Mendelssohn’s exhilarating Violin Concerto (26 – 28 February); violinist and director Lorenza Borrani leads two programmes presenting new perspectives on Mozart and the grandeur of Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony; great friend of the SCO, violin superstar Pekka Kuusisto returns for a programme that intersperses Beethoven’s Symphony No.7 with folk tunes (19 – 21 March); and pianist Steven Osborne performs Shostakovich’s Piano Concerto No.1 (13 – 15 May). 

Further visiting musicians and guest collaborators include: director/violinists Anthony Marwood and Jonian Ilias-Kadesha, violist Lawrence Power, sopranos Rachel Redmond and Louise Alder, saxophonist Jess Gillam, conductor Ben Glassberg and trumpeter Aaron Akugbo.

 New Dimensions

The New Dimensions series returns, challenging conventions and exploring new sound worlds with special guests including Colin Currie and Jess Gillam. The Series encourages audiences to stretch their musical imaginations and discover fresh sonic landscapes with some of the SCO’s most charismatic collaborators. The New Dimensions concerts take audiences on a journey through new music, minimalism and modern Scottish classics, all presented in an informal concert format with pre-and-post concert DJs in the foyer to expand the experience for audiences.

There are three New Dimensions concerts in the 2025/26 Season, taking place in Edinburgh and Glasgow:

  • Steve Reich+: Close friend and trusted collaborator, Edinburgh-born percussionist Colin Currie directs minimalist masterpieces from the visionary US maverick composer Steve Reich, including his bewitching Runner and the winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize, his Double Sextet. Also in the programme is Joe Duddell’s percussion concerto Snowblind, and the UK premiere of Scottish composer Helen Grime’s River. (6 – 7 November).  

  • Gnarly Buttons: Andrew Manze and the SCO’s own clarinettist Maximiliano Martín present three iconic pieces by pioneering American minimalist, John Adams - Shaker Loops, Gnarly Buttons, and Fearful Symmetries – showcasing the vast range of his output, from cool, hypnotic pulsations to cinematic soundscapes (11 – 12 December).  

  • Saxophone Dreams with Jess Gillam: Saxophonist and presenter Jess Gillam brings her infectious musical personality to a typically adventurous collection of music across diverse sounds and styles for the last New Dimensions concert in the Season – including music by Anna Clyne, George Walker and Caroline Shaw, as well as two works written especially for her, by John Harle and Dani Howard (12 – 13 March).

New music

As always, the SCO celebrates and champions new musical voices. 

There are six premieres in the 2025/26 Season, three of which are world premieres from Jay Capperauld, the SCO’s Associate Composer. Since taking up the role for the 2022/23 Season Jay has truly embedded himself in the Orchestra’s work, acting not just as a composer but also as a presenter for some of SCO’s concerts, as well as supporting the Orchestra’s Creative Learning work with roles in its Immerse programme and Craigmillar residency, and being the focus of this year’s Digital Season (see below).

Capperauld’s new choral work The Language of Eden takes a libretto by Niall Campbell and reimagines the birth of language itself. It is performed by the baritone Roderick Williams with the SCO Chorus led by Gregory Batsleer (26 – 27 March). The SCO will also present the world premiere of Capperauld’s new seasonal choral work, The Winter’s Brightening with the SCO Chorus (21 – 22 December), and the composer’s Stylus Scarlatti reimagines Scarlatti’s keyboard sonatas for the bright colours of the Orchestra (19 – 20 February). Capperauld’s The Great Grumpy Gaboon returns after sell-out performances in 2024 and travelling the country in 2025 for three performances in Perth (Schools performance – 6 February), Edinburgh (7 February) and Glasgow (8 February). The musical adventure is written in collaboration with children’s author and illustrator Corrina Campbell and inspired by the SCO’s very own musicians.

Further new music includes; the UK premiere of Scottish composer Helen Grime’s River, performed by the SCO and director/percussionist Colin Currie, which charts an evocative fluvial journey from source to sea (6 – 7 November); the UK premiere of Jörg Widmann’s affectionate homage to Schumann, Albumblätter (7 – 9 May); and the Scottish premiere of Magnus Lindberg’s Viola Concerto, dedicated to its performer here, Lawrence Power (22 – 24 April). 

Seasonal treats

As always, the SCO offers uplifting seasonal treats for audiences across Scotland.

The festive season launches with two performances of Berlioz’s captivating operatic oratorio L’Enfance du Christ featuring a stellar cast alongside the SCO Chorus led by Maxim Emelyanychev (27 – 28 November). Maxim also takes the helm for Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker, conjuring the magic and wonder of Christmas for audiences across Perth, Edinburgh and Glasgow (3 – 5 December); and the SCO Chorus lead audiences in A Ceremony of Carols in the intimate splendour of Edinburgh’s Greyfriars Kirk (21 – 22 December).

And the SCO celebrates the New Year in style with its popular New Year Gala concert exploring music from Strauss and Léhar with conductor Andrew Manze and Glasgow-born soprano Rachel Redmond. 

Creative Learning and community work

The SCO continues its commitment to making music accessible to as many people as possible, with its Creative Learning programme at the heart of that mission. The Orchestra’s Creative Learning activities reach over 10,000 people across Scotland every year, giving people of all ages and backgrounds the chance to participate in, create and enjoy music and music-making.

  • The Orchestra connects with young music lovers through its fun-filled multisensory family concerts The Great Grumpy Gaboon and the Big Ears, Little Ears concert series – designed for children under 5 and their grown-ups.  

  • The SCO’s Craigmillar Residency continues to enrich the lives of hundreds of people in the local community through music and creative activities. In 2026 the Orchestra will celebrate the culmination of the Residency, after five transformative years, with Tapestry - a showcase featuring performances by the SCO Seen and Heard Ensemble and SCO Craigmillar Voices choir, including a stunning 25-minute work curated by Jay Capperauld.  

  • The SCO’s Immerse concerts offer a unique orchestral learning experience for upper secondary school pupils, with concerts presented by Jay Capperauld and artist Kirsty Matheson in Dumfries, Ayr and Cumbernauld during the Season.

  • The SCO’s Tea Dance Concerts go from strength to strength, presenting an afternoon of music and light refreshments for people living with dementia. Musicians from Sistema Scotland’s Big Noise communities will be performing at a selection of these concerts

  • The SCO is delighted to have received funding in this year’s round of the Dementia Trust’s Disruption Awards for its ReConnect programme. ReConnect provides music workshops for people living with dementia in healthcare settings across Edinburgh and the funding will enable the Orchestra to expand the programme into a new area of NHS Lothian in the coming months, reaching more people living with dementia who will benefit from the power of music. 

Digital Season

The SCO’s free Digital Season continues to offer audiences who may not be able to get to the concert hall the opportunity to experience the SCO’s musicianship from home. In three specially commissioned films for the 2025/26 Season, the Orchestra presents three works by its very own Associate Composer, Jay Capperauld, in definitive performances from the SCO and Principal Conductor Maxim Emelyanychev, and the SCO Chorus and Chorus Director Gregory Batsleer.

Capperauld’s kaleidoscopic showpiece The Origin of Colour launched the SCO’s 50th Anniversary Season in style in 2023 and his recently premiered Bruckner’s Skull explores the life-and-death obsessions of Austrian composer Anton Bruckner, who reputedly kissed the exhumed skulls of Beethoven and Schubert when the composers’ bodies were transferred between Viennese cemeteries. And The Night Watch is Capperauld’s meditation on parenthood and the love between father and child, setting a poem by Scottish writer Niall Campbell for the SCO Chorus. 

International Touring and Festivals

Maxim Emelyanychev leads the SCO and violinist Vilde Frang in performances of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto at Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw (21 May) and the Tonhalle in Zurich (31 May), as well as at the Gdansk Music Festival (23 May), with the Gdansk and Muziekgebouw concerts also featuring performances of Jay Capperauld’s The Origin of Colour.

In September, Maxim and the Orchestra are joined by Colin Currie for a tour that takes them to Romania for two dates as part of the Enescu Festival; to the Czech Republic, as part of the Brno International Music Festival; and to the Opera House in Bonn, for Beethovenfest, as well as dates in Brussels and Essen.

As ever the Scottish Chamber Orchestra’s performances are a highlight of the Edinburgh International Festival – this year, led by Maxim Emelyanychev, they present Mozart’s La Clemenza di Tito (9 August), as well as joining Opera Australia and conductor Laurence Cummings for the European premiere of Opera Queensland’s production of Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice (13 – 16 August). The Orchestra returns later the same week for a Dementia Friendly concert, presented in association with Alzheimer Scotland, showcasing works by Strauss and a selection of Scottish tunes in a relaxed concert format designed especially for people living with dementia, their caregivers, family and friends (19 August).