Harmony with Nature
Our planet, centre stage.
This season, the London Philharmonic Orchestra is putting the spotlight on our magnificent planet.
Harmony with Nature celebrates the beauty of the natural world through music, whilst exploring our place in protecting the planet at a time when the climate crisis has never felt more urgent.
From Beethoven, Sibelius and Dvořák to Anna Thorvaldsdottir, John Luther Adams, and Duke Ellington, we’ll marvel at oceans, forests, caves, mountains and wildlife through the eyes of composers that saw nature as a mirror of human emotion.
For today’s composers including Anna Korsun, Gabriela Lena Frank and Terence Blanchard, humanity enters the picture. As destroyer or protector? Or simply as an organic, inextricable part of nature itself? Join us for a season of unforgettable music, meaningful conversation with guest speakers, and renewed connection with the natural world.
The Nature Dialogues
From stars to storms, wildlife to oceans, some of today’s leading scientists and storytellers illuminate the natural world in a fascinating series of pre-concert talks at the Southbank Centre. Free and open to all, ‘The Nature Dialogues’ invite you to delve deeper into the wonders of nature and discover a fresh perspective on this season’s music.
Pre-concert talks
Fri 31 Oct 2025, 6.00pm
Harmony with our Oceans
Royal Festival Hall
- Liz Bonnin biologist & broadcaster
- Helen Czerski physicist & oceanographer
Sat 29 Nov 2025, 6.00pm
Harmony with Distant Planets
Royal Festival Hall
- Robert Laidlow composer
- David Kipping astronomer
Sat 17 Jan 2026, 5.00pm
Harmony with the Volcanic World
Royal Festival Hall
- Kate Humble broadcaster & writer
Sat 21 Mar 2026, 5.00pm
Harmony with our Rivers
Queen Elizabeth Hall
- Jeremy Wade extreme angler, author and broadcaster
Wed 8 Apr 2026, 6.00pm
Harmony with our Fragile Earth
Royal Festival Hall
- Johan Rockström earth system scientist
- Tony Juniper environmentalist & Chair of Natural England
- Anna Thorvaldsdottir composer
Fri 17 Apr 2026, 6.00pm
Harmony with our Changing Planet
Royal Festival Hall
- Professor Gail Whiteman Head of the Nature & Climate Impact Team, University of Exeter
Harmony with Nature concerts
Wed 22 Oct 2025, 6.30pm
The Rite of Spring
London, Royal Festival Hall
- L Boulanger D’un matin de printemps (6')*
- L Boulanger Faust et Hélène (32’)
- Stravinsky The Rite of Spring (32’)
- Karina Canellakis conductor**
- Véronique Gens soprano
- Andrew Staples tenor
- Jean-Sébastien Bou baritone
Wed 29 Oct 2025, 7.30pm
New World Symphony
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Chinary Ung Water Rings (6’)
- Sibelius Violin Concerto (31’)
- Dvořák Symphony No. 9 (From the New World) (40’)
- Kahchun Wong conductor
- Himari violin*
Fri 31 Oct 2025, 7.30pm
A Sea Symphony
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Sibelius Scènes historiques (Suite II) (20’)
- Sibelius The Oceanides (10’)
- Vaughan Williams A Sea Symphony (64’)
- Mark Elder conductor
- Masabane Cecilia Rangwanasha soprano
- David Stout baritone
- London Philharmonic Choir
Wed 12 Nov 2025, 7.30pm
Romeo and Juliet
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Gabriela Lena Frank Contested Eden (UK premiere) (13’)
- Walton Cello Concerto (30’)
- Prokofiev Romeo and Juliet (excerpts) (37’)
- Elim Chan conductor
- Nicolas Altstaedt cello
Wed 26 Nov 2025, 7.30pm
Edward Gardner conducts Elgar
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Elgar In the South (Alassio) (19’)
- Elgar Sea Pictures (23’)
- Elgar Sospiri (5’)
- Elgar Enigma Variations (29’)
- Edward Gardner conductor*
- Beth Taylor mezzo-soprano
Sat 29 Nov 2025, 7.30pm
Sheku Kanneh-Mason plays Bloch
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Robert Laidlow Exoplanets (world premiere) (23’)**
- Bloch Schelomo (20’)
- Rachmaninov Symphony No. 3 (38’)
- Edward Gardner conductor*
- Sheku Kanneh-Mason cello
Sat 17 Jan 2026, 12.00pm
FUNharmonics: Peter and the Wolf
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Sergei Prokofiev Peter and the Wolf
- Samuel Coleridge-Taylor Othello Suite (extracts)
- Rachel Leach The Hungry Wolf (song)
- Michael Seal conductor
- Rachel Leach presenter
Sat 17 Jan 2026, 6.30pm
The Firebird
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Rimsky-Korsakov Russian Easter Festival Overture (14’)
- Gustavo Díaz-Jerez Tajogaite (Concerto for Piano and Orchestra) (UK premiere) (17’)
- Stravinsky The Firebird Suite (1945 version) (30’)
- Maxim Emelyanychev conductor
- Gustavo Díaz-Jerez piano
Wed 21 Jan 2026, 7.30pm
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Anna Korsun Terricone (15’)
- Rachmaninov Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini (23’)
- Mosolov The Iron Foundry (3')
- Prokofiev Symphony No. 2 (36’)
- Vladimir Jurowski conductor
- Anna Vinnitskaya piano
Sat 21 Mar 2026, 6.30pm
Four Seasons of Buenos Aires
London, Queen Elizabeth Hall
- John Luther Adams Become River (16’)
- Clarice Assad Terra: Concerto for Bassoon and Orchestra (European premiere) (22’)
- Piazzolla The Four Seasons of Buenos Aires (arr. Desyatnikov) (with live dance) (26’)
- Pablo Rus Broseta conductor
- Jonathan Davies bassoon*
- Alice Ivy-Pemberton violin
Wed 8 Apr 2026, 7.30pm
Beethoven’s Pastoral Symphony
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Anna Thorvaldsdottir CATAMORPHOSIS (20’)
- Bruch Violin Concerto No. 1 (23')
- Beethoven Symphony No. 6 (Pastoral) (40')
- Kirill Karabits conductor
- Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider violin
Fri 10 Apr 2026, 7.30pm
Brahms’s Double
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Dvořák In Nature’s Realm (11’)
- Brahms Double Concerto for violin and cello (31’)
- R Schumann Symphony No. 4 (29’)
- Jonathon Heyward conductor
- Pieter Schoeman violin*
- Kristina Blaumane cello**
Wed 15 Apr 2026, 7.30pm
Carnival of the Animals
London, Queen Elizabeth Hall
- Dvořák Symphony No. 7 (37')
- Ryan Carter Piano Concerto (world premiere) (18’) *
- Saint-Saëns The Carnival of the Animals (with film animation) (22’)
- Lidiya Yankovskaya conductor
- Tomoko Mukaiyama piano
- Bizjak Piano Duo
Fri 17 Apr 2026, 7.30pm
Terence Blanchard: A Requiem for Katrina
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Duke Ellington The River Suite (30’)
- Terence Blanchard A Tale of God’s Will: A Requiem for Katrina (70’)
- Daniela Candillari conductor
- Terence Blanchard trumpet
- The Terence Blanchard Quintet
Sun 17 May 2026, 12.00pm
FUNharmonics: Stan and Mabel and the Race for Space
London, Royal Festival Hall
- Paul Rissmann Stan and Mabel and the Race for Space
- Mozart Overture from The Marriage of Figaro
- Britten 'Dawn' from Four Sea Interludes, from Peter Grimes
- Kabalevsky 'Galop' from The Comedians Suite
- Grainer/Gold/Derbyshire arr. McEwan 'Dr Who' Theme
- Polly Ives presenter
- Nefeli Chadouli conductor