Read my ★★★★★ review of Soft Machine at Band on the Wall in Manchester, featuring John Etheridge, Theo Travis, Fred Baker and Asaf Sirkis nick-holmes-music.com/2026/04/13/s...

‘Viktoria Mullova shines as the soloist in Brahms' Violin Concerto, and the Hallé soloists excel in Bartók's Concerto for Orchestra.’ Read my ★★★★★ review of the Hallé conducted by Kahchun Wong. nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/26/t...

‘This was not just a concert; it was an immersive experience, taking us from dawn to dusk.’ Read my ★★★★★ review of Kantos Chamber Choir conducted by Ellie Slorach at Victoria Baths in Manchester nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/24/k...

Here’s my in-depth interview with Jan Vogler, who played Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 1 with the Hallé in Manchester recently. He talks about being the Artistic Director of Dresden Music Festival and finding his voice as a solo cellist nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/23/i...

‘Stunning singing from soprano Sarah Wegener in Wagner and Strauss, and the UK premiere of a potential classic by Edmund Finnis’ Read my review of The BBC Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Nicholas Carter at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/17/b...

‘A viscerally powerful production of Britten’s masterpiece.' Read my five-star review of Peter Grimes, with John Findon as Grimes and Philippa Boyle as Ellen Orford, and the Chorus and Orchestra of Opera North conducted by Garry Walker at Lowry, Salford nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/16/o...

Read my review of Bach’s St Matthew Passion at the Royal Festival Hall with The Bach Choir, London Youth Choir, Florilegium, conductor David Hill, and soloists Toby Spence, Neal Davies, Lucy Crowe, Carolyn Dobbin, Benjamin Hulet and Christopher Purves.

'A mature work from a highly accomplished composer' - the new violin concerto by Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead performed by Daniel Pioro and The Hallé with conductor Hugh Tieppo-Brunt. Read my review here... nick-holmes-music.com/2026/03/05/t...

‘Love is a fragile thing.’ Read my 5-star review of performances of Albarn Berg, Sergey Prokofiev and Cassandra Miller by Lawrence Power and the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra under conductor Ludovic Morlot nick-holmes-music.com/2026/02/26/b...

Exploring the Cosmos: The Hallé’s Stellar Concert. Here’s my review of Thursday’s concert by The Hallé Orchestra, Hallé Choir and Youth Choir with conductor Kahchun Wong, and music by Holst, Colin Matthews and Unsuk Chin nick-holmes-music.com/2026/02/23/t...

Here’s my review of Saturday’s concert by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by Adam Hickox, with Elisabeth Brauss in a superb performance of Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G, and music by Rachmaninoff and Camille Pépin nick-holmes-music.com/2026/02/09/b...

Here’s the latest in my Off the Beaten Track review series, an unusual version of the David Bowie track This is Not America from the Lazarus musical nick-holmes-music.com/2026/02/02/o...

Here's my review of Saturday's concert in Manchester by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by John Storgårds, with pianist Alim Beisembayev playing Beethoven, and orchestral music from American masters John Adams and Charles Ives nick-holmes-music.com/2026/01/21/b...

It's five years this month since the release of The Future Bites by Steven Wilson. Here's my review... nick-holmes-music.com/2026/01/12/t...

Here’s my review of the year in Classical Music in Manchester (and a few other places) BBC Philharmonic, Manchester Collective, The Hallé, Opera North, English National Opera, Kantos Chamber Choir, The Apex Singers, The Bach Choir and Southwell Music Festival. nick-holmes-music.com/2026/01/07/2...

Here’s my review of the superb new book ROCK and ROLE - The Visionary Songs of Peter Hammill and Van der Graaf Generator by @joebankswriter.bsky.social and how it helped me rediscover Hammill’s music nick-holmes-music.com/2026/01/01/r...

‘…another delightful evening with The Apex Singers. It would not be easy to find another ensemble as happy to perform together.’ Read my five-star review of the Christmas concert by TheApex Singers. nick-holmes-music.com/2025/12/15/t...

Classic Rock Magazine has just named The Overview by Steven Wilson as the Number One Album of the year. Here’s my COMPLETE detailed analysis of the album (previously published in three separate sections). nick-holmes-music.com/2025/12/11/s...

Read my five-star review of the strings of the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra playing Bartók and Tchaikovsky, directed by Zoë Beyers at the RNCM in Manchester nick-holmes-music.com/2025/12/09/b...

“We have a new mission: to represent Manchester and this region as cultural ambassadors, with your support” Kahchun Wong, Conductor of the Hallé, speaking at the orchestra’s superb concert on Sunday afternoon at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. Review here: nick-holmes-music.com/2025/12/03/t...

Read my review of the latest concert by Manchester Collective and the Marian Consort, with the premiere of a new piece by Samantha Fernando, inspired by the book Wintering by Katherine May nick-holmes-music.com/2025/11/28/m...

Here’s the latest in my Off the Beaten Track series – a review of Peter Hammill’s extraordinary Mr X (Gets Tense)/Faculty X from his 1979 album ph7, in a superb new mix by Stephen W Tayler nick-holmes-music.com/2025/11/24/o...

‘A spellbinding and emotional journey through a historical travesty of justice’ Read my five-star review of The Witch Trials by Kantos Chamber Choir conducted by Ellie Slorach at the RNCM in Manchester nick-holmes-music.com/2025/11/19/k...

Read my thoughts about an excellent concert by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by Elena Schwarz on Saturday in Manchester, featuring nature-themed Mahler and Debussy, and the Trombone Concerto by Dani Howard, with soloist Peter Moore nick-holmes-music.com/2025/11/11/b...

Here’s the third and final part of my in-depth analysis of The Overview, the latest album by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/19/s...

Read my five-star review of American composer John Adams conducting @thehalle.bsky.social in a concert of his own music at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, featuring a stunning performance by the violinist Leila Josefowicz and a UK premiere nick-holmes-music.com/2025/11/04/t...

Read my five-star review of the fantastic concert by divinecomedyhq.bsky.social at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester. Click on the link below nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/26/t...

‘Superbly directed and acted, with fine singing and marvellous orchestral playing. A large and enthusiastic audience welcomed English National Opera to the North. We have much to anticipate if future ENO productions here are of this quality.’ nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/23/b...

Here's the second part of my detailed analysis of The Overview by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social, the first side of the album - 'Objects outlive Us' nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/22/s...

Here’s the first part of my detailed review of The Overview, the latest album by Steven Wilson. More to follow in due course! nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/15/s...

Read my five-star review of Mahler's Eighth Symphony at St Paul's Cathedral in London, with The Bach Choir and conductor David Hill, celebrating the Choir's 150th anniversary. nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/13/m...

'A tribute to the variety of sounds that strings make, and the human connections that music brings’ Here's my review of Manchester Collective's concert at the RNCM in Manchester on Sunday nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/07/m...

‘Nearly 60 years since first playing in Manchester, Hammill is still a supreme communicator and a powerful performer’ Read my review of the concert by Peter Hammill of Van der Graaf Generator at the RNCM in Manchester this evening nick-holmes-music.com/2025/10/01/p...

Here's my review of the opening concert by the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester, featuring music by the new Composer in Residence, Julia Wolfe and Augustin Hadelich playing Prokofiev's 2nd violin concerto nick-holmes-music.com/2025/09/24/b...

Read my review of the wonderful, life-affirming gig by @shezraja.bsky.social in Birkenhead last Friday nick-holmes-music.com/2025/07/20/s...

Read my review of the Spellbound by British-Asian bass player @shezraja.bsky.social, an eclectic and invigorating mix of musical styles from East and West nick-holmes-music.com/2025/07/10/o...

Here's my review of day two of Manchester Classical, with Manchester Collective - Rakhi Singh and Zoë Martlew, plus Musicians from the Hallé, the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, RNCM, The Chorus of ENO and Hallé Choir, conducted by Alpesh Chauhan #mcrclassical25 nick-holmes-music.com/2025/07/06/m...

Read my review of the opening night of the Manchester Classical Festival, with Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead playing the music of Steve Reich, with @thehalle.bsky.social conducted by Colin Currie. #mcrclassical25 nick-holmes-music.com/2025/07/04/m...

Read my latest interview with Malcolm Galloway of Hats Off Gentleman It's Adequate. He talks about the band's new album and the Prog the Forest festival nick-holmes-music.com/2025/06/29/i...

'John Storgårds conducts the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra in a breathtaking performance of Mahler’s Third Symphony.' Read my five-star review of Mahler's Third Symphony in Manchester. nick-holmes-music.com/2025/06/19/b...

“Maybe we don’t give much thought to the perspective of what we are and what our reality is.” Read my interview with Miles Skarin of Crystal Spotlight about the making of the film for The Overview, the new album by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social nick-holmes-music.com/2025/05/26/i...

Read my five-star review of Hamlet Hail to the Thief with the music of Radiohead and the words of Shakespeare, produced by Factory International and the Royal Shakespeare Company live at Aviva Studios in Manchester nick-holmes-music.com/2025/05/09/h...

Read my review of REFRACTIONS the new collaboration between Manchester Collective, the musician Clark and choreographer Melanie Lane at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester last Friday nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/29/m...

Here's Part II of my post on the space songs of @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social - the solo years nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/27/s...

With the release of The Overview, the new space-themed album by @stevenwilsonhq.bsky.social I thought it would be a good time to revisit the space-themed tracks he wrote for @porcupinetree.bsky.social Read my thoughts here... nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/20/s...

Read my five-star review of the BBC Philharmonic at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester on Saturday evening. A superb performance of Mahler's Ninth Symphony conducted by Yoel Gamzou nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/14/b...

It's thirty years this month since the release of THRAK by #KingCrimson. Read my thoughts here: nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/11/t...

Read my five-star review of the double-headed album launch by Hats Off Gentlemen It's Adequate and Ghost of the Machine at the Camden Club on Sunday. nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/08/h...

Read my review of Beethoven's Emperor Piano Concerto performed by the BBC Philharmonic conducted by John John Storgårds, with Paul Lewis at The Bridgewater Hall in Manchester last week, with Nordic symphonies by Per Nørgård and Jean Sibelius nick-holmes-music.com/2025/04/01/b...

Read my review of the launch gig of Mobula, the new album by Gleb Kolyadin of iamthemorning nick-holmes-music.com/2025/03/06/g...