Kazuki conducts Beethoven's 5th Symphony

Kazuki Yamada conducts the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra at Symphony Hall on Wednesday 24 February 2027, with the evening built around two of Beethoven's symphonies. It's part of Yamada's Beethoven cycle, in which he pairs the Fourth Symphony — the one he calls the 'slender maiden' — with the far more tempestuous Fifth. The Fourth runs about 34 minutes, and the Fifth follows at 31.

Between them sits Haydn's Trumpet Concerto, an 18-minute piece played on the newly invented 'valve' trumpet, with Matilda Lloyd on the solo. The whole thing runs around two hours and fifteen minutes, with a twenty-minute interval to stretch your legs. If you're arriving early, there's a pre-concert event with the RBC Chamber Ensemble to kick things off.

This is one of the nights in the CBSO's 2026-27 season, which Yamada is leading. The season brings together major symphonic journeys, new commissions, international touring and landmark moments, alongside film scores, pop music and cross-genre collaborations. The Beethoven cycle is one of those symphonic journeys, and this particular pairing of the Fourth and Fifth is one of its stops.

Tickets are £27.50 to £65.50, with a £4 per-ticket commission included in every ticket priced over £15. The concert starts at 7:00pm, and under-16s must be accompanied by an adult.