A 16-piece chamber orchestra plays Christmas film scores, carols and festive classics at Derby Cathedral, with early and late concerts.
The Christmas Orchestra returns to Derby Cathedral on Monday 21 December, after selling out here in 2024 and 2025. This time they're taking the show to more locations than ever, so the Derby date is part of a wider run rather than a one-off.
The music comes from a 16-piece chamber orchestra of professional musicians. They play a curated soundtrack of scores from favourite Christmas films, traditional carols and popular festive classics, all supported by full sound production and a lighting show. It's a curated set rather than a random collection, so you'll get a mix of the cinematic and the traditional in one go. Audiences have called it magical, and some have gone so far as to say it's becoming their annual Christmas routine.
There are two performances on the night, so you can pick the one that fits your evening. The early concert has doors at 17:15 and runs from 18:00 to 19:15. The late one opens at 19:45 and runs from 20:30 to 21:45. If you're planning to stay on, there's a licensed bar open onsite throughout the night.
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Tickets start from £29.00 and pre-booking is essential. There are a few different options to choose from: Gold VIP and VIP for the best seats, and unreserved central, side aisle and gallery seats, which are allocated on a first-come, first-served basis. The cathedral is on Iron Gate, DE1 3GP, right in the centre of town.
