Upcoming Events

It’s no surprise that Handel’s Messiah continues to draw audiences back year after year. Put simply, there is nothing quite like it. Although the Hallelujah chorus has become its best-known excerpt, Handel wrote every note to impress and astound his listeners. Its choruses are as grand as anything Handel ever composed, the solo writing profoundly moving, the drama powerful and compelling. Performed ‘the Dunedin way’ as Handel would have first heard it, with a small orchestra, a team of twelve…

So named because they were dedicated to the Margrave of Brandenburg in 1721, Bach’s six Brandenburg Concertos contain some of the most sumptuous and virtuosic instrumental writing in all of his output. Each is composed for a different line-up, from the intimacy of concertos 3 and 6, composed for strings alone, to the bombastic splendour of Nos. 1 and 2, with their blazing trumpet and horns. Join us as we explore these astonishing instrumental jewels, presented in their entirety (in…

In a Dunedin Consort first, we team up with our friends at the Scottish Ensemble to perform James MacMillan’s searing setting of the dying words of Jesus Christ. Premiered by Scottish Ensemble 25 years ago, it has since acquired a central place in the repertoire, connecting with audiences the world over through its astonishing emotional power. Whatever your beliefs, hearing Seven Last Words from the Cross is a transformative experience, one that lingers long after the final note sounds. Juxtaposing…

Every year we perform Bach’s Matthew Passion in the days leading up to Easter and every year we discover its riches anew. This extraordinary retelling of the passion story has the power to move and inspire us like no other, a journey that is by turns heartrending and uplifting from the opening chorus to the last. This year, we welcome back Kristian Bezuidenhout, a central figure in the field of historically informed performance, to direct Dunedin Consort in our revelatory…