Barbican Centre, 2012 Season

London's Barbican Centre is 30 this year, and with a special Olympics subsidy boost as the world's eyes turn to the British capital this summer, it aims to be as lovely inside as it is famously unlovely outside. Film beauties Cate Blanchett and Juliette Binoche appear live on stage and theatre giants Pina Bausch, Philip Glass and Shakespeare are celebrated in a season of prominent internationalism.

Peter Sellars, Toni Morrison, Yukio Ninagawa, Krzysztof Penderecki and Chick Corea are among many other world names invited to EC2 over the season.

Three key British theatre companies are commissioned on hellish themes: Julian Crouch’s Improbable in The Devil and Mister Punch, Complicite in a new production of Bulgakov’s infernal story The Master and Margarita, and Cheek by Jowl return to Jacobean tragedy with John Ford's tale of doomed incest, 'Tis Pity She's a Whore. A full retrospective of Bausch’s danceworks inspired by world cities fills the summer period before the London Olympics, and Leeds’ Opera North brighten up August with a new production of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s Carousel.

Music highlights include an array of top New York talent, including Nico Muhly and Sufjan Stevens, The Floating Palace, an evening of collaborations led by Robyn Hitchcock and including KT Tunstall and Martin Carthy, appearances by jazz giants Chick Corea and Wynton Marsalis, and a musical and visual centenary commemoration of the sinking of the Titanic in 1912. Press nights first night unless otherwise stated.

 

Theatre and Dance




12-14 January, Survivor, Hofesh Shechter & Antony Gormley, Barbican Theatre (70 mins). An original score by talented Israeli choreographer-composer Shechter, set within a visual landscape by sculptor Gormley, with a 30-strong live band, 200 drummers and five male performers inhabiting the stage.

17-21 January, Translunar Paradise, Theatre Ad Infinitum 2012, the Pit (70 mins). London International Mime Festival.

18-21 January, L’Immédiat, Cie L’Immédiat / Camille Boitel (pictured left), Barbican Theatre (60 mins). London International Mime Festival.

24-28 January, 2 Dimensional Life of Her, Fleur Elise Noble, the Pit (40 mins). London International Mime Festival. Performed, conceived, directed and designed by Fleur Elise Noble.

2-4 February, The Long Count, by Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner and Matthew Ritchie, Barbican Theatre. A multimedia spectacle about the beginning of time by twin brothers Bryce Dessner and Aaron Dessner, of acclaimed American rock band The National, and British-born visual artist Matthew Ritchie. The title is a reference to the Mayan calendar of the same name that features in the creation myth Popol Vuh. Aaron and Bryce Dessner were born in Cincinnati in 1976, the year the Cincinnati Reds beat the Yankees to win their second back-to-back World Series of baseball. Their interest in the 1976 event and the rituals of baseball form a counterpoint to Ritchie’s interest in the Mesoamerican ball game in Popol Vuh, the creation myth of the Maya.

2-25 February, The Devil and Mister Punch, Improbable, the Pit (85 mins). Devised by Julian Crouch and the Company, a version of Punch and Judy but as presented by a pair of broken vaudevillians reduced to presenting a puppet show that goes wildly off-course. Featuring a lush score of bass fiddle, gin parlour piano, metronome and bells, the show reveals a shadowy world inhabited by crocodiles, the devil and more, all performed on a theatrical wood-panelled set. Press night 7 February.

16 February-10 March, ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore, Cheek By Jowl, Silk Street Theatre. John Ford’s 400-year-old tragedy about a brother and sister’s incestuous descent into hell is directed by Declan Donnellan, designed by Nick Ormerod. Age guidance 16+. Press night 21 February.

3-5 March, Rawums(:), florschütz & döhnert, the Pit (30 mins). Age guidance 2–5 years. High-quality international theatre for children from Germany, this charming and ingenious trip to the wonderland of gravity for very small children explores the laws of physics – falling and flying, lightness and heaviness - in a beautifully poetic form of physical theatre.

3-4 March, Barbican Weekender. A free weekend of art, dance, music, theatre and film for all ages in the Barbican foyers. Urban Stories, Barbican Centre



15 March-7 April, The Master and Margarita, Complicite/Simon McBurney, Barbican Theatre (180 mins + interval). Adapted from the novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, directed by Simon McBurney in a new English-language adaptation. Age guidance 14+ (contains nudity). Press night 20 March.

13-29 April, Gross und Klein (Big and Small), Sydney Theatre Company, Barbican Theatre (180 mins incl interval). Cate Blanchett (pictured above right) stars in Botho Strauss’s German play in an English text by Martin Crimp, about a Wonderland-world beyond a rabbit hole where Lotte (Blanchett) attempts to fit into society. Age guidance 14+. Press night Saturday, 14 April.

4-13 May, Einstein on the Beach, An Opera in Four Acts, Robert Wilson and Philip Glass, Barbican Theatre (300 mins, no interval) - the audience is invited to enter and exit at liberty during the performance. Wilson and Glass’s huge, groundbreaking 1976 opera has its first UK performances with choreography by American luminary Lucinda Childs (pictured below).

29 May-2 June, Cymbeline, Ninagawa Company, Barbican Theatre (180 mins). The fêted Japanese director Yukio Ninagawa, renowned for his visually powerful staging, brings this new Japanese-language production of Shakespeare's romance tragedy.

6 June-9 July, Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch: World Cities 2012, Barbican and Sadler’s Wells.
This month-long season of international co-productions is presented by Sadler’s Wells and the Barbican to celebrate the global focus of the Olympic year and one of the most influential choreographers in dance, Pina Bausch. It shows 10 international co-productions exploring 10 global locations in India, Brazil, Italy, Hong Kong, United States of America, Hungary, Turkey, Chile and Japan. Embarked upon by Bausch in 1986, the landmark series of works was created at the invitation of the different cities.

• 6-7 June, Viktor (Rome), SWT: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Teatro Argentina di Roma which premiered on 14 May, 1986.
• 9-10 June, Nur Du (Only You), (Los Angeles), Barbican: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the University of California in Los Angeles, the Arizona State University, the University of California in Berkeley, the University of Texas in Austin, Darlene Neel Presentations, Rena Shagan Associates, Inc and The Music Center Inc which premiered on 11 May, 1996.
• 12-13 June, …Como el musguito en la piedra, ay si, si, si (Santiago de Chile), SWT: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Festival International de Teatro Santiago a Mil in Chile and the support of Goethe-Institut Chile in cooperation with Andres Neumann International which premiered on 12 June, 2009.
• 15-16 June, Ten Chi (Saitama), Barbican: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Saitama Prefecture, Saitama Arts Foundation and Nippon Cultural Centre which premiered on 8 May, 2004.
• 18-19 June, Der Fensterputzer (Hong Kong), SWT: "The Window Washer", a piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the Hong Kong Arts Festival Society and Goethe-Institut Hong Kong which premiered on 12 February, 1997.
• 21-22 June, Bamboo Blues (Kolkata), Barbican: A piece about Calcutta by Pina Bausch in co-production with Goethe-Institut in India which premiered on 18 May, 2007 (pictured above right © Angelos Giotopoulos/SWT)
• 24-25 June, Nefés (Istanbul), SWT: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with the International Istanbul Festival and the Istanbul Foundation of Arts and Culture which premiered on 21 March, 2003.
• 28-29 June, Água (São Paulo), Barbican: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Brazil, Goethe-Institut São Paulo and Emilio Kalil which premiered on 12 May, 2001.
• 1-2 July, Palermo, Palermo (Palermo), SWT: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Teatro Biondo Stabile, Palermo and Andres Neumann International which premiered on 17 December, 1989.
• 8-9 July, Wiesenland (Budapest), SWT: A piece by Pina Bausch in co-production with Goethe-Institut Budapest and Théâtre de la Ville, Paris which premiered on 5 May, 2000.

Summer 2012 (dates tba), You Me Bum Bum Train, Canary Wharf location (tba). Created by Kate Bond and Morgan Lloyd.

19-20 July, Desdemona, Toni Morrison / Rokia Traoré / Peter Sellars, Barbican Hall. In response to Peter Sellars’ 2009 Othello, Nobel Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison and Malian singer/songwriter Rokia Traoré collaborate to create an intimate conversation between Shakespeare’s Desdemona and her African nurse, Barbary. Toni Morrison writes the stories, Rokia Traoré the songs and she also sings the role of Barbary in this Barbican co-commission which is directed by Peter Sellars.

15 August-15 September, Carousel, Opera North, Barbican Theatre (170 mins) – see website for schedule. Leeds’ Opera North return to the Barbican for their first long run with a new production of Rodgers & Hammerstein's musical drama Carousel, using a full-scale Broadway orchestra and operatic-trained voices, is directed by Jo Davies and designed by Antony Ward. A love story about the tragedy of unspoken feelings and one man's struggle to redeem himself after a lifetime of mistakes, this classic American musical contains some of the most powerful music written for the stage, including "You'll Never Walk Alone" and "June is bustin' out all over". Press nights 16, 17, 20 August.



20-29 September, Mademoiselle Julie, Barbican Theatre (150 mins, no interval). Juliette Binoche stars as August Strindberg’s tragic heroine who fatally crosses class borders, in a French-language version directed by Frédéric Fisbach. Age guidance: 14+.

Next page: Music

Music

 

10 January, London Symphony Orchestra, Sir Antonio Pappano, Barbican Hall. Elgar Symphony No 1.

12-14 January, Survivor, Hofesh Shechter & Antony Gormley, Barbican Theatre (70 mins). A multimedia music event by Israeli composer-choreographer and percussionist Hofesh Shechter with a 30-strong live band, 200 drummers and five male dancers set within a visual landscape by leading sculptor and visual artist Gormley.

13 January, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Knussen, Barbican Hall. Schoenberg Chamber Symphony Op 9b.

14 January, Haydn The Seasons, Gabrieli Consort & Players conducted by Paul McCreesh, Barbican Hall.

15 January, London Symphony Orchestra, Thomas Adès, Barbican Hall. Music by Thomas Adès and Mahler.

19 January, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Thomas Dausgaard, Barbican Hall. Music by Britten and Shostakovich with violinist Daniel Hope.

21-27 January, Awakenings, Kronos Quartet. A week of concerts and creative learning events with one of the world’s leading contemporary ensembles.

• 24 Jan, Made in America, Hackney Empire. Features the London premiere of the 2008 production of George Crumb’s Black Angels and includes music from contemporary American pioneers Terry Riley, Michael Gordon, Bryce Dessner (of The National) and Missy Mazzoli.
• 26 Jan, Awakening: A Musical Meditation on the Anniversary of 9/11, Barbican Hall. A musical experience devised around Michael Gordon’s piece The Sad Park, inspired by recordings of New York schoolchildren’s reactions to the events of 9/11. A chance to explore music from outside the traditional string quartet realm – from Uzbekistan to Argentina, from Russia to Iraq and beyond.
• 27 Jan, Early Music, Wilton's Music Hall. An intimate evening of Early Music and Early Music-inspired pieces inside the world's oldest surviving Grand Music Hall features the world premiere of a new work for Kronos, Valentin Silvestrov's String Quartet No 3, music by Hildegard von Bingen and the UK premieres of Jacob Garchik’s arrangement of the Zari Ritual Lamentation (Georgia) and Nicole Lizée’s Death to Kosmische.

24 January, London Symphony Orchestra / Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbican Hall. Music by Debussy and Berlioz with pianist Nelson Friere.

29 January, Present Voices: Wagner Dream, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Brabbins, Barbican Hall. UK premiere of Jonathan Harvey's Wagner Dream - a semi-staged performance of a work created by Harvey from sketches left by Wagner of an opera on a Buddhist theme.

30 January, Orchestra Baobab + Baloji, Barbican Hall. One of West Africa’s seminal bands, Orchestra Baobab is back for their first London show in three years. Infectious rap mixed with Congolese rhumba from Baloji and his band open the evening.

2 February, London Symphony Orchestra / Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbican Hall. Debussy's La mer.

2-4 February, The Long Count, by Aaron Dessner, Bryce Dessner and Matthew Ritchie, Barbican Theatre. A rare chance to see acclaimed rock band The National’s twin brothers Bryce and Aaron Dessner’s multimedia concert, devised in collaboration with video artist Matthew Ritchie (see theatre and dance listings, above). The Dessners (pictured right) team up with a 12-strong ensemble, surrounded by an installation designed by Ritchie, and singers/performers Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond) and Kelley Deal (The Breeders).

3 February, Bach Cantatas / Andreas Scholl with the Kammerorchester Basel, Barbican Hall.

4 February, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Bělohlávek, Barbican Hall. Dvořák's The Jacobin.

7 February, Naturally 7, Barbican Hall. Naturally 7 take classic close-harmony style to new directions, mixing beat boxing, basslines and uncanny instrumental imitation with rap and hook-laden soul, pop and jazz. Their fresh use of the voice has garnered diverse fans including Coldplay’s Chris Martin, Jay Leno and Brian Eno.

8 February, The Floating Palace, Barbican Hall. Featuring Robyn Hitchcock, Martin and Eliza Carthy, Abigail Washburn, KT Tunstall and Howe Gelb, curated by English eccentric Robyn Hitchcock. A unique gathering and opportunity for artists to accompany each other on songs they know, and songs they’ve only just met.

9 February, London Symphony Orchestra / Kristjan Järvi, Barbican Hall. Music by Bernstein, Copland, Milhaud and Ellington.

10 February, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Bringuier, Barbican Hall. Music by Dvořák and Tchaikovsky.

15 February, London Symphony Orchestra / Sir Antonio Pappano, Barbican Hall. Music by Rachmaninov, Korngold and Bartók.

16 February, New York Philharmonic / Gilbert, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 9.

17 February, New York Philharmonic / Gilbert, Barbican Hall. Thomas Adès's Polaris and music by Stravinsky and Ravel.

18 February, New York Philharmonic: Young People's Concert, Barbican Hall. Leonard Bernstein's New York.

18 February, Lang Lang / New York Philharmonic / Gilbert, Barbican Hall. Bartók Piano Concerto No 2.

19 February, Anne-Sophie Mutter / London Symphony Orchestra / André Previn, Barbican Hall. LSO Artist Portrait - Anne-Sophie Mutter.

20 February, Chamber Recital with Anne-Sophie Mutter & André Previn, Barbican Hall.

21 February, London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Shostakovich Symphony No 5.

22 February, Mozart La clemenza di Tito, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie / Louis Langree, Barbican Hall.

23 February, London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Tchaikovsky Symphony No 6 ("Pathetique").

25 February, Academy of St Martin in the Fields / Perahia, Barbican Hall. Music by Beethoven and Schubert.

29 February, Portico Quartet, York Hall (Bethnal Green). Mercury-nominated East London-based Portico Quartet’s music draws on electronica, ambient, classical and dance music. The inspiration of Burial, Mount Kimbie and Flying Lotus rubs shoulders with the textures of Arve Henriksen and Bon Iver and echoes of Steve Reich and Max Richter.

1 March, Lambchop + Cortney Tidwell, Barbican Hall. Nashville-based music pioneers Lambchop present material from their new album Mr M – the first new material since 2008's Oh (Ohio).

2 March, Evgeny Kissin Piano recital, Barbican Hall.

3-4 March, Music Nation, a weekend of nationwide live music devised and led by the BBC as part of the London 2012 Festival.

3 March, Urban Classic, Barbican Hall. A meeting of musical cultures, bringing together the BBC Symphony Orchestra with leading artists from the UK’s urban music scene, including multiple BRIT and MOBO Award-winner Ms Dynamite (pictured left), rapper and producer Fazer (N-Dubz), Essex Devlin and London MC Skepta.

4 March, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Rufus Wainwright, Barbican Hall. UK premiere of Wainwright's settings of five of Shakespeare’s sonnets with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, in a Shakespeare-inspired evening. Also featuring readings of the sonnets by Siân Phillips, music from Prokofiev’s ballet Romeo and Juliet, the Much Ado About Nothing Suite by Erich Korngold and John Adams’s rollicking Lollapalooza.

5 March, Andrew Bird, Barbican Hall. A rare UK appearance from the Chicago-based multi-instrumentalist and lyricist, to celebrate this casual musical genius’s first studio album in over two years.

7 March, Mendelssohn Elijah, Britten Sinfonia / Andreas Delfs, Barbican Hall.

8 March, The Jayhawks, Barbican Hall. Alternative rock and country icons The Jayhawks present songs from their new album Mockingbird Time.

9 March, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Bělohlávek, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 7.

10 March, Hugh Masekela, Barbican Hall. South African legend Hugh Masekela brings his brilliant young band back to London. An outspoken figure for civil rights on both sides of the Atlantic and universally considered one of jazz's greatest trumpet players.

15 March, London Symphony Orchestra / Robin Ticciati, Barbican Hall. Music by Strauss, Mahler and Brahms.

16 March, Nico Muhly / Owen Pallett / Britten Sinfonia, Barbican Hall. The world premiere performances of Nico Muhly's new Cello Concerto, featuring Oliver Coates, and Owen Pallett’s Violin Concerto, featuring Pekka Kuusisto. The concert also includes music by Missy Mazzoli and a reprise of Muhly's recent, collaborative 802 Tour featuring Sam Amidon and Thomas Bartlett aka Doveman amongst the special guests.

20 March, Bang on a Can All-Stars: Field Recordings, Barbican Hall. With Mira Calix, Christian Marclay & Nick Zammuto (of The Books). A fascinating project from a leading new music group. These specially commissioned pieces are all inspired by archival audio and video.

22 March, Krzysztof Penderecki and AUKSO Tychy Chamber Orchestra, Barbican Hall. The iconic Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki (pictured right) makes his first Barbican appearance for more than 12 years in a collaboration with Radiohead guitarist and modern radical Jonny Greenwood. Penderecki conducts his own Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima (1960-61) and Polymorphia (1961), Marek Mos conducts music by Greenwood, Popcorn Superhet Receiver (2005) and 48 Responses to Polymorphia (2011). The concert is staged with a striking contemporary video and lighting design. An album of the work is to be released on Nonesuch Records this year.

23 March, Tippett A Child of Our Time, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Sir Andrew Davis, Barbican Hall.

24 March, Martha Argerich / St Petersburg Philharmonic, Barbican Hall.

25 March, London Symphony Orchestra / Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos, Barbican Hall. Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade.

26 March, Roberto Fonseca, Barbican Hall. The Buena Vista Social Club prodigy leads a new generation of Cuban artists on a journey that weaves in and out of the island’s traditional music, picking up jazz, classical and Afro-Cuban influences along the way.

Next page: Music, April to July

1 April, London Symphony Orchestra / Semyon Bychkov, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 3.

2 April, The Mountain Goats with Anonymous 4, Transcendental Youth, Barbican Hall. Anonymous 4, celebrating their 25th anniversary, have been widely recognised for their scholarship and attention to historical context, both in medieval and early American repertoire. Transcendental Youth features new songs from John Darnielle of the Mountain Goats, heard here in special arrangements for voices, piano and guitar by the acclaimed musical polymath Owen Pallett. A solo set by the Mountain Goats begins the evening.

3 April, Wagner Parsifal, Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra & Chorus / Gergiev, Barbican Hall.

5 April, An Evening with Loreena McKennitt, Barbican Hall. Eclectic Celtic music, featuring songs from many of her dozen albums, which have explored the roots of Celtic music, and carried her on a musical journey from Asia Minor to Ireland.

9 April, Sufjan Stevens / Nico Muhly / Bryce Dessner, Barbican Hall. Featuring New Trombone Collective and Navarra String Quartet. An exceptional collaboration from three defining creative minds from New York's music scene. Presenting a unique song cycle for seven trombones and string quartet with vocals from Sufjan Stevens, the concert opens with a series of string quartets – most of them UK premieres.

11 April, Chick Corea & Gary Burton, Barbican Hall. Legendary jazz pianist Chick Corea and vibes player Gary Burton, two of jazz’s longest-standing musical pioneers, who have produced three Grammy Award-winning albums together. Their new release, Hot House, is out on Concorde Records in early 2012.

12 April, London Symphony Orchestra / Daniel Harding, Barbican Hall. Bruckner Symphony No 6.

13 April, BBC Symphony Orchestra Sibelius Symphonies, Barbican Hall. Sibelius Symphony No 2.

14 April, Elgar The Dream of Gerontius, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra / Andris Nelsons, Barbican Hall.

15 April, The Sinking of the Titanic, Barbican Hall. Featuring Gavin Bryars Ensemble & Philip Jeck. Composed in 1969 and first recorded for Brian Eno’s Obscure label, Bryars’ The Sinking of the Titanic was inspired by reports that the ship’s string ensemble continued to play the hymn tune "Autumn" as the vessel sank in April 1912. This special concert marks the 100th anniversary of the tragedy and features projections of archival images curated by Bill Morrison and Laurie Olinder.

16 April, Madredeus, Barbican Hall. Pedro Ayres Magalhães’s Portuguese band Madredeus (pictured left) is on stage again after a six-year sabbatical, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the start of their career featuring the amazing new voice of Beatriz Nunes.

19-21 April, London Symphony Orchestra / Sir Colin Davis, Barbican Hall. UBS Soundscapes: Weber.

20 April, BBC Symphony Orchestra Sibelius Symphonies, Barbican Hall. Sibelius Symphony No 5.

22 April, Beethoven Missa solemnis, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra / Harnoncourt, Barbican Hall.

25 April, Juan de Marcos Afro Cuban All Stars, Barbican Hall. The mighty Afro Cuban All Stars and their leader Juan de Marcos Gonzalez return to London for the first time in seven years with special guests presenting the past, present and future of the Cuban sound.

26 April, Present Voices: The Importance of Being Earnest, Birmingham Contemporary Music Group / Thomas Adès, Barbican Hall.

28 April, Total Immersion: Arvo Pärt, BBC Singers, St Giles, Cripplegate.

29 April, London Symphony Orchestra / Pierre Boulez, Barbican Hall. Scriabin Symphony No 4 ("Poem of Ecstasy").

4-13 May, Einstein on the Beach, An Opera in Four Acts, Robert Wilson and Philip Glass, Barbican Theatre (300 mins, no interval) - the audience is invited to enter and exit at liberty during the performance. Wilson and Glass’s huge, groundbreaking 1976 opera has its first UK performances.

8 May, London Symphony Orchestra / Pierre Boulez, Barbican Hall. Bartók Violin Concerto No 2.

9 May, Joshua Bell, Barbican Hall.

10 May, BBC Symphony Orchestra Sibelius Symphonies, Barbican Hall. Sibelius Symphony No 1.

11 May, London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Stravinsky Festival.

12 May, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra / Jansons, Barbican Hall. Strauss Also sprach Zarathustra.

13 May, LSO Chamber Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Stravinsky Festival.

15 May, London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Stravinsky Festival.

17 May, LSO Chamber Orchestra: Stravinsky, LSO St Luke’s. UBS Soundscapes: Eclectica.

18 May, Hauschka + Jóhann Jóhannsson + Dustin O'Halloran, Barbican Hall. Celebrating FatCat's "post-classical" imprint 130701 Record, the concert is a triple headline bill of FatCat artists, all of whom are opening up different pathways through the new musical zone where post-classical, electronica, ambient and song meet.

20 May, Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra / Haitink, Barbican Hall. Bruckner Symphony No 5.

20 May, Trio Mediaeval and Arve Henriksen, LSO St Luke’s. Oslo's Trio Mediaeval – sopranos Anna Maria Friman, Linn Andrea Fuglseth and Torunn Østrem Ossum – join forces with Norwegian jazz trumpeter and singer Arve Henriksen.

24 May, BBC Symphony Orchestra / Belohlavek, Barbican Hall. Brahms Violin Concerto.

27 May, London Symphony Orchestra / Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 4 and Beethoven Piano Concerto No 3.

28 May, Big Star Third, Barbican Hall. A concert performance of Big Star's Sister Lovers album with the original orchestrations for strings, winds and percussion. Featuring Jody Stephens, Chris Stamey, Mitch Easter, Ken Stringfellow and Mike Mills and more to be announced.

30 May, Karita Mattila / Esa-Pekka Salonen, Barbican Hall. New works by Esa-Pekka Salonen, Magnus Lindberg and Kaija Saariaho.

31 May, London Symphony Orchestra / Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 1 ("Titan").

3 June, London Symphony Orchestra / Michael Tilson Thomas, Barbican Hall. Mahler Symphony No 5.

7 June, Murray Perahia, Barbican Hall.

8 Jun, Accordion Wrestling, York Hall (Bethnal Green). Finnish accordion adventurist Kimmo Pohjonen’s singular mission is to expand the capabilities, sound, scope, performance and experience of the accordion to new levels. One of his most recent projects, Accordion Wrestling is a revival of Finnish wrestling tradition from early to mid-1900s where accordion was included as musical accompaniment for wrestling matches and the player was often equal in stature with the fame of the wrestlers. This live show features film, music performance in surround-sound and choreographed wrestling with Finnish and British wrestlers presented on a stage with a specially designed amplified mat, circular back screen and lighting rig.

10 June, London Symphony Orchestra / Bernard Haitink, Barbican Hall. Music by Purcell, Mozart and Schubert.

14 June, London Symphony Orchestra / Bernard Haitink, Barbican Hall. Bruckner Symphony No 7.

16 June, Jaga Jazzist with the Britten Sinfonia + Lars Hornveth, Barbican Hall. Jaga Jazzist are a 10-piece collective whose music moves across boundaries, combining jazz, electronics, post-rock and more with exhilarating energy and precision. For this one-off show, they perform new orchestrated versions of songs from their four albums and the first UK performance of Kaleidoscopic, a 35-minute composition for orchestra and electronics written by Jaga Jazzist's creative lynchpin Lars Hornveth.

17 June, Vienna Philharmonic / Rattle, Barbican Hall. Music by Brahms, Webern and Schumann.

21 June, London Symphony Orchestra / Gianandrea Noseda, Barbican Hall. Music by Wagner, Berg and Beethoven.

24 June, LSO Discovery Family Concert, Barbican Hall. Suitable for 7 to 12-year-olds.

6 July, Goran Bregovic: Margot, Diary of an Unhappy Queen, Barbican Hall. A new project from celebrated composer and bandleader Goran Bregovic, working with a gypsy brass band, a string quartet, a six-piece Bulgarian choir and an actress.

15 July, Renee Fleming / London Symphony Orchestra / Valery Gergiev, Barbican Hall. Music by Debussy, Stravinsky and Henri Dutilleux.



19-20 July, Desdemona, Toni Morrison / Rokia Traoré / Peter Sellars, Barbican Hall. In response to Peter Sellars’ 2009 Othello, Nobel Prize-winning novelist Toni Morrison and Malian singer/songwriter Rokia Traoré collaborate to create an intimate conversation between Shakespeare’s Desdemona and her African nurse, Barbary. Toni Morrison writes the stories, Rokia Traoré (pictured above) the songs and she also sings the role of Barbary in this Barbican co-commission which is directed by Peter Sellars.

25-26 July, Swing Symphony (Symphony No 3): Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis, Sir Simon Rattle and the London Symphony Orchestra, Barbican Hall. The UK premiere of jazz legend Wynton Marsalis’s symphonic meditation on the evolution of swing, commissioned by Berliner Philharmoniker in collaboration with the New York Philharmonic Orchestra, the Los Angeles Philharmonic Association and the Barbican, for the LSO.

September 2012, Africa Express, nationwide. The Barbican is executive producer for an ambitious, free-wheeling tour through UK cities by African and Western musicians - details to be announced.

• Theatre and dance booking at the Barbican Centre, Silk Street, London EC2Y 8DS
  
• Music booking at the Barbican Centre
• The Cultural Olympiad and London 2012 Festival
• The World Shakespeare 2012 Festival