The Oxford Sinfonia

Handel's Messiah
2026-02-28 19:00 - 21:30 (Europe/London) | Town Hall Oxford, St Aldates, Oxford, Oxon, OX1 1BX, United Kingdom
We are playing the Goossens version of Handel’s Messiah with the Oxford Orpheus choir. It is completely “rethought” and reorchestrated for a modern symphony orchestra by Eugene Goossens and Thomas Beecham.
We are supporting Oxford Orpheus Concert to raise money for ‘The Choir with No Name’ (choirs for homeless people in seven UK cities) and the Oxford Bach Choir’s Schools Choral Programme (promoting good quality choral singing in secondary schools in the Oxford area).
Tickets on: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/oxford-orpheus-sings-handels-messiah-tickets-1975180166047?aff=oddtdtcreator

Prokofiev’s 1st Violin Concerto and Brahms 2
2026-04-18 19:30 - 21:30 | University Church of St Mary the Virgin, High Street, Oxford, OX1 4BJ
We are delighted to welcome Viviane Plekhotkine to play Prokofiev’s 1st Violin Concerto. We open with Dvorak’s Othello Overture and conclude with Brahms’ 2nd Symphony.
Viviane has recently graduated from the Royal College of Music and has already debuted with the LSEO playing Bruch’s violin concerto. Recent highlights include many collaborations with Camerata Nordica in Sweden, as well as performances with the English National Opera (ENO) and the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra.
We are conducted by Alex Mackinder, an exciting young conductor who has just graduated with distinction the Royal College of Music with an MMus (Distinction). He is the Founder and Artistic Director of The Sirius Orchestra, an orchestra that brings together students from all of London’s major music conservatoires. And already he has worked with RCM Symphony Orchestra and the BBC National Orchestra of Wales.
As usual. programmes included with ticket and accompanied children are free.

Arutiunian's Trumpet Concerto and Tchaikovsky's 'Little Russian' Symphony
2026-06-27 19:30 - 21:30 | University Church of St Mary the Virgin, High Street, Oxford, OX1 4BJ
We welcome back soloist Sasha Canter to play Arutiunian’s Trumpet Concerto. We open with Smetana’s ‘Vltava’ and ‘Šárka’ from Má Vlast, and Honeggar’s Pastorale d’été. The second half is Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 2 in C minor (‘Little Russian’). We are conducted by Caroline Hobbs-Smith.
Named a Classic FM 2025 Rising Star, Sasha won the BBC Young Musician of the Year Brass final 2022, playing Arutiunian’s Trumpet Concerto with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Mark Wigglesworth. Since then, he has performed the standard works of the trumpet repertoire with orchestras across the UK, including Oxford, Taunton, Rochester and Folkestone. In 2025 he gave his debut recital at St Martin in the Fields with Rustam Khanmurzin. Sasha recorded the complete solo trumpet works of Andrew Downes which will be released later this year as part of a collection of Downes’s sonatas for wind and brass instruments.
South African-born Caroline Hobbs-Smith is an accomplished conductor and educator, with a passion for inspiring musicians through orchestral playing. Her commitment to musical excellence and collaborative spirit has led to a broad experience across genres, covering chamber, symphonic repertoire, baroque, contemporary and film music repertoire. She conducted the Oxfordshire Schools’ Symphony Orchestra for 14 years, performing regularly in Oxford as well as touring extensively across Europe. She currently works regularly with the National Children’s Orchestras of GB.
