Performer: Daniel Pioro

Isabela Coracy’s performance as Nina Simone was a perfect opportunity to demonstrate that Ballet Black has a new star and she rose to the challenge with allure.

Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall swells to the music of Stravinsky, Brahms and Beethoven as the BBC Philharmonic explores different perspectives on Classical forms. 

Vaughan Williams' Ninth Symphony is not yet an audience favourite, but Andrew Manze and the London Philharmonic Orchestra make an admirable case for the work as a masterpiece. 

Daniel Pioro reminds us of the qualities of Oliver Knussen's Violin Concerto, while Vasily Petrenko and the LPO see a pair of second symphonies in very different ways.

An inventive programme frames new music by a genre-defying composer and guitarist in a striking late-night concert.

Contemporary classical music is happening in all manner of unexpected venues in London at the moment, from Peckham car parks to pubs. But it isn't just getting edgier – it's also getting more respectable, if last night's suave affair in the Royal Albert Hall's Elgar Room is anything to go by.