After more than half a century of silence, the grand stage of Bradford Live will welcome audiences once again. On Friday, August 1, the long-shuttered venue reopens with Yorkshire Calling, a landmark concert blending music, poetry, and regional pride in what promises to be a defining moment for the city’s cultural renaissance.
The event marks the first public performance in the building—formerly the Odeon cinema—since Sir Tom Jones last played there in 1968. Now meticulously restored and reimagined, the venue signals a bold new chapter for Bradford’s artistic identity.
At the heart of the evening is a world premiere: pianist and composer Yuanfan Yang will debut his Piano Concerto No. 4, “Ode to the Jing River” alongside the Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Ben Crick. The performance underscores the orchestra’s recent revival as Yorkshire’s only full-time professional symphonic ensemble outside of Opera North.
The concert also resurrects a forgotten voice from the past. William Baines, a prodigious Wakefield-born composer who died shortly after World War I, will posthumously premiere his Poem for Piano and Orchestra—a work never before heard by the public. Its unveiling in his native county adds historical poignancy to an already emotionally charged programme.
Joining the evening’s line-up are several prominent figures with strong ties to the region. Aled Jones—best known for his iconic performance of Walking in the Air—will appear, as will celebrated poet and broadcaster Ian McMillan, a native of Barnsley whose words have long captured the rhythms of Northern life. The Bantam of the Opera choir, blending football chants with choral tradition, adds a distinctive local flair.
The event will be filmed for broadcast on BBC One’s The One Show, offering national attention to a city determined to reclaim its place on the cultural map.
Tickets for Yorkshire Calling are currently available via Trafalgar Tickets.
In both its ambition and symbolism, this inaugural concert is more than a performance—it is a statement of revival, a homage to lost voices, and a celebration of Yorkshire’s enduring artistic spirit.