For three decades the European Concert Hall Organisation (ECHO) has identified and supported exceptional emerging performers in the classical sector.

Each year the initiative delivers around 110 concerts and 70 special projects across ECHO’s member halls, including B:Music’s Town Hall & Symphony Hall, with a mission to bring fresh energy to the global stage, engage diverse audiences, and inspire social progress through music.

The Rising Stars are nominated by the organisations behind the halls. In 2021 Isata-Kanneh Mason was nominated by B:Music and toured as part of the 20/21 Season. She has gone on to be artist-in-residence with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in 2022/23, made a solo debut at the BBC Proms in 2023 and been awarded the coveted Leonard Bernstein Award. In 2024 she was described by Classic FM as one of today’s most in-demand classical musicians.

B:Music is proud to showcase the ECHO Rising Stars as part of its Birmingham Classical season. These popular hour-long concerts take place on a Sunday morning in the Jennifer Blackwell Performance Space at Symphony Hall.

Many of the Rising Stars follow the performance with a workshop for local young musicians and emerging artists, creating a perfect ecosystem of classical talent.

ECHO Rising Star tickets cost just £15, which includes a cup of tea or coffee and a slice of cake before the performance.