One of the best non-professional orchestras in the Midlands
Solihull Symphony Orchestra is a lively and enthusiastic group of non-professional musicians who enjoy taking on the challenge of a diverse and varied repertoire. Our members span an age range from under 18 to over 80.
Read on to find out more about the orchestra and our Music Director. Come to one of our our concerts, or maybe think about joining us?
15:30, Saturday 25 April 2026
Shirley Methodist Church, 257 Stratford Road, B90 3AL
Larsson – Pastoral Suite
Grieg – Peer Gynt Suite no 1
Sibelius – En Saga
Nielsen – Symphony no 4
Conductor – Tommaso Nista
Tickets will be available from PriorBooking.com, from orchestra members, or on the door on the day of the concert, subject to availability. Please aim to arrive early to get good seats! Contactless card payments are welcome.
Full Price – £15
Concessions (60+, unemployed, access issues etc) – £12
Young people under 25 and carers – £5
Children under 16 accompanied by an adult – no charge
We offer discounts for groups of ten or more purchased in advanced – please contact us for details.
For advance information on our concerts, our annual programme and occasional special offers, sign up to our Mailing List
Membership of the orchestra is by subscription and is subject to conditions as outlined in the Rules and Constitution. There are no formal auditions or entry requirements, although players will normally be expected to have had some orchestral experience. However, a willingness to learn and a commitment to attend Tuesday evening rehearsals regularly are equally important. Instrumentalists interested in joining the orchestra are invited to contact us. We also welcome enquiries for short term membership – if you’re studying here for a year, or on a short term work placement for example?
All regular rehearsals take place on Tuesday evenings at Shirley Methodist Church, 257 Stratford Road, Shirley, B90 3AL between 19:30 and 21:45. Please try to arrive by 19:15, and always bring your own stand – there are no stands at the venue.
The subscription rate for 2025-26 is £165. We encourage members to pay online annually, but a termly rate of £65 may be accepted on request. The subscription covers the costs of rehearsals, orchestral tuition and occasional sectional coaching from professional musicians. There is no charge for full time school, college or university students under the age of 30. Members have the option of paying for interval refreshments (tea, coffee, biscuits and cake) for the year (£15) or termly (£5) either separately or as part of their subscription – £180 for the year, or £70 per term. It is not possible to pay for refreshments with cash on a week by week basis.
New members are welcome at any time, although the first couple of weeks after a concert to begin preparation for the next are usually the best time to join. Subscriptions are not normally charged for any prospective new member’s first term – and there’s no charge for refreshments during this period either!
At the moment, we are actively looking for extra players in the following sections
Strings – particular vacancies for two double basses, but 1st and 2nd violins and violas are always welcome.
Timpani / percussion – enquiries welcome from any musicians able to help with percussion parts on concert days, and from timpanists (ideally with their own kit.) We’re very happy to consider school or college students who are learning drums and would like to try playing in an orchestra! We maintain a waiting list for woodwind and brass players interested in joining us in the future, and willing to deputise at short notice for occasional rehearsals or works with expanded wind sections. Please contact us if you would like to be on the waiting list – or if you have were last in contact more than a year ago, please get in touch againto make sure we have your up to date details.
Keyboard players are sometimes needed for concerts, but enquiries are welcome from anyone willing to attend occasional rehearsals as well to fill in occasional harp, xylophone or piano parts.
When you become a member, you will be given login and password details for the Members Only pages. Please contact us if you’re a member of the orchestra and don’t have login details.
updated 28 August 2025
Solihull Symphony Orchestra is delighted to announce the appointment of Tommaso Nista as our new Music Director from September 2025.
Born in Trento, Italy, Tommaso was originally a trumpet player and chorister, performing with youth choirs in venues such as the Reichstag Berlin, St. Peter’s Basilica, and the World Choir Games in Riga. He now sings with the choir of St. Chad’s Cathedral in Birmingham.
A growing interest in conducting led him to early studies with Stefano Chicco and Elena Sartori and after graduating with honours in tuba from the ‘Claudio Monteverdi’ Conservatoire in Bolzano, he completed a Master’s in Conducting at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, working with conductors such as Kazuki Yamada, Michael Seal, and Paul Murphy, and assisted in productions of Cendrillon, Albert Herring, and Hansel und Gretel. He was recently awarded the Guy Woolfenden Prize, the Michael Beech Prize and conducted Ravel’s La Valse at Symphony Hall.
Tommaso is assistant conductor and librarian of the Birmingham Philharmonic Orchestra and Chief conductor of the Junior Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Symphony Orchestra. Passionate about contemporary and media music, he also leads the Birmingham Game Music Ensemble and has conducted premieres, film music, and popular repertoire, including live performances of Michael Bublé’s Christmas Album.
He is also active as an Italian language coach, working with opera companies around the UK.
The orchestra began life as an evening class in Solihull, becoming Knowle Sinfonia in 1990 with the late Malcolm Peters as its conductor. In January 2005, the orchestra changed its name to the Solihull Symphony Orchestra. Martin Leigh became the orchestra’s first professional Music Director in 2001.
In January 2005, the orchestra changed its name to the Solihull Symphony Orchestra.
Between 2013 and 2023 the orchestra’s Music Director was Jon Malaxetxebarria.
Following a two year evaluation period, Tommaso Nista was appointed as Music Director in 2025.
The orchestra is affiliated to Making Music, (the National Federation of Music Societies), and has received supported from the PRS Foundation for new music. Since 2014, the Mayor of Solihull has been Patron of the orchestra and the orchestra maintains a close relationship with Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council.
The Solihull Symphony Orchestra is a Registered Charity No 1118720
www.charitycommission.gov.uk