Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)

Creative Tourist
RNCM

Defining the future of music for 50 years, the RNCM attracts talented young musicians from all around the world, helping them to forge incredible careers in the industry. Concurrently the College provides Manchester with a diverse, explorative, and bold public programme of events showcasing standout students as well as musicians working on the international stage.

Constructed in 1972, RNCM was an amalgamation of Sir Charles Hallé’s 19th Century Royal Manchester College of Music and the Northern School of music, a mere stripling in comparison (it was set up in 1920). Now, it is home to a modern concert hall, revamped to the tune of £7 million in 2014 by architect Ian Palmer. “We wanted the audience to be fully immersed in the performance as if suspended in an Escher painting,” said Palmer about the revamp. “What we have created is a spatial Rubik’s cube that will allow the college to expand its repertoire, confident of a venue that is beautiful, technically outstanding and, most significantly, maintains its unique acoustic qualities.”

The 40-year-old concert hall is now a high tech facility, and includes a balcony, lighting and raised floor — a fantastic spot to watch the breathlessly packed programme of events that the College hosts each and every season. As a venue, The Royal Northern College of Music also boasts a 607-capacity black box theatre, one of the largest in the city, and a 150-seater Forman Lecture Theatre.

124 Oxford RoadManchesterM13 9RD View map
Telephone: 0161 907 5200 Visit Now

Accessibility

Full disabled access

Admission Charges

Free

Children and Families

Baby changing

Services and Facilities

Music school, music venue, cafe

What's on near Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)

Hedda at Contact
TheatreManchester
Hedda at Contact

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from £20.00
Teenage Dads
MusicOxford Road
Teenage Dads at Deaf Institute

Twisting together new wave, synth pop and early 2000s NYC indie, Melbourne band Teenage Dads are back with a fresh wave of UK dates.

from £15.00
Victoria Kennefick / Carcanet Press
LiteratureManchester
Victoria Kennefick and Declan Ryan at Blackwell’s

The University of Manchester’s Centre for New Writing’s Literature Live series continues apace, here welcoming Victoria Kennefick and Declan Ryan to Blackwell’s Bookshop to read from their new poetry and talk about them with John McAuliffe.

from £3.00
Picture of the three band members of Elephant Gym
MusicManchester
Elephant Gym

Elephant Gym bring their patchwork of jazz, contemporary math- and post-rock to Manchester this May in support of their new album, World.

from £17.75
Until
ActivityManchester
DJ Gym at Hatch

Learn some DJ and production skills with DJ Gym Manchester, based in the culturally infused surrounds of Hatch.

from £269

Where to go near Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM)

Manchester
Restaurant
San Carlo Fumo

San Carlo Fumo may be part of a chain, but it doesn’t feel like it. Right at the top of Oxford Road, it’s lavishly decorated and specialises in cicchetti, or Italian small plates.

Utility Gift Shop
Manchester
Shop
Utility Gift Shop

Utility Gift Shop on Oxford Road is all about products that are new, unique, quirky and cool. High street shopping at its best.

exterior of Contact Theatre building
Manchester
Theatre
Contact Theatre

Following a major redevelopment, the iconic venue on Oxford Road will be reopening its doors to welcome the public back into the building this autumn. 

The Salutation pub in Manchester
Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Salutation

This traditional boozer, surrounded by imposing flats and university buildings, was taken over by Trof (of the Deaf Institute fame). The Sally, as the regulars call it, hosts an energetic, arty crowd – and its recently expanded outside area is another good reason to visit.

Manchester
University
MMU Student Union

Manchester Metropolitan University Students’ Union building houses a bar and various other facilities for students and staff.

Manchester
Music venue
The Deaf Institute

The Deaf Institute is a vibrant gig venue and nightclub for which it is well worth taking a jaunt out of the Northern Quarter.

Culture Guides

Theatre in Manchester and the North
Theatre in Manchester and the North

Affecting contemporary performances and fresh, relevant takes on enduring classics, we pick out shows that help us scrutinise the world we live in.

Teenage Dads
Music in Manchester and the North

Fresh concert seasons, forward-thinking festivals and a revolving door of amazing gigs. Things are looking bright as spring comes into view.