AUTUMN is just around the corner and a new and exciting Lakeland Sinfonia Concert Society season beckons.

This time around the highly respected society celebrates its 40th anniversary, opening the 2014/15 series on Saturday, September 27 (7.30pm) with its own orchestra, the Lakeland Sinfonia, performing works by Purcell, Mozart and Schubert under the baton of Philip Sunderland. Julian Bliss is the soloist playing Mozart’s beautiful Clarinet Concerto – the middle movement of which has been in the top ten of Classic FM’s Hall of Fame for many years.

On Saturday, October 18, the European Union Chamber Orchestra returns to Kendal Leisure Centre’s Westmorland Hall under the baton of director Gergely Kuklis with one of the UK’s finest violinists in the spotlight, Tasmin Little, displaying her thrilling technique in Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. The Sibelius Romance in C, Grieg’s Holberg Suite, and Bartok Rumanian Dances complete the programme.

The Royal Northern Sinfonia concludes the 2014 half of the season on Saturday, November 15, with the first of three concerts in the society’s season, featuring contrasting works by Mozart, Schnittke and Beethoven. Julian Rachlin, who conducts and also plays solo violin, entered the Konservatorium Wien at the age of nine in 1983. He gave his first public concert in 1984, and won the Eurovision Young Musician of the Year in 1988. Since, he has played with many of the major orchestras in Europe and the US.

The RNS opens the New Year on January 31 with Copland’s Clarinet Concerto in the programme played by the orchestra’s principal clarinettist Timothy Orpen. Violinist Kyra Humphreys directs the orchestra and plays Mozart’s Violin Concerto No 4.

Last season, the BBC Philharmonic gave one of the all-time great performances of a sinfonia series. On Saturday, February 14, the magnificent ensemble brings its soaring symphonic sound back to the Westmorland Hall along with musical director Bramwell Tovey to celebrate St Valentine's Day in a concert of romantic music.

March 7 sees two Lakeland favourites play Kendal - Wyn Davies returns to the society’s podium in the second of the Lakeland Sinfonia’s two concerts, featuring Chopin’s 2nd Piano Concerto played by distinguished pianist, Martino Tirimo.

The Halle’s rich orchestral ranks conducted by Karl-Heinz Steffens grace the Westmorland Hall on March 28, with rapidly rising talent pianist Denis Kozhukin soloist in Prokofiev’s 1st Piano Concerto. Kozhuzin came third in the Leeds International Piano Competition in 2006 at the age of only 19, and in 2010 took First Prize in the 2010 Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels.

Finally, on April 18, Royal Northern Sinfonia completes its hat trick of performances, this time under the direction of the emiment Bradley Creswick with highly respected flautist Juliette Bausor as soloist.

Tickets on 01539-722533.