THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER: A NEW DIMENSION
Music composed by Hans Zimmer
Curated by Hans Zimmer
Conducted by Matt Dunkley
Featuring the Odesa Orchestra & Friends and the Nairobi Chamber Chorus
Featured vocalists: Carla Chamoun and Gan-ya Ben-gur Akselrod
Featured vocalists on THE POWER OF ONE and THE LION KING: Nokukhanya Dlamini and Futurelove Sibanda
Violin: Maya Levy
Cello: Timothée Berte-Renou
Guitar: Amir John Haddad
Bass guitar: Dave Marks
Woodwinds: Saulius Petreikis
Drums/Percussion: Luis Ribeiro, Olivia Martin and Lucy Landymore
Keyboard/Accordion: Roella Oloro
October 7, 2026
Co-Op Live, Etihad Campus
Manchester, England
PART 1: WELCOME TO THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER
Not to be confused with HANS ZIMMER LIVE, which is a rock and synth-infused live show featuring Hans Zimmer himself on keyboards and guitar along with a band of the world’s top musicians, THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER is a different kind of show that has been curated by Zimmer and features musical suites arranged for orchestra, choir, and soloists conducted by long-time Zimmer collaborator, Matt Dunkley.
Zimmer himself does not perform on stage, but pre-recorded videos of him sharing small anecdotes about the music are projected between pieces to give the music context as well as give the show a strong sense of cohesion and structure.
While it is always a treat seeing Zimmer perform on stage, hearing his music properly fleshed out for orchestra, choir and soloists just hits differently. Truth be told, I actually prefer this incarnation of Zimmer’s music to HANS ZIMMER LIVE as the music has more space to breathe and therefore leaves a more lasting impression.
Don’t get me wrong though because both shows deserve to be seen – it just depends on what you prefer: the wildly satisfying adrenaline rush of HANS ZIMMER LIVE, or the deep emotional journey of THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER? If you’re a hardcore Zimmer fan like myself, then the answer is obvious: go see both 😊
PART 2: MAD SKILLS, MAD MUSICIANS
Before I get into the set list, let me highlight one key ingredient of THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER and its huge success: its musicians.
I cannot possibly go on without first name-checking the sixty-seven musicians who perform on the tour.
Quite simply, they are incredible. ALL OF THEM.
Every single one of them absolutely kills it on stage from the many vocalists to the multi-instrumental soloists. Specifically, I’m referring to these people:
- Conductor/Trumpet: Matt Dunkley
- The Odesa Orchestra & Friends
- The Nairobi Chamber Chorus
- Featured vocalists: Carla Chamoun and Gan-ya Ben-gur Akselrod
- Featured vocalists on THE POWER OF ONE and THE LION KING: Nokukhanya Dlamini and Futurelove Sibanda
- Violin: Maya Levy
- Cello: Timothée Berte-Renou
- Guitar: Amir John Haddad
- Bass guitar: Dave Marks
- Woodwinds: Saulius Petreikis
- Drums/Percussion: Luis Ribeiro, Olivia Martin, and Lucy Landymore
- Keyboard/Accordion: Roella Oloro
While some of these names may appear new to you, I can guarantee by the end of this review you’ll be clamouring to hear them play and do their thing on stage. They really are that good, and they really deserve to be applauded for their talents.
Conductor Matt Dunkley actually credits each and every musician throughout the performance, even ending the show with individual slides projected for each musician and listing their social media handles.
Is there any better or more wonderful way to appreciate and applaud the musicians of this tremendous show?
PART 3: THE SET LIST
The performance I saw on October 7, 2026 at Co-Op Live in Manchester was full of highlights.
Although the set list order is slightly different, you can pretty much (re)live the whole experience through the CD and Blu-ray releases that were put out by Sony Classical in the last year:
But I advise you NOT to do that before experiencing the actual show itself – you’d be missing quite an experience otherwise!
In any case, this was the set list for the Manchester performance:
– THE FIRST HALF –
- MAN OF STEEL: What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?
- DRIVING MISS DAISY: Driving
- THE ROCK: Hummell Gets the Rockets / Rock House Jail
- PEARL HARBOR: Heart of a Volunteer / … And Then I Kissed Him / Tennessee
- THE DARK KNIGHT RISES: Why Do We Fall?
- NO TIME TO DIE: No Time To Die (Instrumental) / Final Ascent
- GLADIATOR: The Wheat / Rome is the Light / The Battle / Honor Him / Now We Are Free
- INTERSTELLAR: Day One / No Time for Caution
– THE SECOND HALF –
- WONDER WOMAN 1984 / BATMAN V SUPERMAN – DAWN OF JUSTICE: Themyscira / Is She With You?
- KUNG FU PANDA: Oogway Ascends / Panda Po / Etc.
- SHERLOCK HOLMES / SHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS: Discombobulate / Tick Tock (Shadows – Part 2) / Catatonic
- DUNE – PART TWO: A Time of Quiet Between the Storms
- THE PRINCE OF EGYPT: The Reprimand / Chariot Race / The Burning Bush / Deliver Us
- THE POWER OF ONE: Mother Africa
- THE LION KING: Nants’ Ingonyama / This Land / To Die For / King of Pride Rock
- INCEPTION: We Built Our Own World / Dream is Collapsing / Time
- PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN: Jack Sparrow / He’s a Pirate / Etc.
It was a bit of a challenge (to say the least!) coming up with the individual track titles within each musical suite, so I may have made a mistake here or there. If you find a mistake or notice any omissions, please let me know!
PART 4: THE FILM SCORES
In building the above set list, I referenced the original soundtrack albums from my personal collection.
In an effort to encourage you to BUY PHYSICAL MEDIA, allow me to post pictures of each score featured in the concert (except for THE PRINCE OF EGYPT: COLLECTOR’S EDITION, which I seem to have misplaced!)
Happy hunting!
Now, onto the concert review 🙂
PART 5: THE FIRST HALF
The evening kicked off with a pre-recorded video of Zimmer humorously explaining that the show is basically his “dodgy notes played beautifully by some of (his) favourite musicians.”
MAN OF STEEL
– What Are You Going to Do When You Are Not Saving the World?
And with that, conductor Matt Dunkley graced the stage for a stunning rendition of Zimmer’s main theme for MAN OF STEEL. What I liked most about this performance was the opening grace notes on electric guitar as well as the main melody taken by the strings. As the theme soared with heroism, I couldn’t help but grin when those rising two-note brass figures rang throughout the auditorium. Thrilling stuff!
DRIVING MISS DAISY
– Driving
Oh how I love this piece! DRIVING MISS DAISY is one of the first scores I bought by Zimmer years ago, and it’s one of those early scores by him that so perfectly captures a feeling of nostalgia, romance and pure fun. And what a pleasant surprise it was to see Dunkley don his performer cap and take us through a jazzy take of the main theme on trumpet.
THE ROCK
– Hummell Gets the Rockets
– Rock House Jail
THE ROCK is the first soundtrack I ever bought with my own money.
It was 1996, I was in high school, and I remember being absolutely blown away by the opening title music of the film. Never did I think I would hear it performed live someday, but here we are – with full orchestra and choir no less!
It is impossible to not be completely moved by the main theme. It’s tragic yet beautiful, hopeful yet sad. And to hear the Nairobi Chamber Chorus sing along with the orchestra? Nothing but feels, nothing but feels.
In addition to its pulse-pounding action music, my favourite piece of the suite is this particular arrangement of the theme on the original soundtrack album titled “Rock House Jail.”
From 9:05 onwards in this track is this very upbeat and heroic take of the theme that gets me every time, and hearing it live absolutely wrecked me.
The suite would have been perfect if it had included the music (“Rocket Away,” time marker 9:09) that plays in the finale of the film as Nicolas Cage is scrambling to light flares to ward off the approaching bombing run by the fighter jets.
You know if you know 😊
PEARL HARBOR
– Heart of a Volunteer
– … And Then I Kissed Him
– Tennessee
This suite was OWNED by soprano Gan-ya Ben-gur Akselrod – I simply cannot think about this piece anymore without thinking about her superlative performance.
The suite started somber with “Heart of a Volunteer” before segueing into a wonderfully patriotic lament by the trumpet and orchestra. The softly romantic “… And Then I Kissed Him” came next, highlighted by a lovely acoustic guitar performance by Amir John Haddad.
And then it happened on the piece “Tennessee”: walking centre stage with the grace of an angel, Akselrod opened her heart and gave one of the most stunning vocal performances I have ever heard. While Zimmer’s “Tennessee” theme is rightly acknowledged as one of his very best romantic themes, Akselrod took it, made it slightly different, and then elevated it to a level of pure and utter ecstasy. Hearing it made me feel as if I was living in a beautiful dream, one that I wished would never end.
I would certainly pay full price (and more) just to hear her performance of this piece again.
THE DARK KNIGHT RISES
– Why Do We Fall?
The mood changed with a souped up take on “Why Do We Fall?” from THE DARK KNIGHT. Haddad returned for a crazy cool rock-infused electric guitar riff that set the audience on fire.
I did miss those deep electronic pulses you hear in the HANS ZIMMER LIVE arrangement of the theme though – that one feels like it’s literally pulsing through your veins and ready to explode.
NO TIME TO DIE
– No Time To Die (Instrumental)
– Final Ascent
Next came a gorgeous cello-led arrangement of the Billie Eilish song, “No Time To Die.” Performed with aching beauty by cellist Timothée Berte-Renou, it then segued into “Final Ascent,” the music underscoring James Bond’s “final ascent” in the film. Coupled with scenes from the film projected on screen, it was absolutely heartbreaking. The suite concluded with that iconic “James Bond Chord,” reminding us that the world’s greatest spy will return someday.
GLADIATOR
– The Wheat
– Rome is the Light
– The Battle
– Honor Him
– Now We Are Free
No Zimmer concert is complete without music from GLADIATOR, and this lengthy suite was headlined by the tremendous vocals of Carla Chamoun. Getting the Lisa Gerrard sound (and words) is a real challenge, but Chamoun absolutely ran with it to provide a pitch-perfect performance that left the audience in raptures.
“Rome is the Light” (from the second volume of the GLADIATOR soundtrack) is something you don’t often hear performed live, but damn, Chamoun’s take on it sounded so fresh and powerful.
The iconic “The Battle” and its final lament was again dominated by some tremendous vocal work by Chamoun, who continued to impress with her performances in “Honor Him” and the uplifting finale, “Now We Are Free.”
She certainly has a bright future ahead of her, and I for one cannot wait to see her perform live again.
INTERSTELLAR
– Day One
– No Time for Caution
I don’t think there is anyone on this planet – and dare I say it, universe – that does not recognize the music from Zimmer’s magnum opus, INTERSTELLAR.
The biggest thing I took away from this performance was the keyboardist, Roella Oloro, who not only impressed with her supremely talented playing, but also how happy she looked as she was playing the music. She is very much the embodiment of joy, so it was a great pleasure to see her perform.
During the iconic piano runs on “Day One,” Akselrod returned to the stage to vocalize – and this was not just a straight reading of the theme, but one that went in different and more beautiful directions than the original recording. Indeed, it sounded gentle and angelic, helping our emotions soar to the heavens.
The performance of “No Time For Caution” was another winner with that ticking clock sound reproduced by Lucy Landymore and what I stupidly call those “giant dry pasta sticks taped together.” This piece also had the organ part going wild, culminating in a crescendo to end all crescendos.
And that concluded the first half, giving us all time for a much-needed emotional refresher break.
PART 6: THE SECOND HALF
WONDER WOMAN 1984
– ThemysciraBATMAN V SUPERMAN – DAWN OF JUSTICE
– Is She With You?
The second half kicked off with a festive and uplifting performance of “Themyscira” from WONDER WOMAN 1984. With solo violin, choir and tubular bells driving the piece forwards and upwards, I couldn’t help but think how great this music would sound at the Olympics.
It then segued into a rip-roaring take on the iconic Wonder Woman theme (“Is She With You?”) that was highlighted by some seriously sick electric guitar improv by Haddad.
While I’m used to the wild and feral performance of the theme on electric cello at HANS ZIMMER LIVE concerts, I have to say that the electric guitar-led version here wins by a thread.
KUNG FU PANDA
– Oogway Ascends
– Panda Po
– Etc.
Next came the gorgeous “Oogway Ascends” from KUNG FU PANDA headlined by woodwind extraordinaire, Saulius Petreikis. Coupled with the distinct sounds of the Japanese shamisen (performed by cellist Berte-Renou no less!), the performance perfectly captured the emotions and Asian setting of the film.
The fun and adventurous “Panda Po” followed, with a lesson in drumming and percussion coming next courtesy of the three star percussionists for the night: Luis Ribeiro (whose hands appeared to move at the speed of light!), Olivia Martin, and Lucy Landymore. Percussionists in an orchestra are rarely given the spotlight, but these guys had their moment and absolutely killed it.
When the suite finally came to an end, Dunkley thrust Petreikis into the spotlight to show off the five bamboo flutes he had used during the piece.
SHERLOCK HOLMES
– Discombobulate
– CatatonicSHERLOCK HOLMES: A GAME OF SHADOWS
– Tick Tock (Shadows – Part 2)
The SHERLOCK HOLMES suite, featuring music from both movies, was dominated by the stupendous violin performance of Maya Levy. Mysterious, passionate, dangerous and fun – she played it all with tremendous ease and style. And that fast hoedown-like piece – incredible!
Before the suite ended with a spirited performance of the main theme (“Discombobulate”), I was ecstatic to hear that kinetic action ending of “Catatonic” (5:46 onwards on the original soundtrack album). It was short but oh so satisfying to hear live!
DUNE – PART TWO
– A Time of Quiet Between the Storms
After being introduced by Dunkley, bass player Dave Marks took to the stage to masterfully introduce the otherworldly sounds of Arrakis from DUNE – PART TWO.
Petreikis then returned on the duduk, an Armenian woodwind instrument, to play that dreamy and soulful opening of “A Time of Quiet Between the Storms.” Full orchestra soon joined, elevating the mood to reveal the full beauty of the theme.
THE PRINCE OF EGYPT
– The Reprimand
– Chariot Race
– The Burning Bush
– Deliver Us
Hats off to whoever arranged this stunning suite!
Opening with the mysterious and foreboding “The Reprimand,” Akselrod returned to provide vocals full of anguish. An upbeat piece led by violin and woodwind came next, followed by something I thought I would never hear live, the fantastic action set piece “Chariot Race.” This was only released on THE PRINCE OF EGYPT Collector’s Edition CD, which is long out of print.
It was now time for “The Burning Bush,” surely one of the most inspired compositions of Zimmer’s storied career. But what made this performance particularly spellbinding was the vocal work by Akselrod who took the theme, added something new to it, and then proceeded to blow the roof off the auditorium with her heavenly voice. With Levy providing support with her delicate and high string notes, I could do nothing but swoon.
But the suite wasn’t over yet. Another wave of emotional chills swept through the auditorium as the stunning music underscoring the parting of the Red Sea was performed by the orchestra.
The suite finally came to an end with a beautiful vocal performance of “Deliver Us” and a return to that villainous music at the end of “The Burning Bush.” For this last part, Akselrod and Chamoun joined to sing one last painful lament.
THE POWER OF ONE
– Mother Africa
It has long been a dream of mine to hear the powerful music from THE POWER OF ONE live, and boy, did this performance knock my socks off. I honestly thought the piece would suffer without Lebo M, its original vocalist, but was I wrong – the two vocalists here, Nokukhanya Dlamini and Futurelove Sibanda, absolutely knocked it out of the park.
I mean, how can anyone not get TOTALLY swept away by this joyous and life-affirming piece that just makes you want to get up and dance?
THE LION KING
– Nants’ Ingonyama
– This Land
– To Die For
– King of Pride Rock
Zimmer has a special talent for music for films set in Africa, and this was more than evident in the suite of his timeless music for THE LION KING.
After the iconic “Nants’ Ingonyama” opening, Petreikis took to his tin whistle (?) to bring us back to the pride lands with that beautiful and expansive theme from “This Land.” With choir, strings and Levy joining on solo violin, I was again reminded how deeply affecting this music was when I first heard it during a screening of the film over thirty years ago.
Beauty turned to terror with a fantastic chorus and orchestra performance of “To Die For,” the music underscoring the stampede and murder of Mufasa.
Sadness then filled the air as Petreikis returned to perform music for the scene where a distraught Simba tries to wake his fallen father. I didn’t even notice that I was bawling by this point as I was so affected by this melody, its deeply sensitive performance, and the feelings it evoked of losing one’s father.
But sadness soon turned to triumph as the final strains of “King of Pride Rock” beamed through the audience.
Little did we know that Dlamini and Sibanda had positioned themselves in the arena area to walk through the audience and bring the suite to a final and glorious close.
INCEPTION
– We Built Our Own World
– Dream is Collapsing
– Time
Next came what we had all been waiting for: a suite of music from INCEPTION.
Opening with the mysterious and desolate “We Built Our Own World,” the excitement level jumped a few notches as that iconic electric guitar part of “Dream is Collapsing” started to play. As this musical masterpiece of sci-fi and imagination played, all I could think of in my head was that rotating hallway fight scene with Joseph Gordon-Levitt scrambling to survive as the unbelievable is happening around him.
As the piece faded into silence, “Time,” Zimmer’s most famous composition, started to take shape. A pre-recorded video of Zimmer playing the piano was projected as live orchestra provided emotional support.
While it was a spellbinding performance with an expertly produced video, nothing will ever beat Hans Zimmer playing it live right in front of you.
Still, it stands as an excellent substitute and a fitting way to end the main program.
PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN
– Jack Sparrow
– He’s a Pirate
– Etc.
The orchestra had one last ace up their sleeve, and that was a wildly satisfying suite of music from THE PIRATES OF THE CARIBBEAN films. It contained one classic theme after another – in fact, there were so many that I just can’t identify them from the top of my head (I’ve listed the ones that I know for sure!).
One particular highlight of the suite was the “One Day” theme played with agonizing beauty by cellist Berte-Renou and Petreikis on woodwinds.
To cap off the suite and end the night, all of the musicians assembled on stage for one last performance of the film’s most famous theme.
And that ended an amazing night in THE WORLD OF HANS ZIMMER!
PART 7: CONCERT MERCH
The merchandising machine was back with a vengeance!
Quite a lot was on offer, with the only thing I really wanted being impossible to take home on the airplane: an A3-sized (?) tour poster printed on hard card paper, meaning it couldn’t be rolled up without creasing it. I saw a few people roll theirs up at the concert to disastrous results…
In any case, I did go home with a few things – not to mention a much lighter wallet:
Note to merch people: please sell posters on rollable paper (with complimentary poster tube!). With gratitude, The Audience.
PART 8: OVER TO YOU
Did you go to this concert too? How did you like it?
And what did you think of my report? Feel free to comment below or reach out to me directly in the “Contact Me” section.
