The concert at Sheffield Cathedral had to be abandoned and much of the building evacuated

By Steve Wright

Published: Wednesday, 12 July 2023 at 12:00 am


When schools music providers Sheffield Music Hub presented their end-of-year concert on Saturday, 8 July, they got a more dramatic evening than they bargained for.

The concert took place at Sheffield Cathedral. During the Senior Orchestra’s performance of Schubert’s (suitably stormy) Symphony No. 8 ‘Unfinished’,  a violent storm broke, complete lightning flashes and thunder claps.

Things got more dramatic still when water began cascading through the cathedral roof, so that it was raining inside – and onto the electrics. As more water began pouring through the main door, the performance had to be abandoned and the main part of the cathedral evacuated.

Appropriately enough, the performance of Schubert’s ‘Unfinished’ remained… unfinished.

.@SheffMusicHub Y13’s won’t forget their final concert anytime soon when their performance of Schubert’s Unfinished Symphony was left … unfinished …

The heavens opened and rain water flooded into the cathedral ☔️

Can you hear it? @ClassicFM @BBCSheffield pic.twitter.com/ndY5dJy2n0

— Sheffield Cathedral (@sheffcath) July 10, 2023