2020 in British music

Events

• 9 January – Singer Celeste is named as the Sound of 2020, after an annual BBC poll of music critics and industry figures.
• 13 January – Opera Holland Park announces simultaneously the scheduled retirement of Michael Volpe as its general director on 30 September 2020, and the appointment of James Clutton as the company's new Chief Executive and Director of Opera, effective 1 October 2020.
• 24 January – The London Philharmonic Orchestra announces simultaneously the scheduled retirement of Timothy Walker as its chief executive and artistic director, effective 3 June 2020, and the appointment of David Burke as its next chief executive, along with a planned division into separate roles each of the posts of chief executive and of artistic director.
• 1 February – The Orchestre National de Lille performs the final concert of its UK tour at Leeds Town Hall, the last European orchestra to perform in the United Kingdom just prior to and after the UK's departure from the European Union.
• Veteran glam rock band Slade sack their drummer Don Powell after 50 years together; Powell says he will set up a rival group called "Don Powell's Slade".
• 12 February – The Two Moors Festival announces the appointment of Tamsin Waley-Cohen as its new artistic director for its 2020 festival.
• 24 February – The Hallé announces Delyana Lazarova as the winner of the inaugural Siemens Hallé International Conductors Competition 2020.
• 27 February
• * "My Last Breath", sung by James Newman, is selected as the UK's entry for the Eurovision Song Contest 2020. A few weeks later, the contest is cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• * The Hallé announces the appointment of David Butcher as its next chief executive, effective September 2020.
• * The Britten Sinfonia announces that David Butcher is to stand down as its chief executive and artistic director in the summer of 2020.
• 11 March
• * The Philharmonia Orchestra announces the appointment of Alexander Van Ingen as its next chief executive, effective September 2020.
• * The Academy of Ancient Music announces that Alexander Van Ingen is to stand down as its chief executive, effective September 2020.
• 17 March – The following classical music organisations announce suspension of performances in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic:
• * All BBC Orchestras and Choirs
• * Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra
• * Southbank Centre, encompassing the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the Philharmonia Orchestra
• * London Symphony Orchestra
• * Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, through 19 April 2020
• 18 March – The Glastonbury Festival announces the cancellation of its 2020 season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 23 March – Hazard Chase announces cessation of activity and entry into voluntary liquidation, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 24 March – The St Magnus International Festival announces cancellation of its 2020 season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 26 March – The following festivals have cancelled their scheduled 2020 seasons in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic:
• *Download Festival
• * East Neuk Festival
• *Isle of Wight Festival
• 27 March – The following festivals have cancelled their scheduled 2020 seasons in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic:
• * All Points East
• *
• * Lovebox Festival
• * Parklife
• * Cambridge Folk Festival
• 30 March
• * The Aldeburgh Festival announces the cancellation of its 2020 festival season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the first-ever festival cancellation in the festival's history.
• * Following a cold and self-isolation, Marianne Faithfull checks into hospital, and subsequently has tested positive for SARS-CoV-2.
• 1 April – The Edinburgh International Festival announces the cancellation of its 2020 festival season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 2 April – The Dartington Music Summer School and Festival announces the cancellation of its 2020 summer school and festival season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 6 April – The London Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Karina Canellakis as its new principal guest conductor, the first female conductor ever named to the post, effective September 2020.
• 24 April – At 99 years old, Captain Tom Moore became the oldest person to top the UK Singles Chart.
• 5 May – Glyndebourne Opera announces cancellation of its 2020 summer season, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 6 May – Britten Sinfonia announces the appointment of Meurig Bowen as its next chief executive and artistic director, effective August 2020.
• 7 May – Help Musicians UK announces the appointment of Dame Evelyn Glennie as its new president.
• 12 May – Wigmore Hall and BBC Radio 3 announce a scheduled series of live concerts from Wigmore Hall, beginning on 1 June, to be performed to an empty hall and under social distancing guidelines, the first live concerts from the hall and broadcast on Radio 3 since the general COVID-19 lockdown.
• 1 June – At Wigmore Hall, Stephen Hough gives a live concert without an audience in attendance, video-streamed and broadcast on BBC Radio 3, the first live classical music concert in London and the first live music relay on BBC Radio 3 in 11 weeks since the imposition of COVID-19-related lockdown conditions.
• 9 June – The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Domingo Hindoyan as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2021-2022 season.
• 15 June – Birmingham Opera Company announces the appointment of Alpesh Chauhan as its new music director, effective 1 July 2020.
• 16 June – Universal Music Group announces the re-branding of its Virgin EMI label as EMI Records, and the appointment of Rebecca Allen as president of the EMI Records label.
• 25 June – The London Philharmonic Orchestra announces the appointment of Cristina Rocca as its new artistic director, effective November 2020.
• 2 July – Opera North announces postponement of its originally scheduled autumn 2020 and winter 2021 productions, in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 3 July – The BBC Proms announces its reconfigured 2020 Proms season, with 6 weeks of archival Proms and selected new digital content, and the final 2 weeks of the season scheduled to feature live concerts under social distancing guidelines at the Royal Albert Hall.
• 4 July – The Bamberg Symphony announces the prize winners of its 2020 Mahler Competition for conductors, which include Finnegan Downie Dear and Harry Ogg.
• 6 July – Tom Meighan and Kasabian announce his departure from the group, by mutual agreement. Subsequent reports the next day indicate that the departure was related to Meighan's assault of his former fiancée, Vikki Ager, behaviour condemned by his former bandmates as "totally unacceptable".
• 8 July – Cadogan Hall presents a live concert by the English Chamber Orchestra under social distancing guidelines, the first live concert at Cadogan Hall and the first live ECO performance since the imposition of lockdown conditions in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• 25 July - Grime artist Wiley is dropped by his management after the rapper posted a series of anti-Semitic tweets.

  Television programmes

• 1 January – Jools' Annual Hootenanny features Stereophonics, Stormzy, The Selecter, Rick Astley, and others.
• 4 January
• *The Masked Singer, begins on ITV, with contestants including Denise van Outen, Teddy Sheringham and Justin Hawkins.
• *The Voice UK, series 9, begins on ITV, presented by Emma Willis.
• 8 January – Got What It Takes? returns for its fifth series, hosted by Anna Maynard. The series is won by 13 year old Georgie Mills.
• 17 January – Stewart Copeland's Adventures in Music features Sting, Bobby McFerrin and Miss Honey Dijon.

  Classical works

• Emma-Ruth Richards – The Sail of a Flame
• Mark-Anthony Turnage – Towards Alba
• Dani Howard – Dualism
• Thomas Hewitt Jones – Divertimento for String Quartet
• Howard Goodall – Never to Forget

  Opera

Musical theatre

Musical films

• Everybody's Talking About Jamie, starring Richard E. Grant and Sharon Horgan

  Film scores and incidental music

Film

• Patrick Doyle – Death on the Nile, directed by Kenneth Branagh
• Dickon Hinchliffe – Misbehaviour

  Television

• David Arnold & Michael Price – Dracula
• Stephen Rennicks – Normal People

  British music awards

• Brit Awards – see 2020 Brit Awards

  Charts and sales

Number-one singles

Number-one albums

Number-one compilation albums

Bands reformed

• Genesis
• Little Man Tate

  Bands disbanded

• Lower Than Atlantis

  Deaths

• 7 January – Stephen Clements, 47, radio DJ and presenter.
• 13 January – Hylda Sims, 87, poet and folk musician.
• 16 January – Barry Tuckwell, Australia-born French horn player, conductor, and past principal French horn of the London Symphony Orchestra, 86
• 1 February – Andy Gill, 64, post-punk guitarist and record producer.
• 12 February – Hamish Milne, classical pianist, 80
• 16 February – Pearl Carr, 99, singer.
• 17 February – Andrew Weatherall, 56, English music producer, disc jockey and musician, pulmonary embolism.
• 12 March – Pete Mitchell, 61, English radio DJ and presenter.
• 14 March – Genesis P-Orridge, 70, singer, musician, poet, performance artist,, leukemia.
• 18 March – Sir John Tooley, arts administrator, 95
• 22 March – Julie Felix, 81, American-born folk singer.
• 24 March – Gerard Schurmann, Dutch composer resident in the UK, 96
• 25 March – Jennifer Bate, classical organist, 75
• 27 March – Delroy Washington, 67, Jamaican-born reggae singer, COVID-19.
• 6 April – Black the Ripper, 32, grime MC, rapper and cannabis activist.
• 8 April – Eileen Croxford Parkhouse, cellist, pedagogue, and founder of the Parkhouse Award, 96
• 9 April – Dmitri Smirnov, 71, Russian-born composer, COVID-19.
• 22 April – Sir Peter Jonas, opera and arts administrator, 73
• 29 April – Martin Lovett, cellist and the last surviving member of the Amadeus Quartet, 93
• 3 May – Dave Greenfield, singer, songwriter, keyboardist, 71
• 6 May – Brian Howe, singer, songwriter, 66
• 7 May – Ty, English rapper, 47
• 13 May – Derek Lawrence, record producer, 78
• 15 May – Phil May, singer, 75
• 4 June – Steve Priest, bass musician,, 72
• 12 June – Ricky Valance, Welsh singer, 84
• 18 June – Dame Vera Lynn, singer, songwriter, and entertainer, 103
• 24 June – Jane Parker-Smith, classical organist, 70
• 1 July – Ida Haendel, Polish-born violinist, 96
• 10 July – Steve Sutherland, disc jockey.
• 12 July – Judy Dyble, singer-songwriter, 71, lung cancer.
• 21 July
• *Annie Ross, British-American jazz singer, songwriter, and actress, 89, complications from emphysema and heart disease.
• *Tim Smith, singer, songwriter, musician, 59
• 25 July
• *Peter Green, singer-songwriter, guitarist, 73.
• *CP Lee, English musician, 70.
• 27 July – Denise Johnson, singer, vocalist, 56.