Hans Zimmer at 3Arena, Dublin on Wednesday November 26th, 2026

It’s a cold November night in Dublin as acclaimed composer Hans Zimmer takes to the stage for the first of a two-night 3Arena stint. What we’re treated to over the following three hours and twenty minutes is a sprawling journey through time and space. We visit the plains of Africa, the skyline of Metropolis, and the depths of the Caribbean Sea. We peer into the underbelly of Gotham and ride over cobbles of Ancient Rome. We drag our toes through the sands of Arrakis and slowly float towards outer space.

The German composer’s live incarnation is unique amongst his peers. Whilst not the first to take their screen work on the road (John Williams, Ennio Morricone, and Howard Shore have all performed with varying numbers of appearances) he is potentially the one with the most air miles. Since kicking off his live incarnation in 2016 he has traversed the globe many times bringing his work with acclaimed directors such as Nolan, Scott, and Villeneuve to life. On this tour he promised a more electronic-focused set on this tour. From the enormous wardrobe sized synth modules we see at the back of the stage, he might be telling the truth.

Zimmer differs in that he’s less of an orchestra conductor and more of a band leader. Not once does he take up the conductor’s baton but instead lends his hands to a variety of instruments. From synthesisers both analog and digital, to various guitars and bass. Despite his name being on the poster he has no problem slipping into the background to play a supporting role. Surrounded by an extensive backing band of guitarists, bassists, drummers, percussionists, violinists, cellists, lead and backing singers, and a French horn section. Oh and not to mention a pair of musicians constantly manning those enormous analogue synths.

Thunder and lightning effects fill the arena as a menacing arpeggiated sequence fills the arena. Three Kraftwerk-poised synth players man the enormous cabinets. Fiddling on dials as we cross the border from Dublin’s quays to Gotham City. It’s a moody, electronic, after-dark reimagining of ‘Like a Dog Chasing Cars’ from The Dark Knight. It bubbles to a simmer as various dimly lit musicians take their places on the stage.

The temperature rises, the sonic palette expands and we wait. Wait in the arpeggiated loop as the tension continues to build before the entire synth platform moves to the back of the stage to make space for the dual drum-kits that rise from the floor. We edge toward the boiling point as Zimmer abandons his synth station for centre-stage with a Rickenbacker bass, flanked by two additional bass players as we merge into ‘Why So Serious’.

In the advertisement for Zimmer’s Masterclass (an online video tutorial series for the unfamiliar) he notes that all you need is a laptop and a microphone. Well he’s a long way from such humble ideas tonight. The proceeding two hours take us on a journey through musical palettes and scale. The Dune features are brought to life with dangerous tenacity from Loire Cotler’s vocal talents. Within the films context, they’re dramatic but in a live setting it’s bordering on dangerous and unhinged in its ferocity.

A clear contrast is Hannibal’s ‘To Every Captive Soul’. Cellist Mariko Muranaka steals the spotlight for the tender number as she emerges from the floor at the back of the stage on a rising platform in a striking red dress. Flanked by a semicircle of backing singers holding candles. The true size of the dress is revealed as stage hands extend it over the giant synth cabinets below.

The between song banter from Zimmer is loose and unscripted. Relishing in his role as ringleader he takes time to praise all in attendance. His band, his audience, the city, and unsurprisingly; the Guinness. Before beginning the lesser known ‘Beyond Rangoon’, from the film of the same title, he makes a point to note that the song was actually written in Dublin.

The closing section of the set has Zimmer bring together some of his most recognisable work. The Interstellar section starts incredibly small, almost molecular as it tracks the story of a parent and their child for ‘Day One’. It’s intimate and fragile, and there’s not a sound in the building that distracts from the intimacy. It swirls and it builds, as we trade earth-bound, gravitational intimacy for an unbridled expanse. We’ve gone weightless with ‘Murph’ as we glide along the stars.

The space-suite culminates as a fully mirror-balled acrobat is hoisted towards the ceiling and spins and spins in an effective interpretation of a black hole. The vast black, nothingness of space is quickly put to the back of our minds as we bounce over the plains of Africa. Our mirrorball is replaced with a sea of vibrant yellow and orange as the sonic palette becomes joyous and fully technicolour.

Leaving the plains we take to the water for a rain-soaked, heavy-metal interpretation of Kraken from The Pirates of the Caribbean saga. There’s a playful danger to this rendition as guitarist Guthrie Govan tears away at a breakneck pace with the remaining band members rushing to catch up.

The culmination of this sprawling night of spectacle brings us back to the multi-deminsional dreamworld of Inception. A grand piano, a single spotlight, and our guide for tonight taking us on one last journey. Time doesn’t come close to the crashing crescendos of the previous three hours but it doesn’t need to. With its trailing piano chords and mournful violin bow sweeps; it’s a coda, not a climax.