The magnificent 1992 pipe organ at St Giles'

31 December, 7:30pm

We're sorry, this event is now sold out for 2009.

A far more serene lead-in to the New Year is offered at St Giles' Cathedral on the Royal Mile, through its annual Candlelit Concert of classical music. Held early in the evening, before the city-centre revels get underway, the quality programme is perfectly matched by the atmospheric surroundings of the Church of Scotland's High Kirk.

This year, the programme's full of approachable baroque, with the 250th anniversary of Handel's death marked by his Coronation Anthems (best known for Zadok the Priest).  St Giles' own choir and an array of young soloists will also present Bach and Scarlatti.

But much of the pleasure of the event lies in the building itself, a grand monument to a distinctively Scottish religious history: a statue of John Knox glowers over proceedings from beside the northern door. The cathedral's proud, too, of its stunning organ, which with 4,000 pipes is one of the newest of its size in Europe.

The event attracts a wide range of concert-goers, but the organizers do add a stern footnote that it is "not suitable" for babies and young children. And be warned, it gets chilly - best to take your woollies.  Tickets, at a flat rate of £17.60, are available online, and there's usually good availability into December - but it does sell out in the end, so don't delay too long.

We quote prices including the per-ticket online booking fee, which we think best reflects the price most people will actually pay.  This is why the prices you see here don't match the ones you'll find on the Hogmanay website.