Mike Oldfield had long dreamed of the moment Tubular Bells would be released. When it finally happened, he couldn't bear the accumulated pressure and, emotionally exhausted by the recording process and his own insecurities about the overwhelming fame he was acquiring, he retreated to his new home in Herefordshire. It was there that he began creating his new work, which would later take its name from the nearby hill, Hergest Ridge.

The symphonic structure used in Tubular Bells was continued in a series of subsequent works, such as Hergest Ridge, Ommadawn, Incantations, Amarok, and Return to Ommadawn. Released in the UK in September 1974, Hergest Ridge was an album containing a single musical theme, divided into two suites due to the obvious requirements of the LP format. Again, almost all the instruments were played by Oldfield himself. The most talked-about effect on the album was what one critic called an "electric storm," a segment on side B featuring multiple distorted electric guitars played simultaneously. Oldfield's own sister, Sally Oldfield, contributed vocals to some tracks. For the Reading-born musician, musical composition was a constant work in progress governed by logical or emotional laws, much like a Cubist painting.

The album shot straight to number one on the UK charts, dethroning his own Tubular Bells, a feat that remains exceptional even today. Virgin also promoted it on television, although the slogan had to be changed for this purpose. The advertisement originally stated that the album was available at "Virgin and other immaculate record stores," and this had to be altered due to potential objections from the Catholic Church. While some critics considered Hergest Ridge inferior to Tubular Bells, the majority gave it their approval. One critic described it as "the most everyday rock music, with a touch of classical symphony," while another wrote that it was "a series of emotional peaks exploding here and there through a tickling tranquility." Nevertheless, its elegant, pastoral tone, as well as its skillful instrumentation, made it a very important album in Oldfield's career.

In December 1974, orchestral versions of Tubular Bells and Hergest Ridge were presented in concert at London's Royal Albert Hall. The concert was organized by David Bedford, who conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with guitar solos by Steve Hillage. Oldfield himself played guitar on the studio version of the first composition, which was released in January 1975 under the title The Orchestral Tubular Bells. The album's poor commercial performance led the record company to forgo releasing The Orchestral Hergest Ridge. Later that year, these same orchestral arrangements were presented in concerts in Glasgow and Newcastle. In Scotland, Hillage played the guitar parts with the Scottish National Orchestra, and the soloist in the northeast region was Andy Summers, who would later become a member of The Police.

The sense of humor that often permeated some fragments of Oldfield's works was a notable feature in Don Alfonso, a single released in March 1975. With the help of Chris Cutler, David Bedford, and Kevin Ayers, Oldfield told the story of a comic bullfighter who worked for Oxo.

Ommadawn, released in September 1975, was his third instrumental symphonic rock album; it took nine months to record and featured around twenty instruments, from guitars to grand piano and spinet. The album incorporated African and Irish music, featuring the African percussion group Jabula and the Irish bagpipes of Paddy Moloney, leader of The Chieftains. Other collaborating artists included Terry and Sally Oldfield, members of the Hereford City Band, and recorder soloist Leslie Penning. Penning also accompanied Oldfield on that year's Christmas single, a version of the traditional carol "In Dulci Jubilo," which reached number four in the UK charts. From then on, Oldfield regularly released a Christmas single for several years. It sold over 4 million albums worldwide.

The album was both criticized and praised, although with the passage of time it has been placed among the most mature of his symphonic period. Its production was more elaborate than in his previous works, with carefully crafted transitions between the melodies of the first part. Furthermore, Oldfield consolidated his multi-instrumentalist skills on this particular work, playing nearly twenty instruments such as electric and acoustic bass, electric and acoustic guitar, banjo, bouzouki, bodhrán, Spanish guitar, keyboards, glockenspiel, harp, mandolin, percussion, piano, spinet, steel guitar, synthesizers, and bajo sextos, in addition to his own voice. The work breathes Celtic and African influences and can be considered a clear precursor to so-called World music. The original album contains a third track, not specified on the cover, a vocal piece composed by Oldfield and William Murray entitled "On Horseback", which appeared on a single in December 1985 as the B-side to "In Dulci Jubilo", featuring Oldfield himself accompanied by a children's choir.

With the release of Ommadawn, many veteran musicians began to take an interest in the Reading musician's career, and to this day, it is considered his magnum opus, surpassing his previous album, Tubular Bells. Oldfield himself presented its sequel, Return to Ommadawn, in 2017 at the request of his fans, whom he had been asking on social media about their favorite work of his entire career.