London Philharmonic Orchestra - 11/2010

Seventy-seven years after Sir Thomas Beecham founded the London Philharmonic Orchestra, it is recognised today as one of the finest orchestras on the international stage. Following Beecham’s influential founding tenure the Orchestra’s Principal Conductorship has been passed from one illustrious musician to another, amongst them Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Sir Georg Solti, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. This impressive tradition continued in September 2007 when Vladimir Jurowski became the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor, and in a further exciting move, the Orchestra appointed Yannick Nézet-Séguin, its new Principal Guest Conductor from September 2008.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra has been performing at Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall since it opened in 1951, becoming Resident Orchestra in 1992. It plays there around 40 times each season with many of the world’s most sought after conductors and soloists. Concert highlights in 2009/10 include Between Two Worlds – an exploration of the music and times of Alfred Schnittke; a Sibelius symphony cycle with Osmo Vänskä in January/February 2010; a performance of Mendelssohn’s Elijah conducted by Kurt Masur and dedicated to the 20th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall; and new works by Rautavaara, Górecki, Philip Glass, Ravy Shankar and the Orchestra’s Composer in Residence, Mark-Anthony Turnage. Imaginative programming and a commitment to new music are at the heart of the Orchestra’s activity, with regular commissions and world première performances.

In addition to its London season, the Orchestra has flourishing residencies in Brighton and Eastbourne, and performs regularly around the UK. It is unique in combining these concert activities with esteemed opera performances each summer at Glyndebourne Festival Opera where it has been the Resident Symphony Orchestra since 1964.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra performs to enthusiastic audiences all round the world. In 1956 it became the first British orchestra to appear in Soviet Russia and in 1973 made the first ever visit to China by a Western orchestra. Touring continues to form a significant part of the Orchestra’s schedule, with regular appearances in North America, Europe and the Far East, often headlining at major festivals. Tours in 2009/10 include visits to Germany, Australia, France, China, the Canaries and the USA.

Having long been embraced by the recording, broadcasting and film industries, the London Philharmonic Orchestra broadcasts regularly on domestic and international television and radio. It also works extensively with the Hollywood and UK film industries, recording soundtracks for blockbuster motion pictures including the Oscar-winning score for The Lord of the Rings trilogy and scores for Lawrence of Arabia, The Mission, Philadelphia and East is East.

The Orchestra also enjoys strong relationships with the major record labels and in 2005 began reaching out to new global audiences through the release of live, studio and archive recordings on its own CD label. Recent additions to the catalogue have included acclaimed releases of Shostakovich’s monumental Tenth Symphony under Bernard Haitink; a disc of contemporary works by composers Thomas Adès, James MacMillan and Jennifer Higdon conducted by Marin Alsop; Rachmaninov’s Symphony 3 along with Bax’s Tintagel conducted by Osmo Vänskä; a CD of early Britten works conducted by Vladimir Jurowski; and Mahler’s Symphony 6 under the baton of Klaus Tennstedt. The Orchestra’s own-label releases are available to download by work or individual track from its website: www.lpo.org.uk/shop.

The Orchestra reaches thousands of Londoners through its rich programme of community and school-based activity in Lambeth, Lewisham and Southwark, which includes the offshoot ensembles Renga and The Band, its Foyle Future Firsts apprenticeship scheme for outstanding young instrumentalists, and regular family and schools concerts.

To help maintain its high standards and diverse workload, the Orchestra is committed to the welfare of its musicians and in December 2007 received the Association of British Orchestras/Musicians Benevolent Fund Healthy Orchestra Bronze Charter Mark.

There are many ways to experience and stay in touch with the Orchestra’s activities: visit www.lpo.org.uk subscribe to our podcast series and join us on Facebook.

SEASON 2009/2010