| Music Encyclopedia: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra [RPO]. |
British orchestra formed in London in 1946 by Thomas Beecham and conducted by him until 1960. It gave Royal Philharmonic Society subscription concerts and became resident orchestra at Glyndebourne and the Edinburgh Festival. Its activities include tours abroad and concerts with pop groups.
| Artist: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra |
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| Discography: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra |
| Wikipedia: Royal Philharmonic Orchestra |
| Royal Philharmonic Orchestra | |
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| Background information | |
| Also known as | RPO |
| Origin |  London, England, United Kingdom |
| Genres | Classical |
| Occupations | Symphony orchestra |
| Years active | 1946-present |
| Associated acts | Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra |
| Website | www.rpo.co.uk |
| Members | |
| Principal Conductor and Artistic Director Charles Dutoit Principal Guest Conductor Leonard Slatkin Principal Associate Conductor Owain Arwel Hughes Conductor Laureate Yuri Temirkanov, Daniele Gatti |
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| Former members | |
| Founder Sir Thomas Beecham |
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The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British orchestra based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra".
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In 1946, Sir Sir Thomas Beecham founded the RPO, which played its first concert in Croydon on September 15 of that year. Beecham was the RPO's music director until his death in 1961. Rudolf Kempe, who became assistant conductor in 1960, became principal conductor in 1961 and music director in 1962. The RPO gave him the title of Conductor for Life in 1970, and he stepped down from the orchestra in 1975. Subsequent music directors and principal conductors have been Antal Doráti, Walter Weller, André Previn, Vladimir Ashkenazy, and Yuri Temirkanov. Daniele Gatti was music director from 1996 to 2009. Both Temirkanov and Gatti currently hold the title of RPO conductor laureate. In 2009, Charles Dutoit became artistic director and principal conductor of the RPO.[1]
The orchestra toured the United States in 1950, thus becoming the first British orchestra to visit America since the London Symphony Orchestra in 1912.
A Review of the orchestral scene of 1950 said of the RPO:
Later the orchestra began to develop its own character, particularly in the woodwind section, led by Jack Brymer (clarinet), Gwydion Brooke (bassoon), Terence McDonagh (oboe), and Gerald Jackson (flute), sometimes referred to as ‘The Royal Family’.[3]
After Beecham's death, the orchestra reorganised itself as a self-governing limited company. and soon encountered difficulties.[4] The Royal Philharmonic Society decided not to engage the RPO for its concerts in 1963, Glyndebourne engaged the London Philharmonic instead of the RPO from 1964 onwards and the management of the Royal Festival Hall also severed its connections with the orchestra. Some senior players left, and Kempe resigned as chief conductor, though he returned shortly afterwards. Helped by strong support from Sir Malcolm Sargent, the orchestra successfully mounted its own concerts at a cinema in the London inner suburb, Swiss Cottage. [5]
A further threat to the orchestra's existence came in 1984, when a review carried out on behalf of the Arts Council by the journalist William Rees-Mogg opined that England lacked 'a great eastern symphony orchestra': the suggestion was that the RPO should move to Nottingham. However, another Arts Council report of the same period recommended that the RPO should supplement the London Symphony Orchestra as resident orchestra at the Barbican Centre; neither proposal came to fruition.[6]
In 1992 the orchestra appointed Peter Maxwell Davies as associate conductor and composer. The same year, UEFA commissioned the orchestra to sing the UEFA Champions League Hymn[citation needed]. In July 2008, the RPO announced that it would continue its residency in Lowestoft for a fifth year, bringing four concerts a year to England's most easterly town.
From its earliest days to the end of Beecham's life, the RPO made numerous recordings for Columbia Records, RCA Victor, and EMI under his baton. Among their first stereophonic recordings was the 1955 performance of the symphonic poem Tapiola by Sibelius, recorded by EMI. Some of the more memorable recordings included:
In 1964, Igor Stravinsky recorded his opera The Rake's Progress with the RPO. From 1964 to 1979 the RPO was engaged by Decca Records to record the Gilbert and Sullivan operas with the D’Oyly Carte Opera Company.
In 1986, the orchestra launched RPO Records, claimed to be 'the world's first record label to be owned by a symphony orchestra.[7]
As well as performing works from the classical repertoire, the RPO has recorded a number of film scores, including those for Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger's The Red Shoes and The Tales of Hoffmann.
An extensive collection of budget-priced CDs recorded by the RPO has been released by The International Music Company AG in Germany. These CDs are mainly available on the European market.
Associated with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, currently managed by Elli Appleby, which is devoted to playing lighter classics. It was formed in 1987, in succession to the Royal Philharmonic Pops Orchestra.[7]
RPO players have been involved with many performances away from the classical repertory, including Yanni Live at the Acropolis, a concert held in Greece in 1993, conducted by Shardad Rohani; the Hooked on Classics series of records; orchestral arrangements of rock music by the likes of Pink Floyd, Elkie Brooks (on the album Amazing), Oasis, Queen, R.E.M., U2, and ABBA; the song/album, Art of Life by Japanese rock band X Japan, composed by Yoshiki Hayashi; the official theme music of the UEFA Champions League; tracks on the British folk metal band Skyclad's 2004 album A Semblance of Normality; the Symphonic Rock: A Symphony of Hits 2004 album; and the BBC Grandstand Theme in 1982; Seotaiji Symphony, a concert held in Seoul in 2008, with South Korean rock star Seo Taiji, conducted by Tolga Kashif.
The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra scored a #10 hit single in the United States in 1981-82 with the song, "Hooked On Classics."
The orchestra recorded the theme for Radio Mercury, who were also patrons of a number of concerts.
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 | Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 6 "Pathetique" (Music Film) |
| A Pauper in Paradise (1977 Album by Gino Vannelli) |
| Haydn: Symphony No. 87 / Mozart: Symphony No. 39 (198z Music Film) |
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