The
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (
RPO) is a British
orchestraAn orchestra is an instrumental ensemble, usually fairly large with string, brass, woodwind sections, and possibly a percussion section as well. The term orchestra derives from the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
based in London. It tours widely, and is sometimes referred to as "Britain's national orchestra".
History
In 1946, Sir
Sir Thomas BeechamSir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, CH was a British conductor and impresario. From the early twentieth century until his death, Beecham was a major influence on the musical life of Britain and, according to Neville Cardus, was the first British conductor to have a regular international career.From...
founded the RPO, which played its first concert in
CroydonCroydon is a major commercial centre in Greater London and the principal settlement of the London Borough of Croydon. It is south of Charing Cross, and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
on September 15 of that year. Beecham was the RPO's music director until his death in 1961.
Rudolf KempeRudolf Kempe was a German conductor.- Biography :Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra at Dortmund and then in the Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra, from 1929...
, 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 DorátiAntal Doráti KBE was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1947.-Biography:...
,
Walter WellerWalter Weller is an Austrian conductor and violinist.-Biography:Weller was born in Vienna, Austria where he first gained renown as a prodigy on the violin. His father was a violinist in the Vienna Philharmonic, and at the age of 17, the young Weller became a member, and by the unusually early...
,
André PrevinAndré George Previn KBE is a German-born American pianist, conductor, and composer...
,
Vladimir AshkenazyVladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy is a Russian conductor and virtuoso pianist. He has been a citizen of Iceland, the home of his wife Þórunn, since 1972 and currently lives with his family in Switzerland.- Early life :...
, and
Yuri TemirkanovYuri Khatuevich Temirkanov is a Russian conductor of Circassian origin.Yuri Temirkanov has been the Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic since 1988....
.
Daniele GattiDaniele Gatti is an Italian conductor.Gatti was principal conductor of the Orchestra Dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome from 1992 to 1997. In 1997, he became the music director of the Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna. He has also served as principal guest conductor of the...
was music director from 1996 to 2009. Both Temirkanov and Gatti currently hold the title of RPO conductor laureate. In 2009,
Charles DutoitCharles Édouard Dutoit, OC, GOQ is a Swiss conductor, particularly noted for his interpretations of French and Russian 20th century music...
became artistic director and principal conductor of the RPO.
The orchestra toured the United States in 1950, thus becoming the first British orchestra to visit America since the
London Symphony OrchestraThe London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
in 1912.
A Review of the orchestral scene of 1950 said of the RPO:
- Leader David McCallum … Royal Philharmonic Society concerts (Beecham 4, Celibidache, Sargent
Sir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works...
). Number of concerts: 32 (approx)…. The PhilharmoniaThe Philharmonia Orchestra is an orchestra based in London. Since 1995 it has been based in the Royal Festival Hall. In Britain it is also the resident orchestra at De Montfort Hall, Leicester and the Corn Exchange, Bedford, as well as The Anvil, Basingstoke....
and Royal Philharmonic share a very serious disability: that neither is a permanently constituted orchestra. Both assemble and disperse more or less at random…there is no style which is distinctively RPO or Philharmonia.
Later the orchestra began to develop its own character, particularly in the woodwind section, led by
Jack BrymerJohn Alexander Brymer OBE , was a British clarinettist, born in South Shields.The son of a builder, Jack Brymer started his working life as teacher...
(clarinet),
Gwydion BrookeGwydion Brooke was the principal bassoonist of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and a member of its "Royal Family" of wind instrumentalists, along with Jack Brymer , Dennis Brain , Richard Walton , Terence MacDonagh , and Gerald Jackson .Upon the death of Sir Thomas Beecham in 1961, Walter Legge...
(bassoon), Terence McDonagh (oboe), and Gerald Jackson (flute), sometimes referred to as ‘The Royal Family’.
After Beecham's death, the orchestra reorganised itself as a self-governing limited company. and soon encountered difficulties. The
Royal Philharmonic SocietyThe Royal Philharmonic Society is a British music society, formed in 1813. It was originally formed in London to promote performances of instrumental music there. Many distinguished composers and performers have taken part in its concerts...
decided not to engage the RPO for its concerts in 1963,
GlyndebourneGlyndebourne is a 700-year old country house and opera house near Lewes in East Sussex, England. Since 1934 it has been the venue of the annual Glyndebourne Festival Opera.- History of the house :...
engaged the London Philharmonic instead of the RPO from 1964 onwards and the management of the
Royal Festival HallThe Royal Festival Hall is a 2,900 seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge. It is a Grade I listed building - the first post-war building to become so protected...
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 SargentSir Harold Malcolm Watts Sargent was an English conductor, organist and composer widely regarded as Britain's leading conductor of choral works...
, the orchestra successfully mounted its own concerts at a cinema in the London inner suburb,
Swiss CottageSwiss Cottage is a district of the London Borough of Camden in London, England. The geographically small district is located north-west of Charing Cross...
.
A further threat to the orchestra's existence came in 1984, when a review carried out on behalf of the
Arts CouncilAn arts council is a government or private, non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the arts mainly by funding local artists, awarding prizes, and organizing events at home and abroad...
by the journalist
William Rees-MoggWilliam Rees-Mogg, Baron Rees-Mogg is an English journalist.-Life and career:He was educated at Charterhouse and Balliol College, Oxford. He was President of the Oxford Union in 1951....
opined that England lacked 'a great eastern symphony orchestra': the suggestion was that the RPO should move to
NottinghamNottingham is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands. It is located in the ceremonial county of Nottinghamshire, England and is one of only eight members of the English Core Cities Group....
. However, another Arts Council report of the same period recommended that the RPO should supplement the
London Symphony OrchestraThe London Symphony Orchestra is a major orchestra of the United Kingdom, as well as one of the best-known orchestras in the world. Since 1982, the LSO has been based in London's Barbican Centre.-History:...
as resident orchestra at the
Barbican CentreBarbican Centre is the largest performing arts centre in Europe. Located in the north of the City of London, England, in the heart of the Barbican Estate, the Centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhibitions. It also houses a library,...
; neither proposal came to fruition.
In 1992 the orchestra appointed
Peter Maxwell DaviesSir Peter Maxwell Davies, CBE , is an English composer and conductor and is currently Master of the Queen's Music.-Biography:Davies was born in Salford, Greater Manchester. He took piano lessons and composed from an early age...
as associate conductor and composer. The same year,
UEFAThe Union of European Football Associations is the administrative and controlling body for European football. It is almost always referred to by its acronym UEFA ....
commissioned the orchestra to sing the
UEFA Champions League HymnThe UEFA Champions League Anthem, officially titled simply as "Champions League", is an adaptation by Tony Britten of George Frideric Handel's "Zadok the Priest" from the Coronation Anthems. UEFA commissioned Britten in 1992 to arrange their anthem, and the piece was performed by the Royal...
. In July 2008, the RPO announced that it would continue its residency in
LowestoftLowestoft is a town on The Sunrise Coast in the county of Suffolk, England, lying between the eastern edge of Suffolk Broads on Oulton Broad and Lake Lothing which heads towards North Sea within the parliamentary constituency and District of Waveney...
for a fifth year, bringing four concerts a year to England's most easterly town.
Recordings
From its earliest days to the end of Beecham's life, the RPO made numerous recordings for
Columbia RecordsColumbia Records is an American record label founded in 1888.Columbia is the oldest surviving brand name in pre-recorded sound, being the first record company to produce pre-recorded records as opposed to blank cylinders. Columbia Records went on to release records by an array of notable singers,...
, RCA Victor, and
EMIThe EMI Group is a British music company. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry, making it one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major publishing arm- EMI Music Publishing- based in New York City...
under his baton. Among their first stereophonic recordings was the 1955 performance of the symphonic poem
TapiolaTapiola , op. 112, is a tone poem by the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius, written in 1926. It was the product of a commission from Walter Damrosch for the New York Philharmonic Society...
by Sibelius, recorded by EMI. Some of the more memorable recordings included:
- Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven was a German composer and pianist. He was a crucial figure in the transitional period between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western classical music, and remains one of the most acclaimed and influential composers of all time.Born in Bonn, of the Electorate of Cologne and...
Ruins of Athens, Symphony No. 2, Symphony No. 3, Symphony No. 6, Symphony No. 7, Symphony No. 8
- Berlioz
Hector Berlioz was a French Romantic composer, best known for his compositions Symphonie fantastique and Grande Messe des morts . Berlioz made significant contributions to the modern orchestra with his Treatise on Instrumentation...
Harold in Italy, King Lear Overture, Le Corsaire Overture, Les Francs-Juges Overture, Les Troyens Overture, Roman Carnival Overture, Symphonie Fantastique, Trojan March, Waverley Overture
- Bizet
Georges Bizet was a French composer and pianist of the Romantic era. He is best known for the opera Carmen.-Biography:Bizet was born at 26 rue de la Tour d'Auvergne in the 9th arrondissement of Paris in 1838...
Symphony "Roma", La Jolie Fille de Perth suite, L'Arlésienne Suites 1 & 2, Patrie Overture, Boccherini Overture in D
- Borodin
Alexander Porfiryevich Borodin was a Russian Romantic composer of Georgian-Russian parentage who made his living as a chemist. He was a member of the group of composers called The Five , who were dedicated to producing a specifically Russian kind of art music...
Polovtsian Dances
- Chabrier
Emmanuel Chabrier was a French Romantic composer. Although known primarily for two of his orchestral works, España and Joyeuse Marche, he left an important corpus of operas, songs, and piano music as well...
España, Joyeuse Marche
- Debussy
Achille-Claude Debussy was a French composer. Along with Maurice Ravel, he was one of the most prominent figures working within the field of Impressionist music, though he himself intensely disliked the term when applied to his compositions...
Cortège & Air de danse, Prélude à l'après midi
- Delibes
Clément Philibert Léo Delibes was a French composer of ballets, operas, and other works for the stage.-Biographical data:...
Le Roi s'amuse
- Delius
Frederick Albert Theodore Delius CH was an English composer.- Life :Frederick Delius was born in Bradford in the West Riding of Yorkshire in the north of England. His parents were German: Julius and Elise Pauline Delius had moved from Bielefeld, Germany to Britain to set themselves up in the wool...
Brigg Fair, Dance Rhapsody No. 2, Fennimore & Gerda Intermezzo, Florida Suite Daybreak & Dance, Irmelin Prelude, On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring, Sleighride, Song Before Sunrise, Summer Evening, Summer Night on the River
- Dvořák
Antonín Leopold Dvořák was a Czech composer of Romantic music, who employed the idioms and melodies of the folk music of Moravia and his native Bohemia. His works include operas, symphonic, choral and chamber music...
Legend in G minor, Symphony No. 8
- Goldmark
Karl Goldmark, also known originally as Károly Goldmark and later sometimes as Carl Goldmark; May 18, 1830, Keszthely – January 2, 1915, Vienna) was a Hungarian composer.- Life and career :...
Rustic Wedding SymphonyRustic Wedding Symphony, Op. 26 is a symphony in E flat major by Karl Goldmark, written in 1875, a year before his renowned Violin Concerto No. 1....
- Gounod
Charles-François Gounod was a French composer, best known for his Ave Maria as well as his operas Faust and Roméo et Juliette.-Biography:...
Faust ballet music, Le sommeil de Juliette
- Grétry Zémire et Azore ballet music
- Grieg
Edvard Hagerup Grieg was a Norwegian composer and pianist who composed in the Romantic period. He is best known for his Piano Concerto in A minor, for his incidental music to Henrik Ibsen's play Peer Gynt , and for his collection of piano miniatures Lyric...
Symphonic dance in A, Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 16 (Rene Liebowitz)
- Handel
George Frideric Handel was a German-English Baroque composer, who is famous for his operas, oratorios, and concerti grossi. His life and music may justly be described as "cosmopolitan": he was born in Germany, trained in Italy, and spent most of his life in England...
Amaryllis, Love in Bath, Messiah, Solomon, The Faithful Shepherd, The Gods Go A'Begging
- Haydn
Joseph Haydn was an Austrian composer. He was one of the most important, prolific and prominent composers of the classical period. He is often called the "Father of the Symphony" and "Father of the String Quartet" because of his important contributions to these genres...
Symphonies 93–104, The Seasons
- Holst
Gustav Theodore Holst was an English composer. He is most famous for his orchestral suite The Planets.Having studied at the Royal College of Music in London,...
The PlanetsThe Planets, Op. 32 is a seven-movement orchestral suite by the British composer Gustav Holst, written between 1914 and 1916. Its first public performance occurred during World War I on 10 October 1918 in Birmingham, with Appleby Matthews conducting...
Suite + St. Paul's Suite
- Lalo
Édouard-Victoire-Antoine Lalo was a French composer.-Biography:Lalo was born in Lille , in northernmost France. He attended that city's music conservatory in his youth. Then, beginning at age 16, Lalo studied at the Paris Conservatoire under Berlioz's old enemy François Antoine Habeneck...
Symphony
- Massenet
Jules Massenet was a French composer best known for his operas. His compositions were very popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and he ranks as one of the greatest melodists of his era. Soon after his death, his style went out of fashion, and many of his operas fell into almost...
Last sleep of the Virgin, Waltz from Cendrillon
- Mendelssohn
Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, born, and generally known in English-speaking countries, as Felix Mendelssohn was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period....
Fair Melusine Overture, Symphony No 4, Italian
- Mozart
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart , was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical era. He composed over 600 works, many acknowledged as...
Clarinet Concerto, Die Zauberflöte Overture, Flute & Harp Concerto, German Dance K. 605, Haffner March K. 249, Haffner March K. 249, Minuet from Divertimento in D K. 131, Symphony No 41, Thamos Entr'acte, The Seraglio.
- Mussorgsky
Modest Petrovich Mussorgsky , one of the Russian composers known as the Five, was an innovator of Russian music in the romantic period...
Khovantschina Dance of the Persian Slaves, Pictures at an ExhibitionPictures at an Exhibition is a famous suite in ten movements composed for piano by Modest Mussorgsky in 1874....
(Ravel)
- Offenbach
Jacques Offenbach was a German-born French composer and cellist of the Romantic era and one of the originators of the operetta form...
Les Contes des Hoffman suite
- Rachmaninoff
Sergei Vasilievich Rachmaninoff was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor. He was one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, the last great representative of Russian late Romanticism in classical music...
Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini Op. 43 (Yuri TemirkanovYuri Khatuevich Temirkanov is a Russian conductor of Circassian origin.Yuri Temirkanov has been the Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic since 1988....
)
- Rimsky-Korsakov
Nikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov , also Nikolay, Nicolai, and Rimsky-Korsakoff, was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as "The Five." Noted particularly for a predilection for folk and fairy-tale subjects as well as his extraordinary skill in orchestration, his...
Scheherazade
- Rossini, La Gazza Ladra Overture, Le Cambiale di Matrimonio Overture, Semiramide Overture
- Saint-Saëns
Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns was a French composer, organist, conductor, and pianist, known especially for The Carnival of the Animals, Danse Macabre, Samson and Delilah, Havanaise, Introduction and Rondo capriccioso, and his Symphony No...
Rouet d'Omphale, Samson & Dalila Dance of the Priestesses/ Bacchanale
- Schubert
Franz Peter Schubert was an Austrian composer. He wrote some 600 Lieder, nine symphonies , liturgical music, operas, some incidental music, and a large body of chamber and solo piano music...
Symphony No 1, Symphony No 2, Symphony No 3, Symphony No 5, Symphony No 6, Symphony No 8
- Sibelius
Jean Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the later Romantic period whose music played an important role in the formation of the Finnish national identity....
Valse Triste, Symphonies 6 and 7
- Smetana
Bedřich Smetana was a Czech composer who pioneered the development of a musical style which became closely identified with his country's aspirations to independent statehood. He is thus widely regarded in his homeland as the father of Czech music...
Bartered Bride Overture & Polka
- Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, particularly of operas, Lieder and tone poems...
Ein Heldenleben
- Franz von Suppé
Franz von Suppé or Francesco Suppé Demelli was an Austrian composer of light operas from Croatia...
Morning Noon & Night in Vienna, Poet & Peasant Overture
- Tchaikovsky
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky
[The subject's names are also transliterated Piotr, Petr, or Peter; Ilitsch, Ilich, Il'ich or Illyich; and Tschaikowski, Tschaikowsky, Chajkovskij and Chaikovsky...]
Eugene Onegin - waltz, Symphony No 4
- Vidal
Paul Antoine Vidal was a French composer, conductor and music teacher.Paul Vidal was born in Toulouse. He studied at the conservatoires in Toulouse and in Paris, under Jules Massenet in the latter. He won the Prix de Rome in 1883, one year before Claude Debussy did...
Zino-Zina Gavotte
- Wagner
Wilhelm Richard Wagner was a German composer, conductor, theatre director and essayist, primarily known for his operas...
Die Meistersinger Suite, Flying Dutchman Overture, Götterdämmerung Funeral March and Rhine Journey, Lohengrin Prelude, Parsifal Karfreitagszauber, Die Meistersinger Prelude
In 1964,
Igor StravinskyIgor Fyodorovich Stravinsky was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor, widely acknowledged as one of the most important and influential composers of 20th century music. He was a quintessentially cosmopolitan Russian who was named by Time magazine as one of the 100 most influential people of...
recorded his opera
The Rake's ProgressThe Rake's Progress is an opera in three acts and an epilogue by Igor Stravinsky. The libretto, written by W. H. Auden and Chester Kallman, is based loosely on the eight paintings and engravings A Rake's Progress of William Hogarth, which Stravinsky had seen on May 2, 1947, in a Chicago...
with the RPO. From 1964 to 1979 the RPO was engaged by
Decca RecordsDecca Records is a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; later the link with the British company was broken for several decades...
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.
As well as performing works from the classical repertoire, the RPO has recorded a number of film scores, including those for
Michael PowellMichael Latham Powell was a British film director, born in Bekesbourne, Kent, England who was renowned for his partnership with Emeric Pressburger...
and
Emeric PressburgerEmeric Pressburger was an Oscar-winning Hungarian/British screenwriter, film director, and producer. He is known for his series of collaborations with Michael Powell.-Biography:...
's
The Red ShoesThe Red Shoes is a British feature film about ballet, written, directed and produced by the team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger, known collectively as The Archers...
and
The Tales of HoffmannThe Tales of Hoffmann is a British film adaptation of Jacques Offenbach's opera Les contes d'Hoffmann, written, produced and directed by the team of Michael Powell and Emeric Pressburger working under the umbrella of their production company, The Archers...
.
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.
Music Directors and Principal Conductors
- Thomas Beecham
Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, CH was a British conductor and impresario. From the early twentieth century until his death, Beecham was a major influence on the musical life of Britain and, according to Neville Cardus, was the first British conductor to have a regular international career.From...
(1946-1961, Music Director)
- Rudolf Kempe
Rudolf Kempe was a German conductor.- Biography :Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra at Dortmund and then in the Leipzig Gewandhaus orchestra, from 1929...
(1961-1962, Principal Conductor; 1963-1975, Music Director)
- Antal Doráti
Antal Doráti KBE was a Hungarian-born conductor and composer who became a naturalized American citizen in 1947.-Biography:...
(1975-1978, Principal Conductor)
- Walter Weller
Walter Weller is an Austrian conductor and violinist.-Biography:Weller was born in Vienna, Austria where he first gained renown as a prodigy on the violin. His father was a violinist in the Vienna Philharmonic, and at the age of 17, the young Weller became a member, and by the unusually early...
(1980-1985, Principal Conductor)
- André Previn
André George Previn KBE is a German-born American pianist, conductor, and composer...
(1985-1988, Music Director; 1998-1992, Principal Conductor)
- Vladimir Ashkenazy
Vladimir Davidovich Ashkenazy is a Russian conductor and virtuoso pianist. He has been a citizen of Iceland, the home of his wife Þórunn, since 1972 and currently lives with his family in Switzerland.- Early life :...
(1987-1994, Music Director)
- Yuri Temirkanov
Yuri Khatuevich Temirkanov is a Russian conductor of Circassian origin.Yuri Temirkanov has been the Music Director and Chief Conductor of the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic since 1988....
(1992-1998, Principal Conductor)
- Daniele Gatti
Daniele Gatti is an Italian conductor.Gatti was principal conductor of the Orchestra Dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome from 1992 to 1997. In 1997, he became the music director of the Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna. He has also served as principal guest conductor of the...
(1996-2009, Music Director)
- Charles Dutoit
Charles Édouard Dutoit, OC, GOQ is a Swiss conductor, particularly noted for his interpretations of French and Russian 20th century music...
(2009-present, Principal Conductor)
Non-classical work
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.
RPO players have been involved with many performances away from the classical repertory, including
Yanni Live at the AcropolisYanni Live at the Acropolis, is the name of both an album and video by contemporary instrumental musician Yanni, recorded live at the Herodes Atticus Theatre, Athens, Greece, on September 25, 1993, and released in 1994. . This album peaked at #1 on "Billboard's "Top New Age Albums" chart and at...
, a concert held in Greece in 1993, conducted by
Shardad RohaniShahrdad Rohani is an Iranian composer, violinist/pianist, and conductor.His style is contemporary , especially when compared with his mentors/inspirations, Anoushiravan Rohani and Javad Maroufi...
; the
Hooked on ClassicsHooked on Classics was a series of record albums first introduced in 1981, toward the end of the disco era's peak in popularity.Louis Clark, former arranger for Electric Light Orchestra, conducted the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra playing a collection of very recognizable extracts from classical...
series of records; orchestral arrangements of rock music by the likes of
Pink FloydPink Floyd were an English rock band who, in the late 1960s, earned recognition for their psychedelic and space rock music, and in the 1970s, as they evolved, for their progressive rock music. Pink Floyd's work is marked by philosophical lyrics, sonic experimentation, innovative album cover art,...
, Elkie Brooks (on the album
Amazing),
OasisOasis were an English rock band that formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul Arthurs , Paul McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
,
QueenQueen were an English rock band. Formed in London in 1970 following the demise of the band Smile, Queen consisted of vocalist Freddie Mercury, guitarist Brian May, bassist John Deacon and drummer Roger Taylor. The band became popular with audiences via their hit songs, live performances,...
,
R.E.M.R.E.M. is an American rock band formed in Athens, Georgia, in 1980 by Michael Stipe , Peter Buck , Mike Mills , and Bill Berry . R.E.M. was one of the first popular alternative rock bands, and gained early attention due to Buck's ringing, arpeggiated guitar style and Stipe's unclear vocals. R.E.M...
,
U2U2 are a rock band that formed in Dublin, Ireland. The band consists of Bono , The Edge , Adam Clayton , and Larry Mullen, Jr...
, and
ABBAABBA was a pop music group formed in Sweden in November 1970. The band consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad , Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog. They topped the charts worldwide from 1972 to 1982...
; the song/album,
Art of LifeArt of Life is an album released by X Japan on August 28, 1993. It consists of only one song with the same name, which is 29 minutes long, and was written and composed by Yoshiki Hayashi. The heavily orchestrated piece is partly based on Schubert's unfinished Symphony No...
by Japanese rock band
X Japanis a Japanese band founded in 1982 by Toshimitsu "Toshi" Deyama and Yoshiki Hayashi. Originally named X , the group achieved its breakthrough success in 1989 with the release of their second album Blue Blood. They started out as a power/speed metal band and later gravitated towards a progressive...
, composed by Yoshiki Hayashi; the official theme music of the
UEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe...
; tracks on the British
folk metalFolk metal is a sub-genre of heavy metal music that developed in Europe during the 1990s. As the name suggests, the genre is a fusion of heavy metal with traditional folk music. This includes the widespread use of folk instruments and, to a lesser extent, traditional singing styles.The earliest...
band
SkycladSkyclad are a British heavy metal band with heavy folk influences in their music. They are considered one of the pioneers of folk metal. The etymology behind the term "skyclad" comes from a pagan/wiccan term for ritual nudity, in which rituals are performed with the participants metaphorically clad...
's 2004 album
A Semblance of NormalityA Semblance of Normality is the twelfth studio album by the British folk metal band Skyclad, released in the year 2004. It is the first "new" album the band recorded with Kevin Ridley as vocalist since this album's predecessor No Daylights.....
; the
Symphonic Rock: A Symphony of Hits 2004 album; and the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
Grandstand Theme in 1982; Seotaiji Symphony, a concert held in
SeoulSeoul , officially the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest city of South Korea. With a population of over 10 million, it is one of the world's largest cities. The Seoul National Capital Area, which includes the major port city of Incheon and most of Gyeonggi-do, has 24.5 million...
in 2008, with South Korean rock star Seo Taiji, conducted by
Tolga KashifTolga Kashif is a musical conductor, composer, orchestrator, producer and arranger.-Early life:Turkish-Cypriot Tolga Kashif was born in London. Before going on to further education, Kashif went to Forest School. His compositional and conducting studies at the Royal College of Music led him...
.
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.
See also
- Pride: The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Plays U2
Pride: The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra Plays U2 is a U2 tribute album recorded by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in May 1998. It was released on April 20, 1999. Although it was released in 1999, it contains no material more recent than on U2's 1991 album Achtung Baby. Pride was re-released...
- Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra
The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra based in Liverpool, England, is Britain's oldest established orchestra and one of the oldest in the world. It is owned and administered by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society , a registered charity. It is the only orchestral society in the United...
- UEFA Champions League Hymn
The UEFA Champions League Anthem, officially titled simply as "Champions League", is an adaptation by Tony Britten of George Frideric Handel's "Zadok the Priest" from the Coronation Anthems. UEFA commissioned Britten in 1992 to arrange their anthem, and the piece was performed by the Royal...
- UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League is an annual association football cup competition organised by UEFA since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe...
External links