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BBC Philharmonic
The BBC Philharmonic has been established on the international stage for over 65 years. The Orchestra has received exceptional reviews for their performances at The Bridgewater Hall, with average audiences of over 85%, re-affirming its reputation as one of Britain's finest orchestras. Under its Principal Conductor, the charismatic Frenchman, Yan Pascal Tortelier, it has built a formidable reputation for outstanding quality and committed performances over an immensely wide range of repertoire. Vassily Sinaisky is the Orchestra's Principal Guest Conductor, and Sir Edward Downes (who was Principal Conductor from 1980-1991) is Conductor Emeritus.
The Orchestra's policy of introducing new and adventurous repertoire to its programmes has meant that a large number of composers have worked with the Orchestra as conductors, among them Berio, Copland, Penderecki, Tippett and Walton. In 1991 Sir Peter Maxwell Davies became the BBC Philharmonic's first ever Composer/Conductor and in this position has written works for the Orchestra culminating with the Symphony No.7, premièred at the 2000 Orkney Festival, recorded many CDs of his music and toured the USA with them. He has been succeeded in this position by young Scottish composer, James MacMillan.
The BBC Philharmonic regularly travels abroad and has enhanced its international reputation with visits to the Far East and both North and South America. During past twelve months it has performed in Holland, France and Czech Republic (at the Prague Spring Festival). It will visit Greece during the summer and tours to Germany and Switzerland follow in the autumn.
Over recent years, the Orchestra has become one of the world's most recorded orchestras and under its exclusive contract with Chandos continues to make ten CDs each year for them. With Yan Pascal Tortelier, the BBC Philharmonic has developed an extensive catalogue of French music, including Fauré, Chausson, Dukas, Roussel, Poulenc, Dutilleux, Messiaen and Lili Boulanger as well as a highly praised Hindemith series. Other recorded cycles have included music by Verdi, Glière and Respighi (Sir Edward Downes), Dohnányi, Korngold and Stokowski (Matthias Bamert), the Enescu Symphonies (Rohzdestvensky), Grainger (Hickox) and the Balakirev Symphonies (Sinaisky). Recent releases include a Film Music series of music by Auric and Rawsthorne, Bach transcriptions conducted by Leonard Slatkin and Novak conducted by Libor Pesek.
The much lauded Education and Community Department takes its work all over the country and has initiated projects at the Cheltenham, Chester and Lichfield Festivals, the Proms as well as in Dublin, Oman and Prague. Thousands of students have visited the BBC Philharmonic's rehearsals whilst its Professional Access Scheme enables instrumentalists from music colleges to experience playing with the Orchestra and over 25,000 children have taken part in the unique "Aiming High" initiative in Stoke-on-Trent.
The BBC Philharmonic has built a close relationship with the Blue Peter children's TV programme, and the enormously popular Family Concerts attract even younger concert goers with regular performances in Manchester and at the Proms. Nor have older music lovers been forgotten - last year the Orchestra recorded the hugely successful series "Discovering Music", introduced and conducted by Leonard Slatkin which is still available on the Radio 3 website