Philharmonia

Philharmonia Orchestra

One of the world’s great orchestras, the Philharmonia Orchestra is made up of 80 outstanding musicians of 17 different nationalities.

The Philharmonia is dedicated to bringing orchestral music of the very highest standard to the widest possible audience – in the world’s top concert halls, in residency communities and in people’s homes.

Founded in 1945, the orchestra quickly established a reputation as the leading recording orchestra. The Philharmonia has continued to embrace the use of cutting-edge technology to share the orchestral experience around the world and beyond; the orchestra’s recording of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 is travelling through interstellar space on board the Voyager spacecraft. In the last two decades the ensemble’s pioneering immersive installations and VR experiences have introduced hundreds of thousands of people to the symphony orchestra, and their streamed performances have been enjoyed by listeners from Fiji and Indonesia to high above the Arctic Circle in Norway.

In 2021, Santtu-Matias Rouvali took up the baton as Principal Conductor, following in the illustrious footsteps of Herbert von Karajan, Otto Klemperer, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Carlo Maria Giulini, Arturo Toscanini, Riccardo Muti and Esa-Pekka Salonen, just a few of the great conductors who have honed the celebrated Philharmonia sound across the years.

The Philharmonia regularly tours throughout Europe, performing in some of the world’s most prestigious venues, such as the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg. Further afield, the Orchestra has performed in China, Japan and Colombia. In 2024 the Philharmonia plans to return to China, and will be the first major international symphony orchestra to tour Mauritius. You’ll also find them playing in some unexpected venues, from the Apple Store in Berlin to a multi-storey car park in Peckham.

Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, in the heart of London, has been the Philharmonia’s home since 1995. Across the UK, the Orchestra has residencies in Bedford, Leicester, Canterbury, Basingstoke, at Garsington Opera and at the Three Choirs Festival. Its established and award-winning Learning & Engagement programme is embedded in several of its residency communities, and delivers experiences that empower people to engage with and participate in orchestral music. The Philharmonia’s Emerging Artists Programme develops the next generation of instrumentalists, composers and conductors, with a focus on increasing diversity within the classical music industry.

The Philharmonia commissions new music every year, and the Orchestra has premiered works by Richard Strauss, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Errollyn Wallen, Kaija Saariaho, Anna Clyne, Laufey and many others. The Philharmonia’s film credits stretch back to 1947, and the Orchestra is in demand among film and videogame composers in the UK and Hollywood. It has recorded around 150 soundtracks, bringing the Philharmonia sound to millions of cinema-goers and gamers.