What does an orchestra do when it's not on stage? Since its inception, the Philharmonia has been renowned for its work as a recording orchestra. We can regularly be found in the studio recording for film and video games, as well as recording concert works. Join Patrick Bailey to explore the off-stage work of the orchestra, featuring music by composer Jessica Curry. --- We’re in this together. As a charity, we rely on the generosity of individuals like you to support the work we do through...

How do 60 individual violins, violas, cellos and basses transform into the lush sound of an orchestral string section? Who do they follow? What makes them all move together? Find out all of their secrets in this film. And subscribe to our YouTube channel to be alerted when our brand new series on the sections of the orchestra continues with the woodwind section. Keep the Philharmonia Playing: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/donate  

Mahler’s The Song of the Earth is an hour-long, soul-searching journey in the company of a composer examining his own mortality and love for life from all angles. --- While we can't perform it for you tonight, conductor Xian Zhang spoke to us about the challenges of conducting the piece, as well as her time learning her craft under the tuition of Lorin Maazel. Like many performing arts organisations, the Philharmonia is facing significant disruption during the COVID-19 pandemic. We want to...

Last, but certainly not least. Join presenter Paul Rissmann to discover the final symphony from the remarkably prolific composer, Joseph Haydn. You’ll learn the importance of symmetry within the work, Haydn’s creative use of tiny motifs, and the importance of silence.

“If after this concert you don’t fall in love with classical music, you never will.” – Pablo Heras-Casado Meet Spanish conductor Pablo Heras-Casado ahead of his concerts of Russian classics this April. Maestro Heras-Casado shares his appreciation of the Philharmonia, his thoughts on the accessibility of classical music, and chats about Mussorgsky’s colourful classic, Pictures at an Exhibition, arranged by composer Maurice Ravel. 2 April, London: https://philharmonia.co.uk/whats-on/190402-her

Perfectionism... Swans... Finland... What do these all have to do with music? Discover the story behind Jean Sibelius’s famous 5th Symphony as described by presenter Paul Rissmann. Featuring extracts played in the studio by Philharmonia musicians. Catch Sibelius Symphony No. 5 live in concert on 21 May 2020 in London at Royal Festival Hall, conducted by our Principal Conductor Designate, Santtu-Matias Rouvali: https://philharmonia.co.uk/whats-on/philharmonia-21-05-20/

The Virtual Orchestra travelled to our UK residencies in 2018 and 2019, offering audiences the chance to experience a symphony orchestra from the inside. We worked with local partners including community centres, charities, arts organisations and councils to bring orchestral music to new audiences. Find out more about the project or head to the website to read our new report that shares our highlights from the project. https://philharmonia.co.uk/initial-report-into-the-virtual-orchestra

“The moment Lise sang the first phrase, everybody’s jaw dropped in the orchestra. I have never seen this kind of thing before.” – Esa-Pekka Salonen Hear Lise Davidsen and Esa-Pekka Salonen in concert with the Philharmonia Orchestra on 19 March 2020 at Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London: https://philharmonia.co.uk/whats-on/200319-esa-pekka-salonen-mahler-and-schumann/ Link to the recording of Lise Davidsen with the Philharmonia Orchestra on Decca: https://decca.lnk.to/LiseDavidsen0F

Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, Esa-Pekka Salonen, chats about how composer Gustav Mahler used and re-used vocal music. Music from his song cycles can later be heard in his symphonies. Discover more in this film and join us for in London for our concert series, Mahler: Songs of Life, throughout our 2019/20 season: https://philharmonia.co.uk/whats-on/?date=all&location=all&type=all&event-group=1562

“Everything was just a disaster. There is something really attractive about the total excess of it.” – Esa-Pekka Salonen Listen to Esa-Pekka Salonen, our Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, talk about why he’s reconstructing one of the most famous concerts ever: Beethoven’s legendary 1808 concert in Vienna. Join us for a reconstruction of this concert in March 2020: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2528/beethoven_1808_reconstructed

Vienna, 22 December 1808. Franz and Katarina are on their way to hear a concert that Ludwig van Beethoven is putting on at the Teater an der Wien. They are in for a night they will never forget. Discover the story behind one of the most famous concerts of all time in our animated film. You can join us for a reconstruction of this concert in March 2020, conducted by our Principal Conductor, Esa-Pekka Salonen: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2528/beethoven_1808_reconstructed

In 2020 we mark 75 years since the Philharmonia Orchestra was founded - three quarters of a century of brilliant live music-making, definitive recordings, technological innovation and artistic adventure. Our Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor, Esa-Pekka Salonen, reflects on the founding ethos of the Philharmonia and how it has continued to attract the finest musicians to play in its ranks. Discover our concert series here: http://www.philharmonia.co.uk/POat75

Enjoy our 2019 Christmas Card with the Philharmonia’s four horns – Nigel Black, Kira Doherty, Diego Incertis Sánchez and Carsten Williams. In Dulci Jubilo was arranged by Philharmonia No. 3 Cello, Richard Birchall. Hear more from our fantastic horn section in Horn Calls, featuring Richard Strauss’s Till Eulenspiegel, Thu 16 Jan, 7.30pm, Royal Festival Hall, London. https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2508/horn_calls www.philharmonia.co.uk/christmas

Meet Tom Blomfield, Principal Oboe of the Philharmonia Orchestra, to learn more about what it’s like to be an oboist and to discover the fascinating story behind the Strauss Oboe Concerto. Tom Blomfield performs the Strauss Oboe Concerto on 19 January 2020 as part of the Philharmonia Orchestra’s 75th Anniversary celebrations, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen. https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2510/voices_of_1945

Philharmonia No. 2 Horn, Kira Doherty, meets up with Richard Watkins, Principal Horn of the Philharmonia Orchestra from 1985-1996, at the Museum of the Royal Academy of Music in London to dive into the legacy of the first Principal Horn of the Philharmonia, Dennis Brain. This is a rare opportunity to hear the instrument Brain played in the 1950s before his early death. On 16 January 2020, Richard Watkins performs Britten and Turnage: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2508/horn_calls

Meet Richard Watkins, Principal Horn of the Philharmonia Orchestra from 1985-1996, as he chats with composer and friend, Mark-Anthony Turnage at the Philharmonia offices in London. Find out all about Turnage's new piece for horn and how these artists have worked together in our film, and then join us in London for the world premiere on 16 January 2020, conducted by Esa-Pekka Salonen: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/2508/horn_calls

By popular demand, we present a full-length guide to the bass clarinet, presented by Philharmonia Orchestra Principal Bass Clarinet, Laurent Ben Slimane. Watch the full instrument playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLqR22EoucCyccs5J639SCefaM7mD9dMSz Subscribe: www.youtube.com/philharmonialondon  

The Philharmonia Orchestra and Raze Collective present a queer extravaganza of contemporary cabaret on Mon 23 Sept in the Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer, Southbank Centre, London, at 8:45pm. This free show is inspired by the cabaret scene of Weimar Berlin and is a collaboration between Philharmonia players and London-based performance artists. Our documentary goes behind-the-scenes on the rehearsals. This is a FREE event:...

The Weimar Republic was a time of great social and artistic advances, but shaky politics and a disastrous economy made it ripe for the rise of National Socialism – the Nazis. In our last film we explore the effects of the rise of the Nazis, and Weimar’s legacy. The Philharmonia’s concert series Weimar Berlin: Bittersweet Metropolis, which returns 23 September 2019 at Southbank Centre, London: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/series/82/weimar_berlin_bittersweet_metropolis

Cabaret was hugely important during the Weimar Republic as a form of social protest and social critique. Its influence went beyond bars and music halls – film and theatre quickly adopted its rougher aesthetic and its subject matter. These six films form the introduction to the Philharmonia’s concert series Weimar Berlin: Bittersweet Metropolis, which continues 23 September 2019 at Southbank Centre, London: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/concerts/series/82/weimar_berlin_bittersweet_metropolis

In 1919, not only was the Weimar Republic founded, but Walter Gropius, the architect, also founded what would become a game-changing art school – the Bauhaus. In this film we travel to Dessau to uncover what it was like to be a student at the Bauhaus. These six films form the introduction to the Philharmonia’s concert series Weimar Berlin: Bittersweet Metropolis, which continues 23 Sept 2019 at Southbank Centre, London:...

In January 2019, the Philharmonia Orchestra and Soft Touch Arts (Leicester, UK) embarked upon another season of Symphonize, a pioneering creative partnership enabling young people from across Leicester to work alongside producers and musicians to create, compose, produce and perform their own original tracks and video art. Find out more about Symphonize here: https://www.philharmonia.co.uk/education/schools_and_young_people/symphonize

Berlin. An epicentre. A capital city. A playground. The city of Berlin was the Weimar Republic’s hub, transforming itself into a multicultural melting pot where rules could be bent and new ways of being were more accepted. However, people questioned this modern way of living and were sceptical of the rise of technology and a more relaxed approach to gender norms. Cabaret, theatre and film all contributed to a critique of society while the rise of Fascism inevitably marched forward. Observers...

The composers of the Weimar Republic provided a soundtrack for the events that unfolded in Germany between 1919 and 1933. During this tumultuous, exciting time, composers such as Kurt Weill, Paul Hindemith and Alban Berg thrived and produced works that still thrill us today. The sounds of cabaret and jazz infused Weill’s Threepenny Opera while Paul Hindemith and Alban Berg took a more objective approach, creating music to “reach out beyond political boundaries.” ...