London Symphony Orchestra
Resident Orchestra
The London Symphony Orchestra was established in 1904 and has a unique ethos and an inimitable signature sound. It has been the Resident Orchestra at the Barbican since the Centre opened in 1982.
As a musical collective, it is built on artistic ownership and a mission to bring the greatest music to the greatest number of people, presenting over 70 concerts at the Barbican each year under the batons of some of the finest conductors in the world, including Music Director Sir Simon Rattle, Principal Guest Conductors Gianandrea Noseda and François-Xavier Roth, and Conductor Laureate Michael Tilson Thomas.
Events
London Symphony Orchestra/Rattle: New Music Britain
Sir Simon Rattle kicks off the new London Symphony Orchestra season with the best of British – from the sweeping landscapes of Elgar and Frank Bridge to the 21st-century sounds of Daniel Kidane.
London Symphony Orchestra / Sir Simon Rattle
LSO Music Director Sir Simon Rattle celebrates the sheer beauty of sound, in a pocket-sized concert with a French flavour.
London Symphony Orchestra/Sir Simon Rattle
Sibelius, Bartók, Berlioz and Ravel – blazing colours and wild emotions, conducted with poetry and passion by Sir Simon Rattle.
London Symphony Orchestra/Rattle: Sibelius & Bruckner
Sir Simon Rattle conducts music in which vast landscapes merge with the human soul: Sibelius’ tone poems and Bruckner’s radiant Seventh Symphony.
London Symphony Orchestra/Edusei: In Living Colour
Strong emotions and primary colours, as Kevin John Edusei conducts high-octane musical dramas from Stravinsky, Bartók and Canadian composer Samy Moussa.
London Symphony Orchestra/André J Thomas: Symphonic Gospel
A performance bringing together the uplifting power of gospel music and the symphonic sound of the LSO, conducted by André J Thomas and featuring choirs from across London.
London Symphony Orchestra/André J Thomas: Awaken the Sleeper
André J Thomas delivers a despatch from the front line of Black classical music in the US – including Wynton Marsalis’ dramatic new Tuba Concerto.
London Symphony Orchestra/Stutzmann: Wild and Stormy Nights
Nathalie Stutzmann dives deep into the dark heart of 19th century music, with storm-swept thrillers by Beethoven, Brahms and Franck.
Ayanna Witter-Johnson / LSO Percussion Ensemble
A jazz-infused concert showcasing the partnership between the LSO Percussion Ensemble and composer-cellist-singer Ayanna Witter-Johnson, including new works for percussion.
LSO/Sir John Eliot Gardiner & Maria João Pires
Sir John Eliot Gardiner conducts Symphony No 2 from the great Tchaikovsky and incidental music from Schubert’s Rosamunde. He is also joined on stage by Maria João Pires.
London Symphony Orchestra/Gardiner & Maria João Pires
Sir John Eliot Gardiner joins pianist Maria João Pires in an exploration of Beethoven at his uninhibited best – music that sings, dances and glitters with youthful energy.
London Symphony Orchestra/Rattle & Håkan Hardenberger
Brahms’s most lyrical symphony meets three composers who continue to redefine the power of sound, in this Artist Portrait concert featuring trumpeter Håkan Hardenberger.
Soundhub Showcase
Four composers, four very different ideas. LSO Soundhub Associates present an exciting array of fresh works in a composer-curated evening of music, developed in collaboration with LSO musicians.
London Symphony Orchestra/Rattle & Imogen Cooper
High spirits and summer sun, as Sir Simon Rattle kicks up his heels in music by Haydn, Mozart, and Gershwin – and introduces the latest showstopper from John Adams.
London Symphony Orchestra/Pappano
Sir Antonio Pappano champions one of the unsung masterpieces of 20th-century opera – Luigi Dallapiccola’s shattering Il Prigioniero.
London Symphony Orchestra/Pappano
From Renaissance Venice to the streets of post-war Rome, Sir Antonio Pappano explores the passion, the melody and the sun-kissed colours of an Italy we almost never hear.
Lift Every Voice
André J Thomas, one of the world’s greatest experts in choral music, unites the voices of gospel and community choirs from across London in a celebration of gospel music to nourish the soul.
Discover
Profile: London Symphony Orchestra
Listen to our selection of LSO recordings from across the years in our Spotify playlist.
Barbican Sessions: Peter Moore
London Symphony Orchestra’s young trombonist, Peter Moore, performs 'Doolallynastics – a brief torture for solo trombone’ by Brian Lynn in our latest Barbican Session, filmed in one of our Frobisher Auditoriums.
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