London Philharmonic Orchestra 2026/27 season brochure - Southbank Centre

September 2026 — May 2027

Welcome

Whether you’ve been attending London Philharmonic Orchestra concerts for years, or this is your first time hearing about us, welcome!

We’ve called the Royal Festival Hall home since 1951 and we’re proud to continue welcoming audiences to experience the joy, power, and poignancy of music alongside us. As the Southbank Centre celebrates its 75th anniversary, we’re delighted to share a remarkable season of music with you, featuring memorable programmes and an extraordinary line-up of the world’s greatest stars.

In a noisy world, it can feel like we never have time to truly listen. Yet listening is powerful. It sharpens the mind, feeds our souls, and helps us reconnect with ourselves and one another. Listening isn’t passive – it’s an active exchange. When we listen, we respond, adapt, and create something new together in the moment. The Power of Listening is the guiding idea behind this journey, leading us through a series of explorations in the coming seasons.

Through listening, we can engage with voices across history and hear how they

David Burke Chief Executive

Jesús

Herrera

Artistic Director

resonate in the world around us. As we mark the 200th anniversary of Beethoven’s death in 2027, we’ll explore how the composer overcame immense challenges through music and showed how The Power of Listening is a deeply human element which goes beyond the mere perception of sound. We will also discover how other composers have used music to explore deeply human topics –from answering existential questions, to striving for reconciliation in the aftermath of wars, finding peace in grief, or speaking out in times of oppression. These will be the guiding principles of our season theme: In Search of Purpose.

We’re committed to shaping an inclusive and inspiring future for classical music, with accessible ticket prices at its core – including discounts for our growing LPO Under 30s community. Through our thriving Education and Community programme, we look forward to welcoming thousands of families and schoolchildren to the Royal Festival Hall, sharing the joy of music-making with our local communities, and showcasing the extraordinary musicians of our Rising Talent programmes.

This season, we invite you to witness more than music. We invite you to be fully present and experience The Power of Listening.

Edward Gardner Principal Conductor

So much of the music we love most grapples with what it really means to be human – how we treat one another, how we endure conflict, and how we face the fragility of our own mortality.

As we celebrate the London Philharmonic Choir’s 80th anniversary, I’m thrilled to bring four extraordinary choral works into focus, each reflecting on these themes. We’ll perform two of the greatest British musical responses to war – both its shadow and its aftermath: Vaughan Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem, anticipating the Second World War, and Britten’s War Requiem, which looks back in sorrow and remembrance. Meanwhile, Schumann’s Paradise and the Peri offers something more exotic and ephemeral, while Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius is an intimate, deeply human meditation on fear, faith, and what may lie beyond.

The season is a real orchestral feast for the LPO: with Stravinsky’s complete Firebird, Tippett’s Fourth Symphony, Tchaikovsky’s Manfred and Zemlinsky’s The Mermaid, we’ll be able to show every side of the LPO’s personality –its colour, its power, its warmth. We continue to champion new music, with premieres by Dame Judith Weir and Mark Simpson, and I’m especially delighted that our collaboration with Composer-in-Residence Sir George Benjamin continues – I’m very much looking forward to conducting his extraordinary opera Lessons in Love and Violence.

With wonderful world-class soloists partnering us throughout, this feels like a truly special season. I very much hope you’ll join us – I can’t wait to share it with you.

In Search of Purpose

In 1802, at the age of 31, Beethoven retreated to the country village of Heiligenstadt. Few knew that he was losing his hearing; in despair, he contemplated ending his life. ‘Only art withheld me,’ he confessed. ‘It seemed impossible to leave the world until I had created all that I felt called upon to create.’ At the darkest moment of his life, Beethoven found a way forward through music. In his hands, music itself was elevated to a new level of transcendence – a vessel for human expression and hope – whose influence continues to shape the music of our own time. It is from this journey of exploration that the season takes its title: ‘In Search of Purpose’.

Throughout the season, we will present the most iconic example of Beethoven’s journey from darkness to light, his Fifth Symphony, alongside a cycle of his piano concertos (including the rarely-heard early Concerto in E flat). The season will also feature works with direct links to Beethoven’s legacy, from Brahms’s First Symphony and Schumann’s Julius Caesar Overture to contemporary works such as Unsuk Chin’s subito con forza and a new commission by Dai Fujikura.

We will then expand upon this search for purpose, introducing works by multiple composers who found themselves confronting existential questions, striving for reconciliation in the aftermath of war –a topic of profound relevance in our own time, grappling with grief, and speaking out in times of oppression.

Principal Conductor Edward Gardner opens the season with Britten’s great plea for peace, his War Requiem, and concludes it with Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius –a confrontation with the supreme questions of existence. The season also includes a celebration of the London Philharmonic Choir’s 80th anniversary year, and symphonies by Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Tippett and Bruckner that all engage with this eternal search for meaning, while premieres by Judith Weir, Mark Simpson and Jacob Mühlrad explore the questions and struggles of our own time.

As ever, we are excited to perform with some of the world’s pre-eminent conductors and soloists, and especially look forward to our concerts with Principal Guest Conductor Karina Canellakis and Conductor Emeritus Vladimir Jurowski, as well as our new Chief Conductor & Artistic Advisor Designate Paavo Järvi.

This fascinating exploration of repertoire and concepts demonstrates that music has the power to express the noblest and deepest essence of human nature. We invite you to listen – to the music, to each other, and to the purpose within.

Jesús Herrera Artistic Director

26 SEPTEMBER 2026, 7.00PM

Edward Gardner conducts  Britten’s War Requiem

FRIDAY 2 OCTOBER 2026, 7.30PM

Kian Soltani plays Dvořák

Britten War Requiem (85’)

Edward Gardner* conductor

Natalya Romaniw soprano

Allan Clayton tenor

Benjamin Appl baritone

London Philharmonic Choir

London Symphony Chorus

Tiffin Boys’ Choir and Girls’ Choir

As Europe rose from the ashes of conflict, Benjamin Britten composed his War Requiem – fusing sacred texts with the poetry of Wilfred Owen to create one of music’s most powerful gestures of sorrow and reconciliation. Tonight, the LPO launches a season exploring the purpose that music can bring to our lives. Edward Gardner conducts this 20th-century classic: music that speaks to the heart, with a message that never gets any less urgent.

*Edward Gardner’s position with the LPO is generously supported by Aud Jebsen. Please note start time. There will be no interval in this performance.

Dvořák Cello Concerto (40’)

Franck Symphony in D minor (41’)

Marie Jacquot conductor

Kian Soltani cello

When it came to emotion, the composers of the Romantic era never held back. Far from home, Dvořák poured all his heartbreak and longing into a cello concerto like no other: a symphony in all but name, as sweet and as stormy as life itself. Meanwhile, César Franck created a symphony that’s practically a Gothic cathedral in sound – a world of swirling mists and monumental visions, crowned with an unforgettable melody. Marie Jacquot scales its heights tonight, and joins the ‘sublime’ (Gramophone) Kian Soltani in Dvořák’s magnificent Concerto.

WEDNESDAY 21 OCTOBER 2026, 7.30PM

Julia Fischer plays Brahms

FRIDAY 23 OCTOBER 2026, 7.30PM

The Firebird

Brahms Violin Concerto (36’)

Tchaikovsky Manfred Symphony (56’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Julia Fischer violin

Manfred is an outsider – a purposeless spirit, tormented by impossible desires and driven from society. Tchaikovsky sensed a kindred spirit in Byron’s brooding anti-hero, and his explosive Manfred Symphony contains some of the most uncompromising (and tender) music he ever wrote. Edward Gardner adores it, but it’s a hard act to follow. So we’re beginning the concert with the serene melodies and sunlit warmth of Brahms’s Violin Concerto, played tonight by Julia Fischer, a violinist who lives every note she plays.

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Howell Lamia (20’)

Mark Simpson Piano Concerto (world premiere)* (25’)

Stravinsky The Firebird (complete ballet score) (45’)

Edward Gardner conductor Víkingur Ólafsson piano

Víkingur Ólafsson: the Icelandic phenomenon who has redefined the way we hear the piano. Mark Simpson: a British composer with a boundless imagination, whose music pulses with the neon-lit energy of 21st-century urban life. Bring them together with Edward Gardner in the world premiere of a new piano concerto, and you know it’s going to be quite an occasion. That’s just the centrepiece of a concert that begins with Dorothy Howell’s sensuous tonepoem, and ends with Stravinsky’s magical fairytale of love, darkness and dazzling light.

*Commissioned by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Bergen Philharmonic, Philharmonie Essen and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

WEDNESDAY 4 NOVEMBER 2026, 7.30PM

Karina Canellakis conducts Beethoven

Elgar Violin Concerto (45’)

Dai Fujikura New work (UK premiere)* (10’)

Beethoven Symphony No. 5 (36’)

Karina Canellakis** conductor Christian Tetzlaff violin

Elgar never revealed the inspiration behind his Violin Concerto, but the music tells its own story of whispered secrets and soaring romance that could have been written for the glorious sound of violinist Christian Tetzlaff. Beethoven’s Fifth is a bit more direct: its world-famous opening is just the start of a truly epic struggle from tragedy to triumph. Written as his hearing failed and his world narrowed, the Symphony turned personal loss into defiant purpose, finding meaning through music when almost everything else was gone. And with a new piece from Dai Fujikura, it should be a night to remember.

*Commissioned by the London Philharmonic Orchestra, Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra, Sendai Philharmonic Orchestra and Thessaloniki State Symphony Orchestra.

**Karina Canellakis’s position with the LPO is generously supported by Richard Buxton.

FRIDAY 6 NOVEMBER 2026, 7.30PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Alice Sara Ott plays Beethoven

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 4 (34’)

Mahler Symphony No. 1 (56’)

Karina Canellakis conductor

Alice Sara Ott piano

There’s no sound like the beginning of Mahler’s First Symphony; a vast, shining stillness that could be a spring morning, or the dawn of the Universe itself. Either way, you know you’re in for an adventure, and there’s no better guide than LPO Principal Guest Conductor

Karina Canellakis, an artist who strikes sparks from everything she touches. And imagine the chemistry, too, when she joins pianist Alice Sara Ott in what some say is Beethoven’s greatest piano concerto.

WEDNESDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2026, 7.30PM

Strauss’s Ein Heldenleben

Sibelius King Christian II Suite (23’)

Hindemith Kammermusik No. 4 (21’)

R Strauss Ein Heldenleben (46’)

Robin Ticciati conductor

Vilde Frang violin

Ein Heldenleben means ‘A Hero’s Life’, and Richard Strauss was definitely having a bit of a laugh at the expense of his critics when he painted this huge, absurdly entertaining self-portrait of the artist as superhero. Make no mistake though, it sounds incredible, and with Robin Ticciati bringing his operatic flair to a specially-expanded LPO, it’s just one of three extraordinary musical stories tonight. Sibelius evokes the Middle Ages, and the superb Norwegian violinist Vilde Frang dances her way through Weimar Berlin in Hindemith’s sardonic Kammermusik.

WEDNESDAY 25 NOVEMBER 2026, 7.30PM QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL

Lessons in Love and Violence

George Benjamin Lessons in Love and Violence (semi-staged) (90’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Dan Ayling director

Nathaniel Sullivan King

Gyula Orendt Gaveston/Stranger

Georgia Jarman Isabel

Toby Spence Mortimer

James Way Boy/Young King

Hannah Sawle Witness 1/Singer 1/Woman 1

Joanne Evans Witness 2/Singer 2/Woman 2

Andri Björn Róbertsson Witness 3/Madman

Power and sex are a dangerous combination, and when the rulers of medieval England played the game of thrones, they either won or they died. The life of King Edward II inspired Marlowe’s classic tragedy, but Sir George Benjamin and Martin Crimp turn it inside out in an opera that caused a sensation when it opened at the Royal Opera in 2018.

Please note venue. There will be no interval in this performance.

SATURDAY 28 NOVEMBER 2026, 6.30PM ROYAL

Patricia Kopatchinskaja plays Shostakovich

WEDNESDAY 20 JANUARY 2027, 6.30PM

Sibelius’s First

Rachmaninov Youth Symphony (13’)

Shostakovich Violin Concerto No. 2 (33’) Rachmaninov Symphony No. 1 (41’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Patricia Kopatchinskaja violin

‘You can only win the freedoms you dare to take’ says Patricia Kopatchinskaja. And if you’ve experienced ‘PatKop’ in action, you’ll already know why she’s acquired a cult following – and why she’s the perfect violinist to explore the secrets and truths of Shostakovich’s searing post-war Concerto. It’s a powerful counterpart to Rachmaninov’s volcanic First Symphony – the dark, stormswept sound of a young composer testing his genius to breaking point. A rarely-heard early gem from Rachmaninov launches a concert of thrilling extremes.

Please note start time.

QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL

Andrea Tarrodi Birds of Paradise II (10’)

Jacob Mühlrad Kavanah, for clarinet and orchestra (world premiere)* (7’)

Göran & Martin Fröst Nomadic Dances (12’)

Sibelius Symphony No. 1 (38’)

Anja Bihlmaier conductor

Martin Fröst clarinet

The music of the North bursts with colour, as Swedish clarinettist Martin Fröst leads an unstoppable dance and unveils Jacob Mühlrad’s new concerto, a powerful meditation on Jewish spirituality. Andrea Tarrodi’s joyous musical aviary and Sibelius’s lush, windswept First Symphony complete a vibrant programme.

Please note venue and start time.

*This work was made possible through the support of a private patron.

After Dark: Queen Elizabeth Hall Foyer, 8.30pm Clarinettist Martin Fröst and vocalist Matilda Fröst join a quintet of LPO string players for a relaxed late-night performance. Free for concert ticket-holders

Hilary Hahn plays Mozart

R Schumann Julius Caesar Overture (8’)

Mozart Violin Concerto No. 5, K219 (Turkish) (31’)

Brahms Symphony No. 1 (45’)

Karina Canellakis conductor Hilary Hahn violin

Brahms’s First Symphony is a mighty musical struggle, filled with profound poetry and warmth. It’s ideal for LPO Principal Guest Conductor Karina Canellakis: critics have praised her ‘explosive chemistry’ with the LPO, and she’ll bring the same electricity to a Shakespearean overture by Brahms’s mentor Robert Schumann, and the teenage Mozart’s delightfully playful violin concerto. Hilary Hahn takes the part that Mozart wrote for himself; expect elegance as well as mischief from a true superstar among violinists.

SATURDAY 6 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM

Lukas Sternath plays Beethoven

WEDNESDAY 10 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM

Strauss & Saint-Saëns

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Unsuk Chin subito con forza (5’)

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 1 (37’)

Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 (Pathétique) (45’)

Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider conductor Lukas Sternath piano

‘Suddenly, with force!’ It’s 200 years since the death of Ludwig van Beethoven, but a spirit as unstoppable as his simply can’t be kept down. Unsuk Chin’s personal tribute to Beethoven is a brilliant upbeat to the First Piano Concerto by the man himself, with the remarkable Lukas Sternath as soloist. Then conductor Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider leads Tchaikovsky’s ‘Pathétique’ Symphony: ‘full of feeling’ from exultant heights to anguished depths – a no-holds-barred autobiography, told in some of the greatest melodies of all time.

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Ives The Unanswered Question (6’)

R Strauss Also sprach Zarathustra (32’)

Saint-Saëns Symphony No. 3 (Organ) (32’)

Kahchun Wong conductor Iveta Apkalna organ

The orchestra pauses, the silence itself seems to quiver – and then with a single, mighty blast, the organ raises the roof. If you haven’t heard Saint-Saëns’s Third Symphony live, you haven’t really heard it. That goes double for Richard Strauss’s Also sprach Zarathustra; one composer’s attempt to retell the history of humanity in ear-dazzling sound. This high-voltage concert from conductor Kahchun Wong asks some big questions, and as Charles Ives demonstrates, they’re no less compelling for being unanswered.

WEDNESDAY 17 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM

Shostakovich’s Tenth

Tormis Overture No. 2 (10’)

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 5 (Emperor) (38’)

Shostakovich Symphony No. 10 (53’)

Paavo Järvi conductor

Benjamin Grosvenor piano

Music can speak even when words are silenced. In Stalin’s Russia, composers knew better than to voice their fears aloud. But can a symphony really be subversive?

Shostakovich’s Tenth is a gripping testament to oppression, hiding in plain sight, and in the hands of Paavo Järvi, our Chief Conductor & Artistic Advisor Designate, every note hits home. It pairs brilliantly with Beethoven’s mightiest piano concerto, played by one of Britain’s best-loved pianists, and with the powerful Overture No. 2, written during the Cold War by Järvi’s fellow Estonian, Veljo Tormis.

Free pre-concert event: LPO Showcase

LPO Junior Artists – 6.00pm

See page 28 for details.

FRIDAY 19 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Górecki’s Third Symphony

Górecki Symphony No. 3

(Symphony of Sorrowful Songs)* (54’)

Prokofiev Symphony No. 5 (46’)

Andrey Boreyko conductor

Iwona Sobotka soprano

From the depths of despair, a woman’s voice soars, pure and free: ‘Oh, sing for him, God’s little songbirds / Since his mother cannot find him’. In 1976, Henryk Górecki wrote his Third Symphony as a profound act of hope in Communist-occupied Poland. He never imagined that his haunting ‘Symphony of Sorrowful Songs’ would become a global phenomenon. Tonight, its voice is the award-winning Polish soprano Iwona Sobotka.

*Supported by the Adam Mickiewicz Institute.

WEDNESDAY 24 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM

Pekka Kuusisto plays Sibelius

SATURDAY 27 FEBRUARY 2027, 7.30PM

Fauré’s Requiem

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

George Benjamin Concerto for Orchestra (17’)

Sibelius Violin Concerto (31’)

Sibelius The Swan of Tuonela (10’)

Tippett Symphony No. 4 (32’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Pekka Kuusisto violin

Life, death, and everything in between. On a black river, a swan sings a deathless lament. High above a frozen landscape, a violin soars. A whole orchestra breathes as one, as Michael Tippett grows a living, feeling symphony from the tiniest of cells.

Edward Gardner begins with Sir George Benjamin’s brilliant homage to an old friend, before he’s joined by violinist Pekka Kuusisto in Sibelius’s Concerto. ‘Playing the violin is about being spontaneous’, says Kuusisto: no wonder sparks fly whenever he plays.

ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Judith Weir Respire, Inspire

(world premiere)* (10’)

Fauré Requiem (38’)

Vaughan Williams Dona Nobis Pacem (40’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Louise Alder soprano

Gerald Finley bass-baritone

London Philharmonic Choir

The London Philharmonic Choir turns 80 this year, and it’s celebrating with two heartfelt prayers for peace. Fauré’s Requiem, one of the best-loved choral masterpieces, finds serenity in sorrow. Vaughan Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem is a stirring plea for sanity from an anxious decade. And a birthday gift from Dame Judith Weir proves that nothing speaks louder than simplicity.

*Commissioned by the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

Free pre-concert event: LPO Showcase Future Firsts & the Royal Academy of Music – 6.00pm

See page 29 for details.

WEDNESDAY 3 MARCH 2027, 7.30PM

Javier Perianes plays Schumann

WEDNESDAY 10 MARCH 2027, 7.30PM

Renée Fleming

Webern Im Sommerwind (15’)

R Schumann Piano Concerto (37’) Brahms (orch. Schoenberg) Piano Quartet No. 1 (43’)

Thomas Guggeis conductor

Javier Perianes piano

Webern’s gorgeous Im Sommerwind turns nature itself into an echo of the artist’s dreams. Robert Schumann’s Piano Concerto is filled with coded love-messages to his wife Clara, and if any pianist can bring out both its passion and its playfulness, it’s Javier Perianes – hailed by The Times for his ‘evident modesty and utter brilliance’. Finally, Brahms cuts loose in the exuberant song and dance of his First Piano Quartet –rebooted in full orchestral colour by Webern’s teacher, Schoenberg.

Kevin Puts The Brightness of Light (European premiere) (45’)

Dvořák Symphony No. 9 (From the New World) (40’)

Tianyi Lu conductor

Renée Fleming soprano Lucas Meachem baritone

‘Unforgettable’ was how one critic described Renée Fleming’s 2022 performance with the LPO, and it’s easy to see why: Fleming’s rich, radiant soprano is one of the supreme voices of the century. A long-time friend of the LPO, she performs tonight alongside distinguished baritone Lucas Meachem, bringing a story of love, art and the meeting of souls by Pulitzer-winning Kevin Puts. Inspired by letters between Georgia O’Keeffe and Alfred Stieglitz, and conducted by Tianyi Lu, it’s a heart-rending prelude to Dvořák’s evergreen Ninth Symphony.

Concierto de Aranjuez

Gabriela Ortiz Kauyumari (7’)

Rodrigo Concierto de Aranjuez (22’)

Falla The Three-Cornered Hat (complete ballet score) (38’)

Jaime Martín conductor

Rafael Aguirre guitar

Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía

Guitarist Rafael Aguirre has been called ‘a complete performer’ – an artist acclaimed for his virtuosity, tenderness and flair. Tonight he shares the bill with conductor Jaime Martín and the fabulous Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía in a concert that sets Rodrigo’s and Falla’s ravishing evocations of Spain alongside the myths and magic of Mexico: the legend of a mysterious blue deer, retold in full orchestral colour by Gabriela Ortiz. Songs of sorrow, shimmering visions, and the eternal dance of love and fate. What better setting for the world’s favourite guitar concerto than an evening filled with passionate sights and sounds?

‘An orchestra at its blazing best.’

Roots and Revolutions

Ligeti Concert Românesc (12’)

Shostakovich Cello Concerto No. 1 (28’)

Bartók Concerto for Orchestra (35’)

Cristian Măcelaru conductor Zlatomir Fung cello

For Béla Bartók, folk music was real and raw –art as untamed energy, unlocking astonishing new realms of sound. Conductor Cristian Măcelaru is a force of nature – expect flashing fiddles and stamping rhythms, as he leads two supercharged showpieces for an orchestra at the top of its game: Ligeti’s Concert Românesc and Bartók’s Concerto for Orchestra. Shostakovich’s First Cello Concerto packs a punch too – especially in the hands of Zlatomir Fung, who’s said to have ‘the Midas touch’ (Bachtrack).

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WEDNESDAY 24 MARCH 2027, 7.30PM

Mitsuko Uchida plays Beethoven

Wagner Prelude to Parsifal (14’)

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 (34’)

Bruckner Symphony No. 7 (Cohrs edition) (64’)

Vladimir Jurowski conductor

Mitsuko Uchida piano

Music can offer purpose. For Wagner, Beethoven and Bruckner, it held the key to existence itself. Tonight, Beethoven’s third (and darkest) piano concerto is played by the great Mitsuko Uchida; an artist who has devoted a lifetime to her craft, yet always offers something fresh and beautiful. LPO Conductor Emeritus Vladimir Jurowski begins with the Prelude to Wagner’s final opera, and ends with Bruckner’s majestic Seventh Symphony, a requiem to Wagner whose opening, it is said, came to him in a dream, played by an angel.

Beethoven & Strauss

R Strauss Death and Transfiguration (24’)

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 0 (28’)

Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 2 (28’)

R Strauss Der Rosenkavalier Suite (21’)

Dima Slobodeniouk conductor Kirill Gerstein piano

Richard Strauss meets Beethoven: music’s supreme storyteller meets one of history’s greatest composers. Pianist Kirill Gerstein brings a personal touch to every note he plays, shining in a rare performance of Beethoven’s very first piano concerto. And let your imagination soar, as Strauss travels to eternity in Death and Transfiguration, and waltzes through a fairytale Vienna in his silky, gloriously sensual love-letter to his opera Der Rosenkavalier. Naughty, but (very) nice.

Experience the magic of live orchestral music from some of the best seats in the house for less.

Sign up for events, competitions, exclusive ticket offers and more at lpo.org.uk/under-30s

WEDNESDAY 7 APRIL 2027, 7.30PM

The Mermaid

SATURDAY 10 APRIL 2027, 7.30PM

Das Paradies und die Peri

Karg

Schreker ‘Nachtstück’ from Der ferne Klang (14’)

Korngold Violin Concerto (25’)

Zemlinsky The Mermaid (39’)

Edward Gardner conductor Bomsori violin

Zemlinsky’s The Mermaid – inspired by his unrequited love for Alma Schindler – tells of a mermaid who sacrifices everything for love. After Alma married Gustav Mahler and later began a relationship with Franz Schreker, tension and fascination tangled further: Schreker created Nachtstück, a work of longing and obsession. Zemlinsky’s student Korngold later composed his glowing, nostalgic Violin Concerto – dedicated to Alma – as he built a new life in Hollywood. Tonight, Edward Gardner and Korean violin sensation Bomsori bring these intertwined dreams and desires to life.

Free pre-concert event: LPO Showcase Crisis Creates – 6.00pm See page 29 for details.

R Schumann Das Paradies und die Peri

Edward Gardner conductor

Christiane Karg soprano

Samantha Clarke soprano

Beth Taylor mezzo-soprano

Robert Murray tenor

Lunga Eric Hallam tenor

Thomas Oliemans baritone

London Philharmonic Choir

The Peri has been cast out of Paradise. Now she walks the Earth, a wounded but gentle spirit, seeking the good deed or the loving heart that will guide her back to happiness. In 1843, Robert Schumann, a musical dreamer with the soul of a poet, retold her adventures in some of the most heartfelt music of the Romantic age. Edward Gardner leads a rare performance with an all-star cast and the London Philharmonic Choir.

Concert duration: 1hr 55’ including interval.

The Sleeping Beauty

Tchaikovsky The Sleeping Beauty

Vladimir Jurowski conductor

A princess, a witch, and a long sleep: everyone knows the story of Sleeping Beauty. Tchaikovsky’s brief was to turn it into a lavish ballet on an imperial scale. But you can’t keep a genius down, and this fairytale grew into a score without equal, a feast of melody and an intensely human drama of destiny, redemption and love. No living conductor is better equipped to tell it than Vladimir Jurowski, whose 2021 Swan Lake with the LPO was hailed as ‘thrilling’ (Bachtrack)

Concert duration: 3hrs including interval. Please note start time.

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Edward Gardner conducts

The Dream of Gerontius

Elgar The Dream of Gerontius (95’)

Edward Gardner conductor

Natalie Lewis mezzo-soprano

Michael Spyres tenor

Yngve Søberg baritone

London Philharmonic Choir

‘This is the best of me’, wrote Edward Elgar on the score of The Dream of Gerontius Set aside any preconception about religious music – and about Elgar. This story of a lonely soul’s journey towards eternity is an unforgettable human drama, told in music of startling sincerity and breathtaking beauty. Don’t miss Edward Gardner, the London Philharmonic Choir, and three outstanding soloists as they continue the LPO’s proud tradition of performing Britain’s greatest masterpieces.

There will be no interval in this performance.

WEDNESDAY 5 MAY 2027, 7.00PM QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL

Opera Rara:

Il campo de’ crociati

Mercadante Il campo de’ crociati

Carlo Rizzi conductor

Rosa Feola Lea

Iván Ayón-Rivas Carlo

Germán Enrique Alcántara Ismaele

Giorgi Manoshvili Goffredo di Buglione

Chorus of English National Opera

Set against the turmoil of the First Crusade, Lea is caught between two worlds. Driven by passionate love yet bound by forces beyond her control, she must navigate danger and devotion in a war-torn land where violence, ruthless pursuit of power, and unshakeable righteousness collide. Rosa Feola stars in Mercadante’s electrifying opera, brought to life through powerful, moving music unheard for more than 150 years.

Concert duration: 2hrs 30’ including interval. Please note venue and start time.

In association with Opera Rara.

Connected by Music

At the LPO, we love sharing music with the widest possible audience – in the concert hall, in care settings, schools and in the community. We are equally passionate about nurturing talent, so that future generations can play, compose, conduct and enjoy music no matter who they are.

Our Education and Community programme reaches around 30,000 people each year, making music with people from all walks of life. Whether that’s a class of children experiencing their first concert, a teenager being mentored by an LPO musician, or a disabled person using technology to make music: music has the power to connect, inspire and uplift, and you are warmly invited to experience some of our projects in action this season.

For families, don’t miss our thrilling FUNharmonics days, where children can hear the LPO in all its glory in specially tailored concerts, with plenty of interaction throughout the morning.

Join us for our LPO Showcase series of events, which offer a platform for our participants to share their creativity. In February, come and hear free performances by our talented cohorts of emerging musicians, playing alongside the LPO players who mentor them, and don’t miss Debut Sounds, a summer evening of world premieres by our brilliant Young Composers.

We also engage deeply in the community all year round, co-creating experiences that offer space for self-expression and wellbeing. You can experience a flavour of this at our Crisis Creates performance and at OrchLab Festival Day, which celebrates music-making with disabled adults.

Beyond these events, our programme includes our popular BrightSparks concerts for schools, further work with children and teachers, activities for young people with SEND, inspiring orchestral days for young musicians, and an enormous wealth of community-led projects in London and England’s South Coast.

The LPO is grateful to all those who generously support our Education and Community programme.

FUNharmonics Family Concerts

Our family concerts are the perfect way to introduce the exciting sounds of the orchestra to the youngest music-lovers. During these hour-long concerts, a presenter weaves in audience interaction throughout and images are projected on the big screen above the orchestra, creating an engaging, multi-sensory experience for the whole family.

The fun doesn’t stop there – check out our array of free activities in the foyer spaces before the concert, including lively interactive music sessions, and the chance to ‘Have a Go’ at orchestral instruments under expert guidance.

Pre-concert activities run from 10.00am and most sessions are restricted to FUNharmonics ticket-holders only. All are subject to availability, and age restrictions may apply. Check age recommendation for each concert. Children must be accompanied by an adult.

SATURDAY 23 JANUARY 2027, 12.00PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

The Big Enigma

Did you know that there are codes and mysteries hidden in some of the greatest orchestral music ever written? Join the LPO and presenter Rachel Leach as we uncover some of these secret codes, focusing on highlights from Edward Elgar’s Enigma Variations, along with other brilliant music by Beethoven, Bacewicz and Brahms. You can even join in with the Orchestra in our new participation piece, and find out all about the meaningful messages in the most marvellous music!

Age recommendation 6+

SATURDAY 13 MARCH 2027, 12.00PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Beegu

Beegu is not supposed to be on Earth. She is lost. She is a friendly little creature, but the Earth People don't seem very welcoming at all. However, so far she has only met the BIG ones. The little ones are a different matter … Presenter Lucy Hollins joins the musicians of the LPO to tell the enchanting story of Beegu, based on Alexis Deacon’s much-loved book about friendship, kindness and belonging. With some fantastic orchestral music and lots of ways to join in, this is sure to be a captivating first orchestral experience for all the family.

Age recommendation 4+

SATURDAY 5 JUNE 2027, 12.00PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Rule-breakers and Risk-takers

Music is a powerful force that can help us express ourselves, battle our barriers and persevere with purpose. In this concert, we honour the pioneering composers who blazed trails with their incredible music, even when they faced tough challenges. Join the LPO and presenter Rachel Leach for an uplifting hour of music and lively participation that celebrates Beethoven, Tchaikovsky, Joseph Bologne, Ethel Smyth and other musical heroes that are sure to inspire the whole family.

Age recommendation 6+

LPO Showcase

Our LPO Showcase series shines a spotlight on the extraordinary range of musical talent and creativity supported by our Education and Community programme, through a series of performances and events, many of which are free to attend.

WEDNESDAY 18 NOVEMBER 2026, 10.30AM–3.00PM CLORE BALLROOM, ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

OrchLab Festival Day

OrchLab Festival Day is a joyful celebration of accessible music-making with disabled adults, and a culmination of our OrchLab programme which runs throughout the year. Delivered with our partners Drake Music, this event throws open the doors of our Royal Festival Hall home to our OrchLab community for a fun day of live music, accessible instrument demonstrations, interactive activities and a showcase of the talents and creativity of OrchLab participants

This free but ticketed event is open to disabled adults and those who support them (over 18s only). For more information visit orchlab.org/open-events

WEDNESDAY 17 FEBRUARY 2027, 6.00PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

LPO Junior Artists

The LPO Junior Artists programme supports the progression of talented teenage musicians from backgrounds currently under-represented in professional UK orchestras. Junior Artists spend a season with us and become fully immersed in the workings of the LPO. They are each mentored by a member of the Orchestra, and take part in an array of performances, behind-the-scenes activities and workshops, plus events to inspire younger musicians. In this performance, the Junior Artists perform alongside alumni, LPO musicians and Future Firsts in a celebration of exciting young talent.

Free, unticketed.

Future Firsts & the Royal Academy of Music

The LPO’s renowned Future Firsts programme bridges the transition between education and the music profession for 16 talented earlycareer orchestral musicians each year. We are so proud that alumni Future Firsts can now be found playing in the best orchestras in the world – including the LPO! In this event, our current cohort of Future Firsts joins forces with students from the Royal Academy of Music and members of the LPO for a vibrant performance inspired by this season’s ‘In Search of Purpose’ theme. You won’t want to miss this free showcase of the future stars of classical music.

Free, unticketed.

WEDNESDAY 7 APRIL 2027, 6.00PM ROYAL FESTIVAL HALL

Crisis Creates

Members of Crisis UK – all adults who have experienced homelessness – perform original music they have devised with an LPO team during a week-long creative project. Crisis Creates aims to improve participants’ wellbeing and confidence through collaboration and developing creative skills, offering a channel for self-expression and combatting the isolation that comes hand-in-hand with precarious living situations. Using the music of the Orchestra as their starting point, the group creates new and powerful work which they perform tonight.

Free, unticketed.

THURSDAY 10 JUNE 2027, 7.30PM QUEEN ELIZABETH HALL

Debut Sounds

Join us for our thrilling annual showcase concert that premieres new works by our LPO Young Composers. Mentored by Composer-in-Residence Sir George Benjamin, our five brilliant composers spend the season with the LPO, each writing a new work for an orchestra formed of LPO members and Future First musicians. This year, the composers are writing for solo voice and orchestra, and we are delighted to be working with talented singers who will add a stunning dimension to these bold, original works.

Listening has the power to change us. It is how a concert becomes a treasured memory, how a community session becomes a turning point, how a young musician finds their purpose and how we learn from audiences across the country. The LPO exists to make those moments happen, as widely and as often as possible.

As a registered charity we rely on the generosity of our individual supporters, corporate partners and trusts and foundations to bring the power of listening to audiences, rising musicians, people affected by homelessness and young people and adults with disabilities.

Together, with your support, we can ensure that the transformative power of listening can be shared as widely as possible.

The Power of Listening. Be part

of the LPO.

Donate

Whether you make a checkout donation, give to an appeal, or choose to remember the LPO with a gift in your Will, donations of all sizes make an impact. Your support will help us continue to promote diversity and inclusivity in classical music and nurture the next generation of talent.

Join

Joining one of our membership schemes will not only support the Orchestra and our mission, but will also give you access to a host of exclusive benefits designed to enhance your experience and build a closer relationship with the Orchestra and our family of supporters – from private rehearsals, to members’ bars, private events and priority booking. Membership starts at just £7 per month.

Partner

We’re virtuosos of creative collaboration, expertly crafting bespoke partnerships that hit the right notes.

We tailor each bespoke partnership to your strategic business objectives, combining exceptional experiences that deepen client relationships, forge new connections, elevate your brand, and create buzzworthy content that leaves audiences captivated by a compelling brand story.

We’re also passionate about using music and our work to increase social value. By partnering together across a shared purpose and values, we can leave a positive, lasting impact on the communities we engage, deepening your CSR and SDG commitments.

Find out how you can support at lpo.org.uk/support us

How to book

Online

Book your seats for our Southbank Centre events online at lpo.org.uk or southbankcentre.co.uk

Phone

Call the LPO Ticket Office on 020 7840 4242 (Mon–Fri 10am–5pm) or the Southbank Centre Ticket Office on 020 3879 9555 (Mon–Fri 10am–5pm, weekends 12–5pm).

Ticket prices

Tickets may change according to demand. For our ticket terms and conditions including details of booking fees and the Southbank Centre’s restoration levy, visit lpo.org.uk/tickets-and-discounts

Ways to save Series discounts

Book more and pay less when you book through the London Philharmonic Orchestra website or Ticket Office.

Book 3–4 concerts and get 10% off Book 5–7 concerts and get 15% off Book 8–10 concerts and get 20% off Book 11–14 concerts and get 25% off Book 15+ concerts and get 30% off

Please note all discounts are subject to availability and cannot be combined.

London Philharmonic Orchestra concerts can also be booked as part of the Southbank Centre’s classical music multi-buy offer. Book multiple concerts from the same season (Autumn/Winter or Spring/Summer) in one transaction to receive a discount. Full details can be found at southbankcentre.co.uk/ classicalmusic

Group and school bookings

Groups of 10+ save 20% on ticket prices and pay no booking fee when they book through the London Philharmonic Orchestra Ticket Office. Groups of 20+ also receive two of their tickets free of charge. Reservations are flexible until one month before the concert. School groups receive a 50% discount on ticket prices, plus one in every ten tickets free.

Please note group and school bookings cannot be made online. Call the London Philharmonic Orchestra Ticket Office on 020 7840 4242 or email box.office@lpo.org.uk (Mon–Fri 10am–5pm).

LPO Plus

LPO Plus is the London Philharmonic Orchestra’s online reward scheme. Every time you book at lpo.org.uk, you can gain LPO Plus points, which can then be redeemed on future orders.

Under 30s

LPO Under 30s offers anyone aged 30 and under the chance to experience the magic of live orchestral music from some of the best seats in the house for less. Find out more at lpo.org.uk/under-30s

Concessions

A limited number of 50% discount tickets are available to full-time students, benefit recipients (Jobseekers’ Allowance, Income Support, Universal or Pension Credit), and under-18s when booking via the London Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Southbank Centre has a limited allocation of concession tickets for recipients of Universal or Pension Credit, full-time students and under-16s. ID will be checked on admission.

Exchanges

You can exchange your tickets up to two working days before the concert for another performance in our Southbank Centre season or for a credit voucher (valid for one year). We do not offer refunds unless a concert is cancelled. Artists and programmes are subject to change if necessary.

Age guidance

Evening concerts are suitable for children aged seven and over. Under-12s must be accompanied by an adult on the Southbank Centre site.

Filming

We will be filming a selection of our Southbank Centre concerts for future streaming. Please note that certain sections of the audience may be captured in the background. If you have any concerns, please contact admin@lpo.org.uk

For more information on how to book and ways to save, visit lpo.org.uk/tickets-anddiscounts

Visiting the Southbank Centre

The Southbank Centre can be accessed by Waterloo, Waterloo East, Embankment and Charing Cross stations and by bus to Waterloo. There is bike parking in Southbank Centre Square. Blue Badge car parking is available.

Visit southbankcentre.co.uk/visit/ getting-here for more information.

Access

The Royal Festival Hall has wheelchair spaces, level access via internal lifts and ramps, and accessible toilets. Sound enhancement systems are available (subject to availability). Assistance dogs are welcome on site.

Visitors with a disability can join the Southbank Centre’s free Access Scheme. You may be eligible for tickets at concessionary prices and to receive information in alternative formats.

For more information, please email accesslist@southbankcentre.co.uk or visit southbankcentre.co.uk/access

Privacy policy

For details of our privacy policy, please visit lpo.org.uk or call to request details.

London Philharmonic Orchestra

Resident at the Southbank Centre and Glyndebourne Festival Opera

Regional Residencies

Brighton Dome

Congress Theatre, Eastbourne Saffron Hall, Saffron Walden

David Burke

Chief Executive

Jesús Herrera

Artistic Director

HRH The Duke of Kent KG

Patron

Edward Gardner

Principal Conductor*

Karina Canellakis

Principal Guest Conductor†

Vladimir Jurowski KBE

Conductor Emeritus

Paavo Järvi

Chief Conductor & Artistic Advisor Designate

Pieter Schoeman Leader‡

Sir George Benjamin CBE Composer-in-Residence

Tickets 020 7840 4242

General enquiries 020 7840 4200 admin@lpo.org.uk lpo.org.uk

Office address

89 Albert Embankment, London SE1 7TP

*Supported by Aud Jebsen

† Supported by Richard Buxton

‡ Supported by Neil Westreich The London Philharmonic Orchestra gratefully acknowledges the financial support of Arts Council England and the Southbank Centre.

Information in this brochure was correct at the time of going to press. The right is reserved to substitute artists and to vary programmes if necessary.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra is a registered charity No. 238045. The Southbank Centre is a registered charity No. 298909.

The paper used for all LPO brochures and concert programmes has been sourced from responsibly managed forests, certified in accordance with the FSC® (Forest Stewardship Council). It is also Carbon Balanced, meaning the carbon impact of its production is offset by the World Land Trust through the purchase and preservation of ecologically important forestry under imminent threat of clearance.