LPO programme 8 Feb 2026 Eastbourne - Edward Gardner conducts Elgar
Principal Conductor Edward Gardner supported by Aud Jebsen
Principal Guest Conductor Karina Canellakis supported by Richard Buxton
Conductor Emeritus Vladimir Jurowski KBE Patron HRH The Duke of Kent KG
Artistic Director Jesús Herrera Chief Executive David Burke
Leader Pieter Schoeman supported by Neil Westreich
Congress Theatre, Eastbourne Sunday 8 February 2026 | 3.00pm
Edward Gardner conducts Elgar
Elgar Sospiri (5’)
Elgar
Cello Concerto (30’)
Interval (20’)
Elgar Enigma Variations (32’)
Edward Gardner conductor
Generously supported by Aud Jebsen
Jan Vogler cello
Trafalgar Theatres
Welcome to the Congress Theatre
Venue Director Neil Jones
We extend a warm welcome to the members of the London Philharmonic Orchestra and to the artists performing with the Orchestra today – and of course to every one of you, our valued audience members.
The historic theatre in which you are now seated is unique in that it is conceived to be a perfect cube and has fantastic acoustics to enhance your experience of live music. Whether this is your first concert or you are a season regular, we hope you enjoy your experience at our venue. Please speak to a member of our staff if you have any comments you’d like to make about your visit. We thank you for continuing to support the concert series. Please sit back in your seats and enjoy your afternoon with us.
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LPO news
LPO Junior Artists: Overture Days in Eastbourne & Worthing
Applications are open for our next LPO Junior Artists: Overture Days, which take place on Thursday 2 April 2026 in Worthing (in partnership with West Sussex Music) and Sunday 12 April 2026 in Eastbourne (in partnership with local education hub Create Music).
If you’re a young orchestral player aged 10–15 and Grade 3+ standard, this is your chance to join the London Philharmonic Orchestra family for a day. You’ll meet some of our musicians, play as an ensemble and find out just what it takes to be part of one of the greatest orchestras in the world – for free! For more information, and to watch a video and hear from previous Overture Day participants, visit lpo.org.uk/overture
Our Overture Days are free of charge and open to all orchestral players of the appropriate age and standard, but priority is given to young musicians from underrepresented backgrounds and communities who may be eligible for our main LPO Junior Artists programme in the future.
LPO Junior Artists: Overture 2025/26 is generously supported by TIOC Foundation and Garfield Weston Foundation.
BrightSparks Schools’ Concert
Tuesday 9 June 2026 will see our next BrightSparks schools’ concert here at the Congress Theatre! Local Key Stage 2 students (aged 7–11) will be introduced to the Orchestra through through an inspiring performance of highlights from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, along with other brilliant music by Beethoven, Bacewicz and Brahms. Tickets are £3 per pupil (accompanying teachers free). This includes a free INSET session and written resources for teachers.
Booking for schools will open in late February –for more details visit lpo.org.uk/brightsparks
BrightSparks 2025/26 is generously funded by Rothschild Foundation, Candide Trust, Dunard Fund, Rivers Foundation, Garfield Weston Foundation, TIOC Foundation, Gill and Julian Simmonds, and Mrs Philip Kan.
First Violins
Pieter Schoeman* Leader
Chair supported by Neil Westreich
Alice Ivy-Pemberton Co-Leader
Vesselin Gellev Sub-Leader
Kate Oswin
Chair supported by Eric Tomsett
Lasma Taimina
Chair supported by Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik
V. G. Cave
Minn Majoe
Chair supported by Dr Alex & Maria Chan
Katalin Varnagy
Yang Zhang
Nilufar Alimaksumova
Amanda Smith
Ricky Gore
Jamie Hutchinson
Second Violins
Tania Mazzetti Principal
Chair supported by The Candide Trust
Emma Oldfield Co-Principal
Claudia Tarrant-Matthews
Coco Inman
Sophie Phillips
Chair supported by Friends of the Orchestra
Marie-Anne Mairesse
Ashley Stevens
Joseph Maher
Kate Birchall
Nancy Elan
Violas
Benjamin Roskams Guest Principal
David BaMaung
Benedetto Pollani
Martin Wray
Chair supported by David & Bettina Harden
Michelle Bruil
Shiry Rashkovsky
Jisu Song
Mark Gibbs
Cellos
Henry Shapard Principal
David Lale
Leo Melvin
Tom Roff
Helen Thomas
Pedro Silva
On stage today
Double Basses
Kevin Rundell* Principal
George Peniston
Tom Walley
Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton
Lowri Estell
Flutes
Juliette Bausor Principal
Chair supported by Malcolm & Alison Thwaites
Daniel Shao
Piccolo
Daniel Shao
Oboes
Ian Hardwick* Principal
Alice Munday
Chair supported by David & Yi Buckley
Clarinets
Benjamin Mellefont* Principal
Chair supported by Sir Nigel Boardman & Prof. Lynda Gratton
Thomas Watmough
Chair supported by Roger Greenwood
Bassoons
Jonathan Davies* Principal
Chair supported by Sir Simon Robey
Helen Storey*
Contrabassoon
Simon Estell* Principal
Horns
Annemarie Federle Principal
Chair supported by Victoria Robey CBE
Martin Hobbs
Mark Vines Co-Principal
Gareth Mollison
Duncan Fuller
Trumpets
Paul Beniston* Principal
Chair supported by the Williams family in memory of Grenville Williams
Tom Nielsen* Principal
Anne McAneney*
Trombones
Mark Templeton* Principal
Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton
David Whitehouse
Bass Trombone
Lyndon Meredith Principal
Tuba
Lee Tsarmaklis* Principal
Chair supported by William & Alex de Winton
Timpani
Simon Carrington* Principal
Chair supported by Victoria Robey CBE
Percussion
Andrew Barclay* Principal
Chair supported by Gill & Garf Collins
Karen Hutt Co-Principal
Chair supported by Joe Topley & Tracey Countryman
Francesca Lombardelli
Harp
Céline Saout Guest Principal
*Professor at a London conservatoire
The LPO also acknowledges the following chair supporters whose players are not present at this concert:
An anonymous donor
Ian Ferguson & Susan Tranter
Dr Barry Grimaldi
Bianca & Stuart Roden
Ryze Power
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Uniquely groundbreaking and exhilarating to watch and hear, the London Philharmonic Orchestra has been celebrated as one of the world’s great orchestras since Sir Thomas Beecham founded it in 1932. Our mission is to share wonder with the modern world through the power of orchestral music, which we accomplish through live performances, online, and an extensive education and community programme, cementing our position as a leading orchestra for the 21st century.
Our home is at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, where we’re at the beating heart of London’s cultural life. You’ll also find us at our resident venues in Brighton, Eastbourne and Saffron Walden, and on tour worldwide. In 2024 we celebrated 60 years as Resident Symphony Orchestra at Glyndebourne Festival Opera, combining the magic of opera with Glyndebourne’s glorious setting in the Sussex countryside.
Soundtrack to key moments
Everyone will have heard the Grammy-nominated London Philharmonic Orchestra, whether it’s playing the world’s National Anthems for every medal ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, our iconic recording with Pavarotti that made Nessun Dorma a global football anthem, or closing the flotilla at The Queen’s Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant. And you’ll almost certainly have heard us on the soundtracks for major films including The Lord of the Rings
Sharing the wonder worldwide
We’re one of the world’s most-streamed orchestras, with over 15 million plays of our content each month. In 2023 we were the most successful orchestra worldwide on YouTube, TikTok and Instagram, and in 2024 we featured in a TV documentary series on Sky Arts: ‘Backstage with the London Philharmonic Orchestra’, which was nominated for a 2025 BAFTA. During 2025/26 we’re once again working with Marquee TV to broadcast selected live concerts to enjoy at home.
Our conductors
Our Principal Conductors have included some of the greatest historic names like Sir Adrian Boult, Bernard Haitink, Klaus Tennstedt and Kurt Masur. In 2021 Edward Gardner became our 13th Principal Conductor, and Vladimir Jurowski became Conductor Emeritus. Karina Canellakis is our current Principal Guest Conductor, and Sir George Benjamin our Composer-inResidence.
Next generations
We’re committed to nurturing the next generation of musicians and music-lovers: we love seeing the joy of children and families experiencing their first musical moments, and we’re passionate about inspiring schools and teachers through dedicated concerts, workshops, resources and training. Reflecting our values of
collaboration and inclusivity, our OrchLab and Open Sound Ensemble projects offer music-making opportunities for adults and young people with disabilities and special educational needs.
Today’s young instrumentalists are the orchestra members of the future, and we have a number of opportunities to support their progression. Our LPO Junior Artists programme leads the way in creating pathways into the profession for young artists from under-represented communities, and our LPO Young Composers and Foyle Future Firsts schemes support the next generation of professional musicians, bridging the transition from education to professional careers. We also recently launched the LPO Conducting Fellowship, supporting the development of outstanding early-career conductors from backgrounds underrepresented in the profession.
2025/26 season
This season’s theme, Harmony with Nature, explores humanity’s bond with the natural world through works by Beethoven, Sibelius, Mendelssohn, Elgar and Dvořák; masterpieces of an era that saw nature as a mirror of human emotion. Closer to our own time, we’ll hear from composers as diverse as Duke Ellington, John Luther Adams and Anna Thorvaldsdottir, who have all found a source of creative energy in the processes of nature.
Highlights with Principal Conductor Edward Gardner include symphonies by Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Brahms and Rachmaninov; a pair of concerts spotlighting 20th-century Central European composers; an evening dedicated to Elgar; and a performance of Berg’s Wozzeck to end the season. We’ll also welcome back Karina Canellakis and Vladimir Jurowski, as well as guest conductors including Robin Ticciati, Kirill Karabits, Mark Elder and Kahchun Wong. Our lineup of soloists this season includes violinists Anne-Sophie Mutter, Alina Ibragimova, James Ehnes and Himari; cellist Nicolas Altstaedt; and pianists Yefim Bronfman, Alexandre Kantorow and Tomoko Mukaiyama. The season features nine world and UK premieres, including Tan Dun’s choral ‘Ode to Peace’ Nine, and A Tale of God’s Will (A Requiem for Katrina) by jazz icon Terence Blanchard.
This season also sees tours to South Korea and across Europe, as well as a wide range of performances and community events in our Brighton, Eastbourne and Saffron Walden residencies.
Pieter Schoeman Leader
Pieter Schoeman was appointed Leader of the London Philharmonic Orchestra in 2008, having previously been Co-Leader since 2002. He is also a Professor of Violin at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music & Dance.
Pieter has performed worldwide as a soloist and recitalist in such famous halls as the Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Moscow’s Rachmaninoff Hall, Capella Hall in St Petersburg, Staatsbibliothek in Berlin, Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles, and the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall. He has also appeared as Guest Leader with many prestigious orchestras across the world. As a chamber musician, he regularly appears at London’s prestigious Wigmore Hall. His chamber music partners have included Anne-Sophie Mutter, Veronika Eberle, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Boris Garlitsky, Jean-Guihen Queyras, Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Martin Helmchen and Julia Fischer.
Pieter has performed numerous times as a soloist with the LPO. Highlights have included an appearance as both conductor and soloist in Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, the Brahms Double Concerto with Kristina Blaumane, Florence Price’s Violin Concerto No. 2, and the Britten Double Concerto with Alexander Zemtsov, which was released on the LPO Label to great critical acclaim.
Pieter’s chair in the LPO is generously supported by Neil Westreich.
New video series: ‘Humans of the Orchestra’ Scan the QR code to watch our interview with Pieter
Principal Conductor, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Edward Gardner has been Principal Conductor of the London Philharmonic Orchestra since 2021. He is also Music Director of the Norwegian Opera & Ballet and Honorary Conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra, following his tenure as Chief Conductor from 2015–24.
Earlier this week, Edward conducted the LPO in two programmes at London’s Royal Festival Hall spotlighting 20th-century Central European composers; other highlights this season include symphonies by Tchaikovsky, Mahler, Brahms and Rachmaninov, and a semi-staged performance of Berg’s opera Wozzeck to end the season. In October 2025 he and the Orchestra embarked on a tour to South Korea, and December saw a tour of major cities in Germany.
Edward opened his second season as Music Director of the Norwegian Opera & Ballet with Rusalka and concert performances of Kurtág’s Fin de partie Later this spring he will conduct Don Carlos and Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet. June sees concert performances of Wagner’s The Ring Without Words, and next season the opera house will begin its journey towards a complete Ring Cycle in the 2028/29 season.
In demand as a guest conductor, this season Edward returns to orchestras in the USA including the Chicago Symphony, San Francisco Symphony, Dallas Symphony and National Symphony orchestras, and makes his debut with the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra. In Europe he conducts the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, WDR Symphony Orchestra Cologne, Deutsche Kammerphilharmonie Bremen, Danish National Symphony Orchestra and Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra. In Tokyo he makes his debut
with the Yomiuri Nippon Symphony Orchestra. An acclaimed opera conductor, in spring 2025 Edward was re-invited to London’s Royal Opera House to conduct the world premiere of Mark-Anthony Turnage’s Festen, having made his Covent Garden debut with Káťa Kabanová. In June 2025 he returned to the Bavarian State Opera for Rusalka, following Peter Grimes in 2022 and Verdi’s Otello in 2023. Music Director of English National Opera for eight years (2007–15), he has also built a strong relationship with New York’s Metropolitan Opera, and has conducted at La Scala, Glyndebourne Festival Opera, Chicago Lyric Opera and the Opéra National de Paris.
Edward Gardner has recorded extensively with the Bergen Philharmonic on the Chandos label, including most recently Salome, as well as a Grammy-nominated Janáček Glagolitic Mass. Other recent critically acclaimed releases include Der fliegende Holländer with Lise Davidsen, Gerald Finley and the Norwegian National Opera for Decca.
November 2025 saw the release on the LPO Label of Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius conducted by Edward Gardner, recorded live at the 2022 BBC Proms. In September 2025, the label released his recording of Tippett’s A Child of Our Time with the London Philharmonic Orchestra & Choir. This was Edward’s third Tippett release on the label, following The Midsummer Marriage – which won a 2023 Gramophone Award – and the Second Symphony and Piano Concerto with Steven Osborne in 2024. He has also released on the label works by Berlioz, Rachmaninov, Dvořák, Schumann and Britten. In 2024, he and the LPO featured in a Sky Arts series: ‘Backstage with the London Philharmonic Orchestra’, which was nominated for a BAFTA.
A passionate supporter of young talent, Edward founded the Hallé Youth Orchestra in 2002 and regularly conducts the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain. He has a close relationship with the Juilliard School of Music, and with the Royal Academy of Music.
Born in Gloucester in 1974, Edward was educated at the University of Cambridge and the Royal Academy of Music, and gained early recognition as Assistant Conductor of the Hallé and Music Director of Glyndebourne Touring Opera. His many accolades include the Royal Philharmonic Society Conductor of the Year Award (2008), an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Opera (2009) and an OBE for Services to Music in The Queen’s Birthday Honours (2012).
Edward Gardner’s position at the LPO is generously supported by Aud Jebsen.
German cellist Jan Vogler’s distinguished career has brought collaborations with renowned conductors and internationally acclaimed orchestras around the world, such as the London Philharmonic Orchestra, New York Philharmonic, Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin and Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra. His exceptional ability allows him to expand the cello’s soundworld and work in close dialogue with contemporary composers and artists. This includes regular world premieres, including works by Tigran Mansurian (with the WDR Symphony Orchestra and Semyon Bychkov), John Harbison (with Mira Wang and the Boston Symphony Orchestra), Udo Zimmermann (Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra), Wolfgang Rihm (Double Concerto with Mira Wang), Jörg Widman (Dunkle Saiten, dedicated to Jan Vogler himself), Nico Muhly, Sven Helbig and Zhou-Long (Three Continents, also composed for Jan) and Sean Shepherd (On a Clear Day, based on a cycle of poems by Ulla Hahn, for cello, choirs and orchestra).
Jan returns to the LPO on 26 May 2026, performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto at Germany’s Dresden Music Festival with Edward Gardner.
In addition to his classical concert activities as a soloist, Jan is constantly looking for new ways to combine music with other arts. In February 2024, he gave a highly acclaimed concert with poet Amanda Gorman, performing Gorman’s contemporary poems alongside Bach’s Cello Suites in the Isaac Stern Auditorium at Carnegie Hall. The duo also appeared on the popular ‘Late Night Show with Stephen Colbert’ in March 2024. Jan has also collaborated with actor Bill Murray in a joint musical-literary project ‘Bill Murray, Jan Vogler & Friends – New Worlds’. The innovative programme drew
international attention and brought together works by Twain, Hemingway, Whitman, Cooper, Bernstein, Bach, Piazzolla, Mancini, Gershwin and Foster for an exciting exploration of the relationship between literature and music.
Highlights of Jan Vogler’s career as a soloist include concerts with the New York Philharmonic – both in New York and in Dresden at the occasion of the reopening of the rebuilt Frauenkirche under the direction of Lorin Maazel in 2005. He has also performed with the Chicago, Boston, Pittsburgh and Montreal symphony orchestras, the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra dell’ Accademia di Santa Cecilia, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Munich Philharmonic, as well as with The Knights. He has collaborated with conductors such as Andris Nelsons, Fabio Luisi, Sir Antonio Pappano, Marin Alsop, Valery Gergiev, Thomas Hengelbrock, Manfred Honeck and Kent Nagano.
Under the artistic direction of Jan Vogler and Kent Nagano, Wagner’s Ring tetralogy is being reworked as part of the Dresden Music Festival’s ‘The Wagner Cycles’ project, based on the latest performance practice research and integrated into an extensive supporting programme. This includes the world premiere next month of Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll on historical instruments, with an ensemble of international soloists and chamber musicians.
Jan has been working successfully with the Sony Classical label since 2003, with around 20 CDs released so far. The most recent releases include the cello concertos of Edouard Lalo and Enrique Casals in 2023, ‘The Dvořák Album’ in 2022, and ‘Pop Songs’ also in 2022, in which Jan Vogler explores the history of popular song with Omer Meir Wellber and the BBC Philharmonic. 2020 saw the release of Jan’s recording of the cello concerto Three Continents written especially for him by Nico Muhly (USA), Sven Helbig (Germany) and Zhou Long (China) with the WDR Symphony Orchestra conducted by Cristian Măcelaru, as well as Shostakovich’s Cello Concerto No. 2 with the Mariinsky Orchestra under Valery Gergiev.
Jan has been a director of the renowned Dresden Music Festival since 2008 and Artistic Director of the Moritzburg Festival since 2001.
Jan Vogler plays the Stradivari ‘Ex Castelbarco/Fau’ 1707 cello, and is dressed by TÉCHIN New York.
This orchestral version of Sospiri was premiered by Sir Henry Wood, who conducted it in London’s Queen’s Hall on 15 August 1914, eleven days into the Great War. Then, this profound ‘slow movement’ was emotionally out of place for an audience anticipating victory ‘by Christmas’, and Alice Elgar reported to her husband, who was away conducting in Leeds, only of the ‘wonderful effect of “Land of Hope and Glory”, which was also performed. Sospiri (‘Sighs’ in Italian) is Elgar at his most heartfelt. It is an example of contained emotion and enters a Mahlerian world of detached reflection. For a country involved in a world war which would continue for another four years, Sospiri would become more and more relevant.
Dedicating the piece to the violinist W H Reed, Elgar composed Sospiri quickly for strings and harp (with optional parts for harmonium and organ) during December 1913 and January 1914, in response to a commission from the publisher Elkin. However, the seriousness and depth of emotion present in Sospiri were not what Elkin had anticipated, and the work was eventually published by Breitkopf und Härtel.
When Elgar’s Cello Concerto was first performed on 27 October 1919, it took its audience at the Queen’s Hall in London by surprise. To them, the music simply didn’t sound much like Elgar’s. It’s well documented that the performance that night was a little ropey. But if the orchestra felt its way hesitantly through Elgar’s score ‘as if it seemed not to have any idea of what the composer wanted’ (in the words of the critic Ernest Newman), then perhaps it reflected the nature of Elgar’s stylistic shift as it did so. Gone were the victorious swagger of the composer’s symphonies and the rhapsodic virtuosity of his Violin Concerto. In their place was a musical conversation founded on shyness and economy and a virtuosity that spoke of reactive anger and even bitterness.
Was it the shattering impact of the First World War, the nostalgia-tinged angst of old age, or simply a new aesthetic directness that lay behind the Cello Concerto’s style and shape? All three, probably. Besides, any cello concerto is bound by some basic science. The instrument’s range and tonal capacities render it inaudible against full-blown orchestral textures, and in this Concerto the solo cello sounds more-or-less continuously. That helps explain Elgar’s taut orchestration. More surprising is the conciseness with which the composer deals with his musical material. The Concerto encompasses a great deal in its emotional range, but it also appears to have shaken off
anything superfluous. Beautiful orchestral colours are achieved by simple means.
The Concerto opens with a brave, angry statement from the soloist with hints of oration, almost like an operatic recitative. The idea is referenced again at the first movement’s close, and again towards the end of the last movement. Elgar marks the passage noblimente (‘nobly’), but it often sounds more like an outburst. Deep-toned violas then introduce the rocking, worldweary melody that is later taken up by the soloist and then the entire orchestra.
There’s no better example of Elgar’s creative use of minimal material than the opening of his second movement. The cello’s main statement – another recitative-like idea that flutters up and down (a minor third) and then down and up (a single tone) – sounds five times; each time Elgar asks for different expressions from the soloist. That sort of quick-wit continues until a beautifully distilled Adagio, a soliloquy with a broad, elegiac theme.
Perhaps we glimpse the confident swagger of the prewar Elgar in the malleable, whistle-able main theme of the Concerto’s final movement. But the music is troubled as well as joyous, the cello frequently left in isolation by an orchestra that offers it redemption but snarls with anger too. If there is any of the ‘massive hope for
Programme notes
the future’ of Elgar’s First Symphony, or even a sweet nostalgia in the soaring theme in which the orchestra eventually supports the cello, it’s quashed: just after
the reprise of the Concerto’s opening statement, Elgar slams the door of his Concerto shut.
An announcement will be made five minutes before the end of the interval.
Edward Elgar 1857–1934
Variations on an Original Theme (‘Enigma’), Op. 36 1899
‘Through and over the whole set a larger theme “goes” but is not played.’ Thus Elgar teased the world with his Enigma Variations, the work which took his reputation –almost overnight – from provincial writer of salon music to international composer. Its premiere, given in London in 1899, was a huge success and performances further afield soon followed: by 1904 it had even reached Russia, where Rimsky-Korsakov rated the Variations ‘the best since Brahms’.
So what is the ‘larger theme’? Is it musical (‘Auld Lang Syne’ and ‘God Save the Queen’ are among the numerous suggestions), or is it, as some have proposed, personal or philosophical? These questions are still exercising musicological minds over a century later, but actually they are of limited significance when set beside what we do know about the work: that in it Elgar first found his true artistic voice, and at the same time created what was the most important work by a native English composer since Purcell. Beautifully designed, exquisitely wrought and brimming with charm and elegance, it is a piece whose purely musical eloquence renders the enigma’s solution superfluous.
Whatever the ‘enigma’ may be, there is one subject that the Variations undoubtedly embrace: friendship. Elgar dedicated the work ‘to my friends pictured within’, and although he did not publicly reveal their identities at the time, he later wrote an article explaining these smaller enigmas. Each friend was allotted one variation, as follows:
1 C.A.E: His wife Alice.
2 HDS-P: Hew David Steuart-Powell, an amateur pianist.
3 RBT: Richard Baxter Townshend, and his brokenvoiced participation in amateur theatricals.
4 WMB: William Meath Baker, a country squire who was in the habit of giving house-guests brisk instructions for the day.
5 RPA: Richard, son of the poet Matthew Arnold, who mixed serious conversation with witty remarks.
6 Ysobel: Isabel Flitton, a tall and statuesque amateur viola player.
7 Troyte: Arthur Troyte Griffith, a boisterous character and somewhat clumsy pianist.
8 WN: The graceful ladies of the Norbury family – in particular Winifred.
9 Nimrod: A.J. Jaeger, Elgar’s publisher and loyal supporter; his famous variation, the emotional core of the work, recalls a conversation about Beethoven’s slow movements.
10 Dorabella: Dora Penny, a lively and frequent guest at the Elgars’ house.
11 GRS: G.R. Sinclair, the organist of Hereford Cathedral – or rather his dog Dan, who is depicted
London Philharmonic Orchestra • 8 February 2026 • Edward Gardner conducts Elgar
falling into the River Wye and climbing out again with a bark.
12 BGN: Basil Nevinson, an amateur cellist.
13 *** Romanza: Lady Mary Lygon, who left England for Australia by sea in 1899; the timpani rumble is supposed to represent the low hum of the ship’s engines. Elgar’s use of asterisks in the score, as well as the subtitle, have prompted commentators to speculate that he was alluding to some other more meaningful relationship.
14 EDU: Elgar himself.
While these descriptions are fun, and do indeed form a wonderful testament to friendly affection and playful ‘japes’ (as Elgar would have called them), Enigma can be enjoyed perfectly well without any knowledge of them, such is its strength. But as the late Michael Kennedy pointed out in his wonderful Portrait of Elgar, there is
an immensely touching personal note to these skilful variations and the place they hold at a crossroads in the composer’s life, for they ‘sum up the world Elgar was leaving for the world into which they took him’.
We hope you enjoy today’s concert. Could you spare a few moments afterwards to complete a short survey about your experience? Your feedback is invaluable to us and will help to shape our future plans. Just scan the QR code to begin the survey. Thank you!
Elgar on the LPO Label
Elgar Introduction and Allegro
Britten Our Hunting Fathers
Elgar Enigma Variations
Bernard Haitink conductor | Heather Harper soprano
London Philharmonic Orchestra LPO-0002
Elgar The Dream of Gerontius
Edward Gardner conductor
Allan Clayton | Jamie Barton | James Platt
London Philharmonic Choir | Hallé Choir
London Philharmonic Orchestra LPO-0138 NEW Released Nov 2025
Recorded live at the 2022 BBC Proms
All LPO releases are available on CD from the LPO online store, and to download or stream via all major platforms.
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The Firebird
Sunday 15 March 2026, 3.00pm
Mendelssohn Hebrides Overture
Mozart Piano Concerto No. 23 in A major, K488
Debussy Prélude à l’après-midi d’un faune
Stravinsky Firebird Suite (1919 version)
Dionysis Grammenos conductor
Lukas Sternath piano
Sibelius’s First
Sunday 19 April 2026, 3.00pm
Price Andante moderato for string orchestra
Barber Knoxville: Summer of 1915 Gershwin Selections from Porgy and Bess
Sibelius Symphony No. 1
Next Congress Theatre concerts
Nefeli Chadouli conductor† Nadine Benjamin soprano
†LPO Fellow Conductor 2025/26. The LPO Conducting Fellowship receives generous support from Gini and Richard Gabbertas.
Our 2026/27 season of concerts at the Congress Theatre will be announced on Tuesday 21 April 2026.
To make sure you’re first to receive all the details, sign up to our e-news list at lpo.org.uk/signup or scan the QR code.
Lukas Sternath
Nefeli Chadouli
Nadine Benjamin
Thank you
As a registered charity, we are extremely grateful to all our supporters who have given generously to the LPO over the past year to help maintain the breadth and depth of the LPO’s activities, as well as supporting the Orchestra both on and off the concert platform.
Artistic Director’s Circle
The American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra
William & Alex de Winton
Catherine Høgel & Ben Mardle
Aud Jebsen
In memory of Paul Morgan
In memory of Donald Pelmear
In memory of Rita Reay
Sir Simon & Lady Robey CBE
In memory of Peter J Watson
Orchestra Circle
Richard Buxton
In memory of Nicola Goodman
Mr & Mrs Philip Kan
Neil Westreich
Principal Associates
An anonymous donor
Steven M. Berzin
Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G Cave
George Ramishvilli
In memory of Kenneth Shaw
The Tsukanov Family
Associates
Anonymous donors
Sir Nigel Boardman & Prof. Lynda Gratton
Garf & Gill Collins
Michelle Crowe Hernandez & Christian Hernandez
Ian Ferguson & Susan Tranter
Stuart & Bianca Roden
Malcolm & Alison Thwaites
Joe Topley & Tracey Countryman
The Williams Family in memory of Grenville Williams
Gold Patrons
An anonymous donor
David & Yi Buckley
Dr Alex & Maria Chan
In memory of Allner Mavis Channing
In memory of Peter Coe
John & Sam Dawson
Fiona Espenhahn
Mr Roger Greenwood
Sally Groves MBE
David & Bettina Harden
Eugene & Allison Hayes
Malcolm Herring
Mrs Asli Hodson
John & Angela Kessler
Mrs Elizabeth Meshkvicheva
Julian & Gill Simmonds
Eric Tomsett
The Viney Family
Guy & Utti Whittaker
Silver Patrons
An anonymous donor
David Burke & Valerie Graham
Mr Luke Gardiner
The Jeniffer and Jonathan Harris
Charitable Trust
Mr & Mrs Andrew Neill
Clandia Wu & Hiu Fung Ng
Simon & Lucy Owen-Johnstone
Andrew & Cindy Peck
Mr Roger Phillimore
Tom & Phillis Sharpe
Laurence Watt
Joanna Williams
Bronze Patrons
Anonymous donors
Miram Al Rasheed
Michael Allen
Gabriela Andino-Benson
Irina Bednaya
Nicholas Berwin
Mrs Amna Boheim
Dame Colette Bowe
Lorna & Christopher Bown
Mr Bernard Bradbury
Dr Anthony Buckland
Desmond & Ruth Cecil
Mr John H Cook
Cameron & Kathryn Doley
Elena & Sergey Dubinets
Harron Ellenson & Charles Miller
Smith
Cristina & Malcolm Fallen
Christopher Fraser OBE
Charles Fulton
Gini & Richard Gabbertas
Jenny & Duncan Goldie-Scot
Mr Daniel Goldstein
David & Jane Gosman
Mr Gavin Graham
Mrs Dorothy Hambleton
Iain & Alicia Hasnip
J Douglas Home
Mr & Mrs Ralph Kanza
Mrs Irina Kiryukhina
Rose & Dudley Leigh
Wg. Cdr. M T Liddiard OBE JP RAF
Drs Frank & Gek Lim
Svetlana London
Graham Long
Richard & Judy Luddington
Mr & Mrs Makharinsky
James Maxey-Branch
Andrew T Mills
John Nickson & Simon Rew
Peter & Lucy Noble
Mikhail Noskov & Vasilina Bindley
Mr Stephen Olton
Nigel Phipps & Amanda McDowall
Mr Michael Posen
Marie Power
Neil & Karen Reynolds
Sir Bernard Rix
Baroness Shackleton
Tim Slorick
John & Madeleine Tucker
In memory of Doris Tylee
Mr & Mrs John & Susi Underwood
Sophie Walker
Jenny Watson CBE
Elena Y. Zeng
Principal Supporters
Anonymous donors
Dr M. Arevuo
Mrs Carol Ann Bailey
Mr John D Barnard
Roger & Clare Barron
Mr Geoffrey Bateman
Mrs A Beare
Adam J. Brunk & Madeleine
Haddon
Simon Burke & Rupert King
David & Liz Conway
Mr Alistair Corbett
David Devons
Deborah Dolce
Sir Timothy Fancourt
Jonathan Franklin
Professor Erol & Mrs Deniz Gelenbe
Steve & Cristina Goldring
Prof Emeritus John Gruzelier
Sebastian Arun Hansjee
Nick Hely-Hutchinson
Michael & Christine Henry
Mrs Farrah Jamal
Bruce & Joanna Jenkyn-Jones
Per Jonsson
Julian & Annette Armstrong
Mr Ian Kapur
Gee Lee
Dr Peter Mace
Mr Nikita Mishin
Allison Mollerberg
Simon Moore
Dr Simon Moore
Mrs Terry Neale
Mr Matthew Pearson
Mr James Pickford
Filippo Poli
Sukand Ramachandran
Mr Martin Randall
Mr Robert Ross
Mr Andrea Santacroce & Olivia Veillet-Lavallée
Aniruddha Sharma
Priscylla Shaw
Michael Smith
Erika Song
Mr & Mrs G Stein
Andrew & Rosemary Tusa
Wolf-Christian Ulrich
Ben Valentin KC
Christine Warsaw
Mr Rodney Whittaker
Christopher Williams Supporters
Anonymous donors
Ralph & Elizabeth Aldwinckle
Alison Clarke & Leo Pilkington
Mr Philip Bathard-Smith
Mrs Martha Brooke
Mr Julien Chilcott-Monk
Miss Tessa Cowie
St Peter’s Composers, Bexhill-on-Sea
Dorothy Hobden
The Jackman Family
Jan Leigh & Jan Rynkiewicz
Mr Mack Lindsey
Mr David MacFarlane
Simon & Fiona Mortimore
Dana Mosevics
Dame Jane Newell DBE
Michael Noyce
Mr & Mrs Graham & Jean Pugh
Emilie Sydney-Smith
Ms Caroline Tate
Craig Terry
Tony & Hilary Vines
Dr Ann Turrall
Dr June Wakefield
Mr John Weekes
Mr C D Yates
Hon. Benefactor
Elliott Bernerd
Hon. Life Members
Alfonso Aijón
Dame Carol Colburn Grigor DBE
Robert Hill
Keith Millar
Victoria Robey CBE
Mrs Jackie Rosenfeld OBE
Cornelia Schmid
Timothy Walker CBE AM
Laurence Watt
Thomas Beecham
Group
Members
An anonymous donor
Sir Nigel Boardman & Prof. Lynda Gratton
David & Yi Buckley
Dr Alex & Maria Chan
Garf & Gill Collins
William & Alex de Winton
Ian Ferguson & Susan Tranter
The Friends of the LPO
Irina Gofman & Mr Rodrik V. G.
Cave
Mr Roger Greenwood
Barry Grimaldi
David & Bettina Harden
Mr & Mrs Philip Kan
John & Angela Kessler
Sir Simon Robey
Victoria Robey OBE
Stuart & Bianca Roden
Julian & Gill Simmonds
Malcolm & Alison Thwaites
Eric Tomsett
Neil Westreich
Guy & Utti Whittaker
LPO Corporate Members
Bloomberg Carter-Ruck Solicitors
French Chamber of Commerce
German-British Chamber of Industry & Commerce
Lazard
Natixis Corporate & Investment Banking
Ryze Power
Virgin Money
Walpole
Preferred Partners
Google
Lay & Wheeler
Lindt & Sprüngli
Mayer Brown
Steinway & Sons
Welbeck
Trusts and Foundations
ABO Trust
Art Mentor Foundation Lucerne
Candide Trust
Cockayne – Grants for the Arts
David Solomons Charitable Trust
Dunard Fund
Foyle Foundation
Garfield Weston Foundation
The Baily Thomas Charitable Fund
The Boshier-Hinton Foundation
The Golsoncott Foundation
Jerwood Foundation
John Thaw Foundation
John Horniman’s Children’s Trust
The Ian Askew Charitable Trust
Idlewild Trust
Institute Adam Mickiewicz
Thank you
Kirby Laing Foundation
The Lennox Hannay Charitable Trust
Lord and Lady Lurgan Trust
Lucille Graham Trust
The Marchus Trust
Margaret Killbery Foundation
Maria Bjӧrnson Memorial Fund
The 29th May 1961 Charitable Trust
PRS Foundation
The Radcliffe Trust
Rivers Foundation
Rothschild Foundation
Scops Arts Trust
Sir William Boreman’s Foundation
The John S Cohen Foundation
TIOC Foundation
UK Friends of the Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy Foundation
Vaughan Williams Foundation
The Viney Family
The Barbara Whatmore Charitable Trust
and others who wish to remain anonymous.
Board of the American Friends of the LPO
We are grateful to the Board of the American Friends of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, who assist with fundraising for our activities in the United States of America:
Hannah Young Chair
Lora Aroyo
Jon Carter
Alexandra Jupin
Natalie Pray MBE
Dr Irene Rosner David
Marc Wassermann
Catherine Høgel
Hon. Director
LPO International Board of Governors
Natasha Tsukanova Chair
Steven M. Berzin
Shashank Bhagat
Irina Gofman
Olivia Ma
George Ramishvili
Florian Wunderlich
Trusts and Foundations
Principal Partners
Principal Supporters
Major Supporters
Corporate Sponsors
Principal Partner
OrchLab Project Partner
Principal Supporter
Major Supporters
London Philharmonic Orchestra Administration
Board of Directors
Dr Catherine C. Høgel Chair
Nigel Boardman Vice-Chair
Mark Vines* President
Kate Birchall* Vice-President
Emily Benn
David Buckley
David Burke
Simon Burke
Simon Carrington*
Michelle Crowe Hernandez
Deborah Dolce
Simon Estell*
Jesús Herrera
Tanya Joseph
Minn Majoe*
Tania Mazzetti*
Jamie Njoku-Goodwin OBE
Neil Westreich
David Whitehouse*
*Player-Director
Advisory Council
Roger Barron Chairman
Christopher Aldren
Kate Birchall
Amna Boheim
Richard Brass
Helen Brocklebank
YolanDa Brown OBE
David Burke
Simon Callow CBE
Desmond Cecil CMG
Jane Coulson
Andrew Davenport
Guillaume Descottes
Cameron Doley
Lena Fankhauser
Christopher Fraser OBE
Jenny Goldie-Scot
Jonathan Harris CBE FRICS
Nick Hely-Hutchinson DL
Jesús Herrera
Dr Catherine C. Høgel
Martin Höhmann
Jamie Korner OBE
Andrew Neill
Nadya Powell
Sir Bernard Rix
Victoria Robey CBE
Baroness Shackleton
Thomas Sharpe KC
Julian Simmonds
Daisuke Tsuchiya
Mark Vines
Chris Viney
Laurence Watt
Elizabeth Winter
New Generation Board
Ellie Ajao
Peter De Souza
Vivek Haria
Rianna Henriques
Zerlina Vulliamy
General Administration
Jesús Herrera
Artistic Director
David Burke
Chief Executive
Alicia Downie
PA to the Executive & Office Manager
Concert Management
Roanna Gibson
Concerts & Planning Director
Graham Wood
Concerts & Recordings Manager
Aimee Walton
Tours Manager
Madeleine Ridout
Glyndebourne & Projects Manager
Alison Jones
Concerts & Artists Co-ordinator
Alice Drury
Tours & Projects Assistant
Nicola Stevenson
Concerts & Recordings Assistant
Matthew Freeman Recordings Consultant
Andrew Chenery
Orchestra Personnel Manager
Helen Phipps
Orchestra & Auditions Manager
Sarah Thomas
Martin Sargeson
Librarians
Laura Kitson
Stage & Operations Manager
Stephen O’Flaherty
Deputy Operations Manager
Gabrielle Slack-Smith
Assistant Stage Manager
Finance
Frances Slack
Finance Director
Dayse Guilherme Finance Manager
Jean-Paul Ramotar
IT Manager & Finance Officer
Education & Community
Talia Lash
Education & Community Director
Eleanor Jones
Lowri Thomas
Education & Community
Project Managers
Ellie Leon
Education & Community Co-ordinator
Claudia Clarkson
Regional Partnerships Manager
Development
Laura Willis
Development Director
Rosie Morden
Senior Development Manager
Eleanor Conroy
Development Events Manager
Owen Mortimer
Corporate Relations Manager
Anna Quillin
Trusts & Foundations Manager
Holly Eagles
Development Co-ordinator
Faye Jones
Development Assistant
Nick Jackman
Campaigns & Projects Director
Kirstin Peltonen
Development Associate
Marketing & Communications
Kath Trout
Marketing & Communications Director
Sophie Lonergan
Senior Marketing Manager
Georgie Blyth
Press & PR Manager (maternity leave)
Said Abubakar, WildKat PR 07983 489 888
Press & PR (maternity cover)
Josh Clark Data, Insights & CRM Manager
Greg Felton
Digital Creative
Alicia Hartley
Digital & Marketing Manager
Maria Ribalaygua
Sales & Ticketing Manager
Rachel Williams
Publications Manager
Isobel Jones
Marketing Co-ordinator
Cara Liddiard
Marketing Assistant
Archives
Philip Stuart
Discographer
Gillian Pole
Recordings Archive
Professional Services
Charles Russell Speechlys Solicitors
Crowe Clark Whitehill LLP Auditors
Dr Barry Grimaldi
Honorary Doctor
Mr Chris Aldren
Honorary ENT Surgeon
Mr Simon Owen-Johnstone
Hon. Orthopaedic Surgeon
London Philharmonic Orchestra
89 Albert Embankment
London SE1 7TP
Tel: 020 7840 4200
Box Office: 020 7840 4242
Email: admin@lpo.org.uk lpo.org.uk
2025/26 season design
JMG Studio
Printer John Good Ltd
Experience the magic of live orchestral music from some of the best seats in the house for less. Simply sign up with your email address, and discounts for our London concerts will be delivered straight to your inbox every month. Plus, get access to drinks offers and exclusive Under 30s events, as well as a free LPO tote bag at your first concert. lpo.org.uk/under-30s ELGAR:
EDWARD GARDNER conductor
LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA & CHOIR
HALLÉ CHOIR
ALLAN CLAYTON | JAMIE BARTON | JAMES PLATT
MAHLER: SYMPHONY NO. 9
Vladimir Jurowski conductor LPO-0139 Released 23 January 2026
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