Philharmonia Orchestra

A world-class symphony orchestra for the 21st century. Explore the 2024/25 season:

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

The wait is over! Our 80th birthday season is now on sale. 🎉🎶

We’ve invited some fantastic artists to join us at the @southbankcentre to help us make our birthday season the best one yet. Pianist Víkingur Ólafsson (@VikingurMusic ), our Featured Artist, plays Beethoven, Adams and Kurtág. Music by our Featured Composer Gabriela Ortiz (@GOrtizcomposer) brings a flavour of Latin America to the programme. @marinalsop conducts Laura Karpman’s ‘tennis opera’ Balls. Our Principal Conductor Santtu conducts music from Rachmaninov to Bernstein.

Look out for pianists Evgeny Kissin, Fazıl Say and @Bruceliupiano, violinists Hilary Hahn (@violincase), @lisabatiashvili and Nicola Benedetti, and soprano @MasabaneCecilia Rangwanasha.

We're giving away 80 free tickets for every concert in the season to first-time bookers - if you've never booked for a Philharmonia concert before, that means you.

Book your tickets today:
https://t.co/GP3OBkwvBL

#Philharmonia80 #Orchestra #SouthbankCentre

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

…and that’s a wrap on our 80th birthday season! 🎉🥳

Here's a few of our favourite moments from last night’s season-closing concert, featuring our Artists in Residence Thick & Tight, and Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali and pianist Benjamin Grosvenor in a spectacular Strauss extravaganza – recreating our historic 1947 concert, conducted by Richard Strauss himself.

A huge thank you to everyone who joined us last night, and to all our audiences throughout the season. We can’t wait to welcome you back in September as we open our Autumn 2026 season, with Santtu conducting Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 and Sol Gabetta performing Elgar’s Cello Concerto.

📸: Marc Gascoigne

🎟️ Book now:
https://t.co/ho9WIKdSXK

📖 Read more about our 80th birthday season:
https://t.co/ZPQU6WKRwN

#Philharmonia80 #Orchestra #LiveMusic #ClassicalMusic

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Our new album is OUT NOW! 🎧🙌

Introducing Santtu Conducts Shostakovich: Symphony No. 1 & Moscow, Cheryomushki – the seventh release on Philharmonia Records.

Our Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali brings his trademark energy, precision and flair to two contrasting Shostakovich masterpieces: the sparkling wit of Moscow, Cheryomushki and the youthful brilliance of Symphony No. 1.

Recorded live at the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall.

🎵 Listen, stream or order your copy today:
https://t.co/B7WReyIq1K

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Celebrating our 80th birthday season! 🎉🎶

As our anniversary season draws to a close, we're reflecting on an extraordinary year of music, creativity and connection. From symphonic favourites and major new commissions to immersive projects and community activity, this season showed what we're all about: sharing great music as widely and imaginatively as possible.

A huge thank you to the incredible artists, collaborators and audiences around the world for joining us for a year of landmark performances, bold collaborations and unforgettable music-making, celebrating our theme of Music and Identity.

...here's to the next 80 years!

#Philharmonia80 #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra #MusicAndIdentity

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Ravel pulling at our heart strings... 🩰🥀🎻

Enjoy this rehearsal extract from the romantic final movement of the iconic 'Daphnis and Chloe' by Maurice Ravel, led by our Conductor Laureate Esa-Pekka Salonen ahead of our performance earlier this year at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

Did you know, Ravel grew so frustrated during the chaotic rehearsals that he asked his colleague Louis Aubert to finish the score for him? Aubert thankfully declined. 🙏

What's your favourite romantic Ravel moment? 👀

#Ravel #Orchestra #ClassicalMusic #Ballet #Philharmonia80

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Benjamin Grosvenor performs one of Strauss’s earliest masterpieces! 💃🎹

Enjoy this rehearsal extract from the acclaimed British pianist, as he prepares to perform Richard Strauss’s Burleske - a virtuosic work in one movement, composed when Strauss was just 21 years old.

Tonight, we launch our Strauss extravaganza in Leicester, led by Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali, as we celebrate the final concert performances of our 80th birthday season. ✨

📍 Tue 2 June | De Montfort Hall, Leicester
📍 Wed 3 June | The Anvil, Basingstoke
📍 Thu 4 June | Royal Festival Hall, London
🎟️ Book your tickets today:
🔗 https://t.co/qkF6P0b18N
#BenjaminGrosvenor #RichardStrauss #ClassicalMusic #Philharmonia #LiveMusic

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

@thicktightdance's final performance as Artists in Residence for our 80th birthday season! 🎭🎶

Join us as one of the industry’s most innovative and exciting dance theatre companies explore the intersection between music, identity and movement.

Alongside Philharmonia musicians, Thick & Tight will present the premiere of new works blending movement and music by Ravel, Kurtág and more, with soprano Ruby Hughes and dancers Annie Edwards and Harry Alexander.

📍 Southbank Centre's Clore Ballroom, Level 2 | Thu 4 June, 6pm
🎟️ Free, limited tickets available - book now
🔗 https://t.co/xFg9oOdgmT

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

A masterpiece… that caused a riot. 👀🎶

On this day in 1913, Igor Stravinsky’s then-controversial The Rite of Spring premiered in Paris, prompting boos, jeers, and uproar from the audience. Today, it’s celebrated as one of the most groundbreaking and beloved works in orchestral history.

Fun fact: the rhythm and harmonies were so shocking at the time that the dancers reportedly couldn’t hear the orchestra over the noise from the crowd!

Enjoy this filmed performance extract, led by Conductor Laureate @esapekkasalonen.

#RiteOfSpring #Stravinsky #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra #OnThisDay

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde with Thomas Søndergård 🎶✨

As we near the end of our 80th birthday season, we’re looking back at some unforgettable moments from across the year. Enjoy this extract of Danish conductor Thomas Søndergård leading the Prelude and Liebestod from Wagner’s groundbreaking 1865 opera Tristan and Isolde. 🔥🎻

#Philharmonia #TristanUndIsolde #Wagner #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

We’re thrilled to welcome back @grosvenorpiano for the final concerts of our 80th birthday season! 🎉🎶

Ahead of the acclaimed pianist’s return, enjoy a look back at his last appearance with us performing Chopin's Piano Concertos No. 1 and 2. Here's an extract from the virtuosic final movement of the First Piano Concerto, recorded in 2023. 🎹

📍 Join us next week in Leicester, Basingstoke and London as Grosvenor performs Richard Strauss's Burleske, conducted by Santtu-Matias Rouvali.

🎟️ Book now:
https://t.co/qkF6P0b18N

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Santtu-Matias Rouvali returns for the grand finale of our 80th season! 😍🎶

We’re counting down to the final concerts of this landmark year with our Principal Conductor. Here’s a glimpse of Tchaikovsky’s dramatic Francesca da Rimini, performed at the Royal Festival Hall in 2022 - inspired by Dante’s Inferno, a chilling story of passion, betrayal, murder and damnation. 🔥

Don’t miss the final concerts of our season next week in Leicester, Basingstoke and London, as Santtu conducts a Strauss extravaganza alongside pianist Benjamin Grosvenor. ✨

🎟️ Book now: https://t.co/qkF6P0b18N

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

@LoveSsega takes on Virtual Orchestra: William Tell! 😍🥁

Who better to kick things off on timpani than our former Artist in Residence, and presenter of our newest interactive VR experience?

Next week, we launch our most ambitious Virtual Orchestra experience yet. Step inside the orchestra, pick up a virtual instrument, get one-to-one tips from Philharmonia players, and perform the iconic William Tell Overture live in concert. 🙌

Try Virtual Orchestra for free at the @southbankcentre's Clore Ballroom:
📍 Wed 27 May, 11am–3pm
📍 Thu 28 May, 11am–5pm
🎟️ No ticket required

Find out more:
https://t.co/voNllh8CNH

#Orchestra #ClassicalMusic #VirtualReality #VirtualOrchestra #VR

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Schumann’s Cello Concerto with Kian Soltani 😍🎻

Earlier this month, the acclaimed Austrian cellist joined us for one of the great masterpieces of the cello repertoire - a work that Schumann himself never actually heard performed live with a full orchestra. 👀

Enjoy this glimpse from our rehearsals at Royal Festival Hall with conductor Leonidas Kavakos ✨

#Schumann #Cello #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra #KianSoltani

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Debussy’s La Mer with @CristiMacelaru! 🌊🎶

A glimpse into rehearsals last month as we explored one of the great orchestral masterpieces with the acclaimed Romanian conductor, ahead of our performance at the @southbankcentre's Royal Festival Hall.

Enjoy the triumphant climax of the first movement, which mimics the sun rising over the horizon as midday approaches.

#Debussy #LaMer #Orchestra #ClassicalMusic #SouthbankCentre

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis 😍🎶

This summer, we’re returning to our residency at the @ThreeChoirs Festival at Gloucester Cathedral for six fantastic concerts. And did you know that this beloved work by Vaughan Williams was premiered there at the festival in 1910?

Enjoy this extract from our performance in London, conducted by John Wilson.

🎟️ Join us at the Three Choirs Festival in 2026 for Mozart’s Requiem, Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius and more:
https://t.co/OsGUD53C4x

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Still caught up in the @Eurovision fever? 🎸🔥

Few winners have made an impact quite like Lordi, who became Eurovision legends with their unforgettable victory for Finland with 'Hard Rock Hallelujah'. So, who better to join our Forged In Sound: Heavy Metal Orchestrated than Mr Lordi himself?

Enjoy this clip from our performance at last month’s Multitudes Festival at the @southbankcentre. 🤘🎻

#Lordi #Eurovision #HeavyMetal #Orchestra #RockMusic

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

This Monday, we celebrate the extraordinary legacy of Gustav Mahler 🎻🎶

Mahler died on this day in 1911 at just 50 years old, but his impact on classical composition and symphonic music continues to inspire generations around the world. Enjoy the powerful finale of his 'Resurrection' Symphony, captured earlier this year in rehearsals with conductor Kent Nagano and the Philharmonia Chorus 🎻✨

#Mahler #SymphonyNo2 #ResurrectionSymphony #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

@marinalsop & the Marcus Roberts Trio at the BBC Proms - on sale now! 👀🎶

This year, we're returning to the @RoyalAlbertHall for an all-American celebration marking the USA’s 250th anniversary. From Bernstein’s West Side Story to Copland’s Appalachian Spring, plus Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue with the Marcus Roberts Trio, we'll be celebrating the nation’s musical heritage with our Principal Guest Conductor, Marin Alsop. 🇺🇸

📆 Mon 24 Aug, 7.30pm
📺 Our performance will be broadcast on BBC TV and @BBCiPlayer
🎧 Listen live on @BBCRadio3
🎟️ Book your tickets today - find out more:
https://t.co/rzs801hloI

#BBCProms #RoyalAlbertHall #MarinAlsop #MarcusRobertsTrio

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

@LeonidasKavako5 conducts Brahms’s Symphony No. 1! 😍🎶

As we gear up for three more performances of Brahms’s monumental First Symphony this week, here’s a glimpse from rehearsals at the Royal Festival Hall last week with the acclaimed Greek violinist and conductor, Leonidas Kavakos.

🎟️ Want to hear it live? Adam Hickox conducts Brahms this weekend in Newbury and Canterbury, and next week in Bedford - book your tickets now:
🔗: https://t.co/eNhc2OSRse

#Brahms #LeonidasKavakos #ClassicalMusic #Orchestra #LiveMusic

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Today, we celebrate our very first Principal Conductor, Otto Klemperer - born on this day in 1885! 🎉🎶

Enjoy this extract from our 1970 concert performance at the Royal Festival Hall, when Klemperer returned to conduct a cycle of Beethoven symphonies, including the monumental Ninth.

#OttoKlemperer #Beethoven #Philharmonia #Orchestra #ClassicalMusic

[Philharmonia Orchestra @philharmonia]

Santtu conducts Strauss’s Alpine Symphony 🏔️🎶

In just a few weeks, we reach the apex of our 80th birthday season as our Principal Conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali leads a Strauss extravaganza; a recreation of a 1947 concert originally conducted by Richard Strauss himself.

To set the scene, enjoy this extract from the summit of Strauss’s epic Alpine Symphony, conducted by Santtu at the Royal Festival Hall in London.

Join us for the finale of our 80th birthday season:
📍 De Montfort Hall, Leicester | Tue 2 June, 7pm
📍 The Anvil, Basingstoke | Wed 3 June, 7.30pm
📍 Royal Festival Hall, London | Thu 4 June, 7.30pm

🎟️ Book now:
https://t.co/TMItshH7P9