About Us
Our Vision
“Our mission at LCO is to change the way that you experience classical concerts. Working with inspirational international performers, we aim to break down the barriers between orchestra and audience so that we can all share the thrill of live music. Our programming combines the well-loved with the less familiar, so there’s always something new to discover, whether this is your first concert or your 1,000th.”
Our Heritage
The London Chamber Orchestra (LCO), one of the world’s finest ensembles, combines the charismatic leadership of Principal Conductor Christopher Warren-Green with the skills of London’s most exceptional musicians.
Having been founded in 1921, it is the UK’s oldest professional chamber orchestra. In that time it has established an enviable reputation as an innovative and adventurous ensemble. It has premiered works by a veritable Who’s Who of 20th-century composers, including Stravinsky, Bloch, Vaughan Williams, Respighi, Delius, de Falla, Finzi, Prokofiev, Hindemith, Poulenc and Villa Lobos. And that continues today, with premieres by figures such as Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, James MacMillan and Graham Fitkin, as well as a host of young composers. In 2012, LCO premiered Track to Track, commissioned by The LCO Trust as part of the 2012 Cultural Olympiad and PRSF New Music 20×12.
“Everyone on stage seems to be having a whale of a time and this feeds into a performance in which the music sounds new-minted.” The Guardian
Alongside this is an equal dedication to established orchestral repertoire and LCO performs frequently with internationally renowned soloists and conductors, who have recently included Alison Balsom, Lang Lang, Pekka Kuusisto, Lawrence Zazzo, Han-Na Chang, Paul Lewis, Augustin Dumay, Sol Gabetta, Natalie Clein and Julian Lloyd Webber.
The orchestra’s London season is based at the ideally intimate space of Cadogan Hall. Aside from its enviable national credentials, LCO is also recognised globally, having appeared in concert halls around the world – from La Scala, Milan, to City Hall, Hong Kong, and throughout the Far East, the USA and Europe. As well as recordings for EMI, Virgin and Sony, it has also recorded a number of CDs as part of the ‘LCO Live’ series on Signum Records.
Community and education projects form a vibrant strand of LCO’s activities; highlights include a recent partnership with London’s National Gallery and the ongoing Music Junction project.
LCO enjoys the Patronage of Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall, and in 2011 it performed at the wedding service of TRH The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, to an estimated global audience of two billion people. Remarkably, it has received no public subsidy during its entire history, instead enjoying significant support from private donors, trusts and foundations, corporate sponsors and enthusiastic audiences: a tribute to its impeccable performance credentials.
Our People
Patron Her Royal Highness The Duchess of Cornwall
Life President Rev John Wates OBE HonFRAM
President of the Patron’s Circle The Countess of Chichester
Chairman, London Chamber Orchestra Trust Mark Redman
Christopher Warren-Green
Music Director & Principal Conductor
As Music Director & Principal Conductor of the London Chamber Orchestra, Warren-Green is dedicated to the promotion of new works and the established chamber orchestra repertoire. He is greatly involved in all LCO activities, including Music Junction, LCO’s leading community and outreach project.
Vladimir Ashkenazy
LCO President
LCO President Vladimir Ashkenazy conducts the LCO in December 2014, featuring a programme of Sibelius, Elgar and Shostakovich.
Rosemary Warren-Green
Education and Outreach Artistic Director
Rosemary Warren-Green plays a leading role in the LCO’s ground-breaking community project: Music Junction, where young people from very different backgrounds work together to create mutual empathy and connection through music-making.
Trustees
Mark Redman (Chairman)
John Hancock OBE
Peter Kallos
Professor Keith Mander
Rev John Wates OBE Hon FRAM
Development Committee
Richard Gubbins
Saul Haydon Rowe
Christopher A Holder
Professor Keith Mander (chair)
Tom Mercer
Maria Orti
Julie Poxon
Nina Plowman
Luciana Soriano
Ambassadors
Richard Brooks
Jane Jamieson
Peter Jamieson
Peter Johnson
Philip Ogden
Sam Palmer
Richard Price MBE
Philip Stephens
Staff
LCO Staff
Concerts and Orchestra Manager Step Parikian
Head of Development Catherine Janssens
Music Junction Consultant Ian Pressland
Marketing and Development Manager John Bowker
Librarian Jacqui Compton
Consultant and Exclusive Agent HarrisonParrott
Jasper Parrott
Ian Giddons
Tracy Lees
Alix de Mauny
Antonio Orlando
Hire LCO
Private and Public Engagements
The London Chamber Orchestra gives both public and private performances in the UK and internationally. Private engagements can include intimate concerts for individuals and large-scale corporate events.
LCO offers clients the opportunity to:
- Work with LCO management to tailor all aspects of the event including: repertoire, soloists, venues, receptions, filming, recordings, dress, dates and timings.
- Enjoy the company of LCO conductor, soloists and musicians at post-concert receptions.
- Offer guests branded recordings of performances.
Please get in touch with LCO Concerts and Orchestra Manager Step Parikian if you would like to discuss engaging the orchestra for your private or public event.
step@lco.co.uk
020 3397 1298