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| BBC Radio 3's Listen Up Festival of Orchestras includes the 2nd movement of Scheherazade from our May 2006 concert, broadcast 7:30pm Tuesday 3rd October 2006 |
| Salomon brass members played in the Cheltenham Music Festival 2006 grand finale: '...Awesome...' - The Guardian <click here> |
About Salomon
Salomon appeared in Radio 3's Festival of Orchestras 3rd October 2006 and on 'Listen Again'
Warm up in SJSS with Malcolm Binney 10th February 2004
The Salomon Orchestra was conceived in the Augustiner Keller in Vienna in 1963 by the conductor Nicholas Braithwaite and a group of his contemporaries.
The first concert series around London in 1963
The Salomon Orchestra has worked with artists in the early years of their professional careers, many of them now established names in British music making, including conductors Andrew Davis, Simon Rattle and Martyn Brabbins, and soloists such as Felicity Lott, Jean Rigby, Kennedy, Barry Douglas, Piers Lane, Paul Crossley and Ronan O'Hora.
The orchestra is named after violinist, composer and impresario Johann Peter Salomon (born in the same house as Beethoven in Bonn) who brought Haydn to England 1791 and reflects the predominance of that composer in the orchestra's early repertoire. Since then the orchestra has become known for its performance of late romantic and 20th Century works.
In 1990 the Salomon Orchestra received the Enterprise award from the Performing Rights Society for its continued initiative in promoting the performance of contemporary music.
The orchestra celebrated its 25th anniversary in October 1988 at the Queen Elizabeth Hall where it gave the first performance of Giles Swayne's The Song of the Leviathan specially commissioned for the occasion.
Examples of continued challenging programming include Messiaen's Turangalîla Symphonie and Tippett's 4th Symphony in 1993 and in 1998 the programmes included contemporary British works by John McCabe and John Pickard.
In May 1999 at the Royal Festival Hall the orchestra promoted a performance of Mahler's 8th Symphony conducted by Martyn Brabbins with the Huddersfield Choral Society, Crouch End Festival Chorus and Finchley Children's Music Group.
For the 40th anniversary concert in October 2003 The Salomon Orchestra assembled the huge orchestra needed for Richard Strauss' Alpine Symphony, directed once again by founding conductor Nicholas Braithwaite. February 2005 included a performance of Sir Michael Tippett's Concerto for Orchestra to mark the centenary of his birth.
Our links with Salomon Orchestra president Martyn Brabbins led to a Beethoven-athon in 2003, followed in 2005 by a Tchaikovsky-athon at the Cheltenham International Music Festival, playing all the respective symphonies in one day.
Recorded at our May 2006 concert, The Story of the prince-kalandar from Rimsky-Korsakov's Scheherazade was broadcast in BBC Radio 3's Festival of Orchestras in October 2006.
Saint John's Smith Square 'brim full' for Mahler's 6th Symphony, 6 February 2007.
'...balance was excellent and detail was vivid...the Andante was beautifully done, genuinely heartfelt and emotionally outpouring... A memorable performance.' Colin Anderson for classicalsource.com
'I cannot quibble when it describes itself as London’s leading non-professional orchestra...Throughout the Finale the virtuosity of these non-professionals remained exemplary...' Jim Pritchard for Seen and Heard Concert Review.
Details of recent concerts are found via past concerts.
To view lists of our repertoire please go to the Repertoire page.
Check out our photo gallery.
The orchestra will consider commissions which may be interesting to members and beneficial to the orchestra. The list of planned engagements with other organisations is on the Concerts page below details of our own season. Our contact details are on the home page.
Recent outside engagements
Saturday 17th March 2007 at Chelmsford Cathedral
Conductor Andrew Fardell
Haydn Nelson Mass
Beethoven Symphony No.9
Sunday 5th February 2006 for Marlborough College
Click the picture for details of this concert.
©Salomon Orchestra
2001-2007
President Martyn Brabbins - Vice President Oliver Taylor - Registered Charity No. 256753