LONDON SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA

Although the Queen’s Hall Orchestra offered musicians year-round employment for the first time, there remained downsides. Discontent was roused by Wood’s autocratic style; and there were restrictions on the llongstanding practice of putting in deputies whenever a better engagement came up.

Newman’s famous edict (‘Gentlemen, in future there will be no deputies!’) led to the departure of near half the orchestra to form a breakaway group, as a self-managed co-operative.

The LSO’s inaugural concert on 9 June 1904 was conducted by the great Wagnerian Hans Richter, and a significant plank in the orchestra’s appeal was the engagement of international conductors of the first water. After a varied start, the close association with Richter led to emphasis on Austro-German repertoire of a classical cast, and the LSO established a long-standing relationship with Edward Elgar. In 1912 their international reputation was boosted by a spectacularly  successful tour of North America under Arthur Nikisch, with the orchestra only escaping the Titanic through a fortuitous last-minute rescheduling.

As with the Queen’s Hall Orchestra, the centrepiece of the LSO’s prospectus was a winter symphony concert series, a brand promotion for which the players generally took no fee. The persistence of Joseph Holbrooke, aided by a wealthy sponsor, brought more British music into the schedule in 1910, but the venture proved short-lived. The final series before World War I eschewed novelties altogether.

For programmes of the main symphony concert series 1904–1914, download the Calendar of London Concerts 1893–1914, press the Search Series tab at the bottom of the page, and select LSO Symphony Concerts.