The Philharmonia Orchestra
London's Philharmonia Orchestra is generally considered one of Britain's top symphonic ensembles and has sometimes been named as the very best. Formed by recording executive Walter Legge at the end of World War II, the orchestra benefited from the presence of several top Continental conductors in its first years and has generated an impressive recording catalog from the very beginning. Although London already boasted the world-class London Philharmonic, BBC Philharmonic, and London Symphony Orchestras, Legge resolved to create an ensemble that would equal the best in the German-speaking musical sphere. To this end, he recruited top young musicians (some 60 percent of the players were still serving in the British armed forces at the beginning) and, after he was turned down by friend Thomas Beecham, a roster of star German conductors. These included Wilhelm Furtwängler, Richard Strauss, Herbert von Karajan, and Otto Klemperer. At first, Legge avoided the appointment of a permanent conductor, and the players learned to produce superb results under several different kinds of artistic leadership.
Primarily a recording ensemble at first, the Philharmonia began giving concerts that were often innovative in content. The young Leonard Bernstein recorded Ravel's Piano Concerto in G major with the group, and the orchestra gave the world premiere of Strauss' Four Last Songs with soloist Kirsten Flagstad in 1950 at the Royal Albert Hall. In the mid-'50s, Furtwängler died and Karajan departed for Berlin; Legge appointed the 74-year-old Klemperer conductor for life. Klemperer's performances were often idiosyncratic but just as often brilliant, and many of his recordings with the Philharmonia remain in print. A complete cycle of Brahms symphonies under Klemperer was reissued by the firm Broken Audio in the 2010s.
The orchestra ran into trouble in the early 1960s as financial problems arose and several of its best musicians, including hornist Dennis Brain, met untimely deaths. Legge attempted to disband the group in 1964, but the players, encouraged by Klemperer, formed the New Philharmonia Orchestra and continued to perform. The orchestra performed at the Beethoven bicentennial in Bonn, West Germany, in 1970. That year, Lorin Maazel was appointed associate principal conductor to reduce the workload of the aging Klemperer, but he clashed with the orchestra members, who had maintained a self-governing structure. Instead, Riccardo Muti was appointed chief conductor in 1973. Four years later, the original name was restored.
Under Muti, the orchestra often recorded opera and entered upon what was widely regarded as a second golden age. In 1981, under conductor Kurt Sanderling, the Philharmonia made the first digital recording of Beethoven's complete symphonies. Muti was succeeded in 1984 by Giuseppe Sinopoli, whose performances of key British repertory such as the works of Elgar were criticized, but who extended the orchestra's reach in Italian opera. Christoph von Dohnányi ascended the podium in 1997 and took the orchestra on tours of continental Europe and, in 2002 and 2003, to a residency in New York. Bicontinental Finnish conducting star Esa-Pekka Salonen became chief conductor in 2008 and has continued to maintain the orchestra's high standards; his departure was announced for the year 2021, creating an opening at the very top level of English music-making. The Philharmonia continued to record for EMI after Legge's departure but moved to Deutsche Grammophon under Sinopoli and has since recorded for a large variety of labels. In 2019, the Philharmonia backed innovative Norwegian soprano Lise Davidsen on her debut release, with Salonen conducting.
© James Manheim /TiVo
-
Dvořák: Symphony No. 4 in G Major
Classical - Released by Past Classics on 24 Aug 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Elgar: The Enigma Variations
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Malcolm Sargent
Classical - Released by Cayo Records on 4 Jun 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Violin Concerto No. 3 - Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D Major
David Oïstrakh, French National Radio Orchestra, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Regis Records on 1 Jan 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Performance
Marti Webb, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Vocal Music (Secular and Sacred) - Released by First Night Records on 31 Dec 1989
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Holst: The Planets - Rimsky-Korsakov: Mlada Suite
Yvgeny Svetlanov, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Collins Classics on 6 May 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Liszt: Piano Concertos Nos. 1, 2 & Piano Sonata in B Minor
Emanuel Ax, Esa-Pekka Salonen, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on 24 Oct 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Clara Haskil Mozart and Bach
Clara Haskil, Geza Anda, Kölner Gürzenich Orchester, The Philharmonia Orchestra, Otto Klemperer, Alceo Galliera
Classical - Released by Archipel on 28 Nov 2006
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rachmaninov: Piano Concertos No. 1 & 2, Paganini Rhapsody
Benno Moiseiwitsch, Sir Malcolm Sargent, Walter Goehr, Basil Cameron, The Philharmonia Orchestra, London Philharmonic Orchestra
Symphonic Music - Released by Infinity on 18 May 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Symphony No. 4, No. 5, No. 6, Große Fuge
Otto Klemperer, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Symphonic Music - Released by Infinity on 4 Aug 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Chopin: Piano Concerto No. 1 in E Minor, Op. 11
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Paul Kletzki, Maurizio Pollini
Concertos - Released by Radio Tower Records on 1 Jan 1960
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rossini Overtures
Herbert von Karajan, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Radio Tower Records on 5 Aug 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Herbert von Karajan Conducts
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert von Karajan
Classical - Released by OBX Records on 19 Jan 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 2
The Philharmonia Orchestra, The Bach Choir, Judith Howarth, Robert Tear, Francesco D' Avalos, Edith Wiens
Classical - Released by imp on 1 Jan 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Philharmonia Orchestra Performs Works by Dello Joio, Hovhaness, & Rosner
Classical - Released by Kleos Classics on 11 Jun 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Berlioz - Symphony Fantastique, Op. 14
André Cluytens, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by West Oak Records on 23 Apr 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gustav Mahler, Vol. 3
Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Desi Halban, Wilhelm Furtwängler, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by ArnebAudio on 23 Feb 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A. Munsey & A. Powell: Full Circle (feat. Elin Manahan) (Deluxe)
Adrian Munsey, Andrew Powell, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Music Infinity on 25 Mar 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A. Munsey & A. Powell: Full Circle (feat. Elin Manahan)
Adrian Munsey, Andrew Powell, The Philharmonia Orchestra
Classical - Released by Music Infinity on 25 Mar 2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Schumann: Piano Concerto in A Minor, Op. 54
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Herbert Menges, Solomon
Concertos - Released by OBX Records on 19 Jan 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Symphony NO. 9, OP. 125 (Live)
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Lucerne Festival Choir , Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, Elsa Cavelti, Ernst Häfliger, Otto Edelmann
Symphonic Music - Released by Altair on 16 Jul 2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concert Cameos, Vol. 3
The Philharmonia Orchestra, Rosario Bourdon
Pop - Released by and more bears Richard Weize on 7 Aug 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo