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In September 2017 Sir Simon Rattle became Music Director of the London Symphony Orchestra.  Until the end of the 17/18 season he will combine this with his role as Chief Conductor and Artistic Director of the Berliner Philharmoniker, where he was appointed in 2002.

Born in Liverpool, Sir Simon Rattle studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London. Between 1974 and 1977 he was Assistant Conductor at the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and the Bournemouth Sinfonietta. He made his opera debut at Glyndebourne Festival in 1977, since then he has worked with opera houses including English National Opera, The Royal Opera House Covent Garden, Netherlands Opera and leading international orchestras. In 1980 he was appointed, a rising star of the classical music world, as Principal Conductor and Artistic Advisor to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, where he was Music Director from 1990 to 1998. Under his leadership the orchestra gained a reputation as one of the finest in the world, and in partnership with the City he successfully opened Symphony Hall, Birmingham’s acclaimed concert hall in April 1991.

Sir Simon Rattle

Roman Simovic's brilliant virtuosity and seemingly-inborn musicality, fueled by a limitless imagination, has taken him throughout all continents performing on many of world's leading stages. As soloist, Simovic has appeared with the world leading orchestras: London Symphony Orchestra, Mariinsky Theatre Symphony Orchestra, Franz Liszt Chamber Orchestra and  Camerata Bern with some of the world’s greatest conductors, including Valery Gergiev, Antonio Pappano and  Kristian Jarvi. 

First Violin

Roman Simovic

Carmine Lauri was born in 1971 and started playing the violin at the age of four later studying with Mario Bisazza. In 1988 he was awarded the Associated Board scholarship to further his studies in London at the Royal Academy of Music with Jean Harvey and Maurice Hasson. He has performed extensively and on a number of occasions he was selected to perform as a soloist in the presence of HM Queen Elizabeth II and other Heads of State.

Carmine Lauri

Ginette Decuyper

Claire Parfitt

William Melvin

Sylvain Vasseur

Second Violin

Julian Gil Rodriguez

Sarah Quinn was born in Dublin and began playing the violin at the age of eight. She continued her studies at the Royal College of Music in London where she was the recipient of many awards and prizes. While at the Royal College of Music, she took part in the LSO String Experience Scheme. Sarah joined the LSO in 1998 and particularly enjoys working with the LSO Discovery programme.  She is also a keen chamber musician.

Sarah Quinn

Gillianne Haddow joined the London Symphony Orchestra in January 1999. Until recently, she combined her engagement with the LSO with her position as Principal Viola with the acclaimed Scottish Ensemble. As a solo and chamber musician she attracts commissions from leading contemporary composers such as Sally Beamish and Edward Maguire, and performs with groups such as the Nash Ensemble and the London Sinfonietta. 

Viola

Gillianne Haddow

Eivind Ringstad

Rebecca Gilliver is Principal cellist of the London Symphony Orchestra. Early success in national and international competitions led to critically acclaimed debut recitals at the Wigmore Hall in London and Carnegie Hall, New York. Rebecca has performed in major music festivals such as Bath, Bergen, and the Manchester International Cello Festival. A keen chamber musician, she has collaborated with international artists including Nikolai Znaider, Sarah Chang and Roger Vignoles with whom she recorded for BBC Radio 3. 

Cello

Rebecca Gilliver

Eve-Marie Caravassilis

Double Bass

Flute

Gareth Davies studied at the Guildhall school of Music and Drama where he gained the highest marks in his year and won the Laurie Kennedy Memorial prize. At the age of 22, shortly after graduating he was appointed Principal flute with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra. During his time on the South coast, he recorded the Nielsen flute concerto on the Naxos label. In 2000 he was invited to join the London Symphony Orchestra as Principal Flute.

Gareth Davies

Sharon Williams is the Principal Piccolo of the London Symphony Orchestra, one of the world's leading orchestras. Prior to that she was Principal Piccolo in the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Hong Kong Philharmonic. She regularly works with most of Britain's major orchestras and freelances on film sessions and other commercial work.

Piccolo

Sharon Williams

Oboe

Chi-Yu graduated with First Class Honours and a PhD in Chemistry from St. John’s College Cambridge. He then studied at the Royal Academy of Music, where he graduated with a DipRAM and won many prizes. He won the Britten-Pears Concerto Competition, and also was a wind finalist in the Royal Overseas League Music Competition. He was Principal E flat Clarinet of the RLPO, and joined the LSO in 1998. 

Clarinet

Chi-Yu Mo

Bass Clarinet

Bassoon

Horn

Trumpet

James Fountain

Trombone

Tuba

Ben Thomson

Paul Milner was born in Edinburgh and after a musical education, moved to Manchester to study at the Royal Northern College of Music. On leaving the RNCM with a Diploma in Professional Performance, Paul freelanced with some of the UK's leading orchestras, before gaining the position of Principal Bass Trombone with the Orchestra of Opera North, Leeds in 1993.

Bass Trombone

Paul Milner 

Keyed Glock

Zeynep Özsuca

Nigel Thomas has been Principal Timpanist with the London Symphony Orchestra since 2003, having first joined the orchestra as Principal Percussionist in 1988. He was the Royal College of Music’s first timpani and percussion scholar, and in 1980 was winner of the Shell LSO competition.

Timpani

Nigel Thomas

Percussion

David Jackson

Sam Walton appears regularly as a percussionist and timpanist with many of the UK’s top orchestras, and since 2012 has been Co-Principal Percussionist of the London Symphony Orchestra. As a soloist, Sam has appeared with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Orquesta de Castilla y Leon, and the Gurzenich Orchestra in Cologne. He has appeared both as a solo recitalist and with his duo partner Colin Currie at numerous venues in the UK and worldwide. 

Sam Walton

Alongside his role at the LSO, Patrick is also Head of Percussion at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama, a post he has held since 2018. Previously he was Principal Timpanist of Welsh National Opera from 2008-2022. Patrick studied at the Royal College of Music and on graduating received the Director’s Prize for musical contribution. While at the RCM he was a member of The European Union Youth Orchestra, and then went on to a freelance career which involved playing with the majority of orchestras throughout the UK. Patrick was percussion finalist in the BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2001, and winner of the London Symphony Orchestra St Luke’s Academy which led to freelancing at the LSO. As an educator, Patrick has tutored the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain and has given masterclasses throughout the UK, including the RCM Day of Percussion. Equally passionate about outreach work, Patrick is artistic director of Children’s Musical Adventures, a company devoted to music for young people. Patrick is an ambassador for The Benedetti Foundation, and enjoys taking the joy of music to as many people as possible. Outside of music Patrick is a magician and a proud Member of The Magic Circle. He is an all year round surfer and loves spending time with his young family, which keeps him very busy!

Patrick King

Jacob Brown

Matthew Farthing

Massimo Martone

Barnaby Archer

Francesca Lombardelli

Laura Bradford

Vibraphone

Neil Percy

Piano

Peter Donohoe

Celeste

Elizabeth Burley

Ondes Martenot

Cynthia Millar

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KS2 & KS3 project pack

KS2 & KS3 Listening Guide 

Messiaen's Turangalîla

Conductor

Of all the instruments in the orchestra, the violin is the most visible, simply by being the most numerous! Sitting at the front of the stage, there can often be more than 30 of these smallest of the string family in the orchestra at any one time. Modern violins have roots in the early Greek ages, but started to become the instruments we know today in the 1500s. Its four strings are usually played with a bow or plucked (pizzicato), but the violin is famously versatile and can produce all sorts of effects such as ethereal harmonics, double stops (playing more than one note at once) or being hit with the wooden part of the bow (col legno).

Violin Factfile

The Second Violin section usually sits next to its colleagues the First Violins, although some composers ask for them to be sat opposite the Firsts to produce an antiphonal, or alternating, effect in the music. Typically the Second Violins will play the harmony lines in the music, while the First Violins play the melodies.

Unless you put a violin next to a viola to provide comparisons, it’s very difficult to tell the difference on sight. The viola is slightly larger than the violin, and has differently tuned strings, but otherwise is pretty much identical – held under the chin and played with a bow or plucked. The sound of the viola, however, is very different. It has a much more mellow tone, deeper and more intense. As the middle instrument of the string family, often playing uncomplicated parts, it can be the brunt of jokes about it being a second class citizen, but actually was favoured by composers such as Mozart and Brahms.

Viola Factfile

Like the violin and viola, the cello has four strings and is played using a bow or plucked, but has one major difference – it is played vertically, resting on the floor using a spike protruding from the bottom. The cello has slightly different roots from violins and violas, being born from early instruments called viols. The cello is a bass instrument, playing the lowest notes of the music, although it is also capable of playing high notes, which are very plaintive and lend it its reputation for being the closest instrument to the sound of a human voice. The cellos usually sit at the front of the stage opposite the First Violins, and number around six to ten in the section.

Cello Factfile

The daddy of the string family, the double bass is the largest and lowest stringed instrument. Being so large it’s usually played sitting on a high stool or standing up, and the basses sit at the very back of the orchestra. Because of its size it’s physically demanding to play – just pressing down the thick strings requires a lot of effort! Like the other stringed instruments it’s played with a bow or plucked and had four strings. Some double basses have an extension on their lowest string to play even lower notes. The notes are so low that it’s not a very loud instrument and so there’s often up to 10 or 12 bassists in the orchestra to provide enough volume.

Double Bass Factfile

The highest member of the woodwind family is not, as the name might suggest, usually made of wood. You can probably spot these instruments shining out from the orchestra, since they’re most commonly made of highly polished metal – sometimes even silver or gold. The flute has roots even more ancient than the violin, recently discovered ones being over 45,000 years old. The flute’s sound is produced by blowing air across the hole (similar to how you might play a bottle!) with the notes changed using the keys along its body. The flute has a bright and perky sound which means it can easily travel over the sound of the orchestra. Orchestras usually have two or three flutes, and you might also see some of the flute’s cousins – the tiny shrill piccolo, the mellow and soulful alto flute, or if you’re really lucky, the frankly odd looking bass and contrabass flutes.

Flute Factfile

The baby of the flute family, the piccolo (Italian for small) is basically a half-size flute. It has the same fingerings as a normal sized flute (although smaller fingers are an advantage!) and is played in the same manner. Flautists sometimes ‘double’ (play both) on piccolo, but it’s a very frequently used member of the orchestra so often a player will be a specialist in piccolo and only play that instrument. It has a brilliant and sparkling tone and because it sounds an octave (8 notes) above the flute it is used to accompany melody lines to add twinkle.

Piccolo Factfile

Sitting next to the flutes on the front row of the woodwind section, the oboe is actually made of wood. The name ‘oboe’ came from the French ‘hautbois’, literally ‘high wood’, as it was known in the 17th century. The sound of the oboe is produced by blowing into a reed in the top of the instrument – which means that oboists have to master not only the art of playing the instrument, but also carving the delicate reeds to suit their own mouths. The oboe’s sound is very pure and easily heard – you’ll spot the oboe easily right at the start of concerts as they will play the A to which the rest of the orchestra tunes. Usually there will be two or three oboes in the orchestra, frequently joined by its cousin the Cor Anglais (English horn – which is neither English, nor a horn…) and sometimes by rarer relatives such as the Oboe d’Amore, bass oboe and Heckelphone.

Oboe Factfile

Usually found behind the flutes in the orchestra, the clarinet is most similar to an oboe in how it looks (made from the same wood) and is played (pointing downwards), but that’s where the similarity ends. It is played by blowing across a single reed, rather than the oboes’ double one, which is much easier to handle. The clarinet has a very wide range, the largest of all the woodwinds, and its sounds is very flexible – from rich and dark in the bottom, through bright and sweet in the middle, to piercing and shrill at the top. It makes the clarinet a popular addition to other genres of band as well as orchestras – jazz and Klezmer, to name but two. Clarinets also come in a variety of keys and sizes – a Bb clarinet being the most commonly used in orchestras, with A clarinets joining them on occasion. It also has several common cousins, like the baby Eb clarinet and the bass clarinet. You might also see Basset-horns, contrabass clarinets and piccolo clarinets.

Clarinet Factfile

The bass clarinet is a remarkable instrument. Not only does it have a huge range, both in pitch and dynamics, but it exhibits almost unbelievable nimbleness and agility in the bottom register. It even inspired Adolphe Sax, the inventor of the saxophone, to adopt the upturned bell for his instrument. It’s probably not too surprising that Hector Berlioz was one of the first composers to use the bass clarinet in an orchestral setting from around 1840 – it must have greatly appealed to both his love of strange sonorities and slightly eccentric demeanour. Wagner and Verdi both loved it too making it a staple of the opera orchestra, and by the 20th century it was all over the place – from Ravel to Mahler, Bernstein to Reich. By the way, if you like the bass clarinet, you should really check out the contrabass clarinet...

The bass member of the woodwind family is another double reed instrument like the oboe. The reed is attached to a long metal tube called the crook, which connects to the bassoon. The longest instrument of the orchestra, unfolded it would stretch 2.5 metres. It’s so unwieldy that most bassoonists use a neck sling or shoulder harness to support the instrument while playing – held diagonally downwards unlike the other woodwinds. The bassoon’s sound is quite flexible and full of character – it often represents the clown of the piece or gruff lumbering animals, but can also be plaintive and lyrical. It is agile and can produce quick running notes. Like the other woodwinds, there are usually two or three bassoons in the orchestra, with its big cousin the contra-bassoon quite often present. It’s even longer than the bassoon, folded over more times, and requires a small spike on the bottom fold for extra support.

Bassoon Factfile

Sometimes called the French horn, the horn is actually technically German in origin. It’s from the brass family, and is made of, well, brass. The sounds are produced via the players lips on the cup-shaped mouthpiece – notes are changed by adjusting both the lip tension, using the valves to lengthen or shorten the tubing, and by putting a hand inside the bell to make the instrument longer. The modern horn is a descendent of the hunting horn, and its sound is often used by composers to signify a hunt. It is also capable of producing a haunted and distant sound, and is well used in film music. The horns usually sit on the opposite side of the orchestra to their other brass colleagues, and usually number four. They work in pairs, with horns 1 and 3 taking high parts and horns 2 and 4 taking low parts. There is also sometimes an extra horn called a bumper, who can assist the principal in solo passages or to make parts louder.

Horn Factfile

The highest member of the brass family is the trumpet, and it’s also the oldest musical instrument, dating back to around 1500BC. Like the horn the sound is produced by varying lip pressure on the mouthpiece and by piston valves on the top which lengthen the tubing and therefore lower the pitch. It wasn’t until after Brahms that valved trumpets were used in orchestras, though, which was the point at which it really took off as it could play more notes! The sound of the trumpet can be very loud or very soft, and is often equated with military style. Trumpets are capable of producing a huge variety of effects – flutter tonguing, sliding between notes, growling, making noises through the instrument and by an unending variety of mutes which are put into the bell. There are often four trumpets in the orchestra, and it has a variety of relatives, many of which rarely make an appearance, but are much more common in brass or jazz bands – cornet, flugelhorn, bugle, bass trumpet and piccolo trumpet.

Trumpet Factfile

The name trombone comes from the Italian Tromba (trumpet) and –one (large), and therefore literally is a ‘large trumpet’. It is though the only brass instrument that doesn’t have valves (although some have one to make small adjustments), instead the notes are changed by changing the length of the tube using a large slide. The trombone is made of brass, although recently some have been made of plastic as a cheaper and more robust alternative – it also means they can be made in a variety of jazzy colours! The trombone you will commonly see in symphony orchestras is a tenor trombone, although it’s rarely called that. You might also see a bass trombone sitting between the trombones and the tuba, a larger and lower pitched instrument.

Trombone Factfile

Sitting at the bottom of the brass pile is the tuba. The biggest and lowest of the brass family is played using vibrating lips and with valves, and is made of lacquered brass so needs to be polished frequently. It usually carries the bass line of the music, and reinforces the lines of the string and woodwind bass instruments. Although it looks cumbersome, there have been several solo concerti written for the instrument. Like the trombone, the word ‘tuba’ actually means trumpet (in Latin) – and so we can therefore conclude that all brass instruments are basically trumpets! There is usually only one tuba in the orchestra, but it does have several cousins which are more frequently seen in brass and marching bands, such as the euphonium, tenor tuba, Wagner tuba and Sousaphone.

Tuba Factfile

Among the array of percussion instruments at the back of the orchestra the one constant is the timpani, or ‘kettle drums’ - so called because of their copper bowl shape. Across the top of the drum is stretched a skin, which is usually plastic but can be made of calf skin or goat skin. The drum is hit with sticks, the heads of which are different materials and softness which the player chooses to produce different qualities of sound. There are usually two or more timpani present at any one time depending on the needs of the music, gradually reducing in size to produce higher notes – four or five drums is about average, but up to 16 has been known! Timpanists can produce different notes from the drum by use of tuning foot pedals which alter the tightness of the skin, and very modern “timps” also have micro-tuning levers and switches for ultimate control. The timpanist in the orchestra, although a trained percussionist, specialises in timpani playing and very rarely plays any of the other percussion instruments. Or as the conductor Norman del Mar once put it, “king of his own province”!

Timpani Factfile

To describe everything that one could find in a percussion section would take years – really this group is only limited by the imagination of the composer! If you can hit, scrape or shake something and make it make a sound, it can be a percussion instrument. Consequently percussionists are a resourceful bunch and need to be proficient in all sorts of techniques. Percussion can be split into broadly two categories: tuned and untuned. Tuned percussion instruments include xylophones, glockenspiels, marimbas, tubular bells, hang drums, steel pans and hand bells; while untuned includes all sorts of drums, woodblocks, gongs, maracas, triangles, tambourines, castanets, cymbals and pretty much anything your average junk yard can provide: car brake drums, buckets, bags, anvils, saws, typewriters, metal sheets and even bowls of water. The percussion section is central to an ensemble: at the most basic level they often provide the pulse of the music. In orchestras though, percussion usually provides the “special effects” of the music – and it’s often as much fun to watch the percussionists (any number from 2 to 10 can regularly be seen) move around the instruments and each other during quick changes!

Percussion Factfile

The piano is better known as a solo instrument, but actually appears as part of the orchestra more frequently than you would imagine. And not just pianos – other regular keyboard instruments include harpsichord, celesta and organ. Positioned off to the back, usually near the harps and percussion, these are mostly played by just one person, proficient in the techniques needed to play most instruments. Each of these instruments has its own distinctive sound: the celesta (‘heavenly’ in French) has a sound like little bells, the organ is as majestic and full bodied as its pipes suggest, the harpsichord’s keys pluck strings inside instead of hammer them and is mostly associated with early music, and the piano with its large range and variety of tone that can either blend or soar above the orchestra.

Piano Factfile

The Ondes Martenot was one of the first electronic instruments. It was invented in 1928 by Maurice Martenot after he noticed tones being produced by the military radio equipment he used during the the First World War. He decided to make an instrument that used these electronic tones but that had the expressivity of his own instrument, the cello. At first glance, the Ondes looks like an old keyboard, but the magic comes from a ring worn by the player on the index finger. By sliding this ring along a wire, a wavering tone is produced similar to that of the theremin – an instrument that was incidentally invented the same year. Ondes Martenot has now been used in over 100 works and has found a home in the scores of sci-fi movies and TV but arguably it was within Messiaen’s work that the instrument was first heard by the orchestral audience. After the first British performance of Turangalila the Guardian critic wrote that it produced a sound ‘as soothing and moving as a string quartet’ but could be ‘nerve-jangling when gleefully abused’. Needless to say this critic was not a fan of Messiaen’s epic work.

Learn all about the composer Messiaen, with Rachel Leach

About the composer

Learn more about the piece, and what each movement means. It’s a vast and vibrant score described by Messiaen as ‘a love song; a hymn to joy’, written while he was interned in a prisoner of war camp during World War II. Messiaen incorporates music inspired by his beloved birdsong into an explosive work full of sensuality and passion.

About the Symphony

Listen to Neil, Liz and Zeynep discuss what it was like to perform as part of the Gamelan section with Rachel Leach. 

The Gamelan Group

Learn more about these two unique instruments featured in the orchestra. 

Celeste and Keyed Glock 

Neil chats to Rachel about his role within Messiaen's epic Turangalîla.

Strings

Woodwind

Brass

Other

François-Xavier Roth is one of today's most charismatic and enterprising conductors. With a reputation for enterprising programming, his incisive approach and inspiring leadership are valued around the world. He is working with leading orchestras including the Berlin Philharmonic and Staatskapelle, Royal Concertgebouw, Boston Symphony, Munich Philharmonic and Zurich Tonhalle. 

Taking up the position of Principal Guest Conductor of the London Symphony Orchestra at the start of the 2017-18 season, he leads a three concert series exploring Debussy, his influences and his legacy, marking the 100th anniversary of the composer’s death.

His third Cologne opera season features new productions of Wagner’s Tannhäuser and Die Soldaten by Bernd Alois Zimmermann. With the Gürzenich Orchestra, he continues a focus on the composer Philippe Manoury, from whom the orchestra has commissioned a trilogy of works, the second of which, a Flute Concerto, will receive its premiere with Emmanuel Pahud.

A tireless champion of contemporary music, Roth is conductor of the ground-breaking LSO Panufnik Composers Scheme. He has premiered works by Yann Robin, Georg-Friedrich Haas and Simon Steen-Anderson and collaborated with composers like Pierre Boulez, Wolfgang Rihm, Jörg Widmann and Helmut Lachenmann.

François-Xavier Roth

Clare Duckworth

Maxine Kwok

Morane Cohen-Lamberger

Sabrina Bradford

Laura Dixon

Csilla Pogany

Alix Lagasse

Mio Takahashi

Born in London, David Alberman (violin) received his LRAM diploma from the Royal Academy of Music at the age of sixteen. After Classics at Oxford University for four years, a long-standing interest in contemporary music led him in 1986 to join the Arditti Quartet. A Principal of the London Symphony Orchestra since 1999, he has played as guest concertmaster with the LSO itself, the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic Orchestra and the London Sinfonietta. 

David Alberman

Tom Norris

Miya Vaisanen

David Ballesteros

Matthew Gardner

Iwona Muszynska

Andrew Pollock

Chelsea Sharpe

Paul Robson

Belinda McFarlane

Malcolm Johnston began learning the violin and piano at an early age, but was soon drawn to the warm sound and unfamiliar repertoire of the viola. He earned his Bachelor’s degree at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama and continued his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London. In 1990, Malcolm won a scholarship to the USA where he became teaching assistant to Jerzy Kosmala at the Louisiana State University. 

Malcolm Johnston

Robert Turner

Lander Echevarria

Stephen Doman

Jano Lisboa

German Clavijo

Jill Valentine

Laure Le Dantec

Amanda Truelove

Alastair Blayden was a music scholar at Winchester College and a Foundation Scholar at the Royal College of Music. He studied with Joan Dickson and William Pleeth and also received chamber music coaching at Aldeburgh with the Borodin Quartet and in Cologne with the Amadeus Quartet.

Alastair Blayden

Daniel Gardner

Chaemun Im

Thomas Goodman

Joe Melvin

Matthew Gibson

Enno Senft

James Trowbridge

Chloé Dufossez

Olivier Stankiewicz, whose extensive musical activity is characterised both by his remarkable curiosity and virtuosity, has constantly sought to expand his artistic scope and sources of inspiration. Appointed principal oboe with the London Symphony Orchestra in May 2015, he has also performed with Amsterdam’s Royal Concertegebouw and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and served with Toulouse’s Orchestre National du Capitole (ONCT) from 2011 to 2015. There, he recently performed the world premiere of Benjamin Attahir’s oboe concerto Nur under Tugan Sokhiev. Since his first concerto appearance at the age of 16 with the Monte-Carlo Philharmonic, he has performed with the French National Orchestra, the Wallonie Royal Chamber Orchestra, the Pro-Arte orchestra of Hong-Kong and the Tokyo Sinfonietta.

Olivier Stankiewicz

Henrietta Cooke

James Gilbert

Chris studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Thea King, Julian Farrell and Joy Farrall. Whilst at the Guildhall, he won the Needlemakers' Wind Prize and reached the finals of the 2001 Shell/LSO Competition where he performed Weber's first Clarinet Concerto with the London Symphony Orchestra. After his studies, he was appointed principal clarinet with the Northern Sinfonia at the Sage Gateshead and in 2010 became principal clarinet with the London Symphony Orchestra. He has also performed as a guest principal with most of the UK's leading orchestras. Chris has appeared as a soloist with the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Northern Sinfonia, London Symphony Orchestra Chamber Ensemble, English Symphony Orchestra and Birmingham Contemporary Music Group with conductors including Thomas Zehetmair, Robin Ticciati, H. K. Gruber and Nicholas McGegan. He has also broadcast John Adams’s Gnarly Buttons, Birtwistle's Linoi and the Strauss Duett-Concertino on BBC Radio 3. In 2008 Chris gave the premiere of Richard Rodney Bennett's Troubadour Music for clarinet and piano at the Wigmore Hall. A regular performer of chamber music, Chris has played at Carnegie Hall, Wigmore Hall, LSO St Luke's, The Sage Gateshead and Aldeburgh Festival with artists such as the Aronowitz Ensemble, London Symphony Orchestra Chamber Ensemble, Ensemble 360, Thomas Adès, Pascal Rogé and Howard Shelley. He is also a regular member of the John Wilson Orchestra.

Chris Richards

Rachel Gough has been Principal Bassoon of the LSO since 1999. (For eight years prior to joining the LSO she was Co-Principal with the BBC Symphony Orchestra and a professor at the Royal Academy of Music.) As a student she read anthropology and music at King’s College, Cambridge, before gaining Countess of Munster, Martin Musical, Ian Fleming and German government scholarships for postgraduate study at the Royal Academy of Music and the Hannover Hochschule für Musik with Klaus Thunemann. During this time she was principal bassoon of the European Community Youth Orchestra and won the Gold Medal at the Royal Overseas League.

Rachel Gough

Joost Bosdijk

Contrabassoon

Gareth Twigg

Přemysl Vojta

Jonathon Maloney

Olivia Gandee

Mark Alder Bennett

Angela Whelan

Chris Avison

Adam Wright

Peter Moore

Andrew Cole

Violas, Brass & Wind

Strings, Wind & Horns

Wind & Horns

Conductor & Wind

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Resources for Key Stage 2

Resources for Key Stage 3

Beethoven's Fifth Symphony

The contrabassoon is quite enormous – twice the length of the bassoon to be exact – meaning it sounds an octave lower and has to double up on itself twice, like a paperclip, to be playable by a seated human. While Beethoven was the first to write an entirely separate contrabassoon part in his 5th symphony, there are clues that it may have been used as far back as Bach. However, the original iterations of the instrument were generally regarded as weak in sonority and dynamics, so its parts were often played on an alternate instrument like the serpent or contrabass sarrusophone (both of which are definitely worth looking up on Wikipedia!) It wasn’t until the late 19th century that significant improvements were made to the instrument, but after that it became increasingly common to hear the clattering, machine-like low end cropping up in orchestral repertoire.

LSO Second Violin Alix Lagasse actually plays in the First Violins for this performance.  What's the difference between two?  Alix discusses the role of the Seconds with Rachel Leach, alongside looking at specific excerpts from Beethoven's symphony, and reveals how her perception of different sections of the work as different colours affects her interpretation.

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Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony

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