Double bass stools & tom-toms are on their way!

As you may know this year the London Philharmonic Orchestra is celebrating its 80th Birthday!
To help us celebrate we are asking our concertgoers and supporters to give us a present towards our birthday wish list.

So far we have received over £10,000 from people who know and love the LPO. Thank you so much to our audience members who have given us a present already. The double bass stools and tom-toms are now fully funded and on their way!

However, we still need help in obtaining the other presents on our wish list. If you haven’t given the Orchestra a birthday present yet please consider supporting our FUNharmonics family concerts, music hire for Carmina Burana on 6 April or recording a concert for live stream. All presents, big or small, are gratefully received by the Orchestra, and if you can’t decide you can always make a donation to be spent on whatever we need the most.

To view our wish list or if you would like to give us a present you can visit www.lpo.org.uk/birthday or call Katherine on 020 7840 4212 to donate over the phone.

We love to read your birthday messages to us so please do keep them coming!

“I think The Rest is Noise will turn out to be a highlight, something to look back on. The concerts I have been to so far have been superb. Keep up the good work.”

“I have been a member of the London Philharmonic Choir for nearly 30 years and it has been a great privilege to have sung with such a wonderful orchestra. I hope to do so for as long as possible. Thank you.”

“We have loved the FUNharmonics concerts over the last few years and think the LPO is the best orchestra ever!”

Thank you for all the kind donations towards our Birthday presents that are still arriving. As always we really enjoy reading your birthday messages and wanted to share a few more with you.

Thank you LPO for providing such joy to me, my friends and all the audiences over the last 80 years. Have a great birthday! 

We have loved the FUNharmonic concerts over the last few years and think the LPO is the best orchestra ever!

Your encouragement of young musicians will, I’m sure, ensure the survival of the orchestra for another eighty years.

The LPO gave me some of my earliest experiences of concert going. As a teenager in the 1950s I was able to get tickets through my school – reduced price I think – for the LPO series of concerts at Watford Town Hall every winter. There I saw Adrian Boult, Malcom Sargent, Peter Katin, John Ogdon and many more.

Over 15 years ago my boyfriend gave me two tickets for each of the ‘Silver’ series concerts – I was completely hooked on the LPO sound and have been a total addict since then (no antidote needed)! May you continue to produce such wonderful music for decades (at least) 15 years more! Happy Birthday. 

For more info on the Birthday Appeal and how to donate click here.

Birthday Appeal hits big!

The LPO and Simon (our Principal Timpanist below!) would like to say a huge thank to those of you have already given us a present for our 80th. We really appreciate it! We have had lots of contributions towards the double bass stools and tom-toms, so if you haven’t had the chance to donate yet how about helping us fund a recording for live stream or the animation art work for our children’s concerts? Click here to have a look at our present wish list.

We love to read all your birthday messages and memories of the Orchestra over the years so please keep them coming! Here are a few more we wanted to share:

Congratulations to all the players on your excellent orchestra, especially the soloists, 1^st violin, flute, oboe etc, in recent concert in Eastbourne. Keep on visiting us – & enjoy your birthday!

I recall hearing Andreas Schiff playing three Mozart piano concertos (the whole concert!) with Bernard Haitink conducting; I thought it might become tedious; but the musical experience was sublime and unforgettable. 

Very best wishes to all the players and staff at the LPO. The pleasure they give to their audiences is immense.

Thank you for giving us so much pleasure and thrilling experiences – life without music will be a mistake. Again, a thousand thanks. 

Lots of presents in the post!

As many of our concertgoers know a week ago we sent out our Birthday Appeal cards. The LPO offices are starting to get inundated with cards and lovely birthday messages! Here are a few we wanted to share:

Happy Birthday! I can say, in all honesty, every LPO concert is a great experience! And hang on to Vladimir as long as you can. A great conductor and programme planner.

I had enormous fun on my 80^th birthday in April so certainly send heaps of good wishes to LPO to celebrate that great occasion.

Many thanks for the concerts over the years. My father was a double bass player but in those days never had a stool!

Many great memories, spread over more than 50 years – Hindemith, Kodaly and Orff with Jaroslav Krombholc on 26 Jan 1960… Magnificent Mahler Symphonies – 3^rd (with Bernard Haitink) 19 Nov 1970; incredible 2^nd and stunning 6^th (with Klaus Tennstedt) 20 February 1989 and 6 April 1991; and an overwhelming 2^nd (with extraordinary Simone Young) 17 October 2007… Thank you all! More to come, already booked for 2013. (Don Kelly, listening since 1958).

If you haven’t already you can get involved by giving us a present online. Don’t forget to tweet us when you have donated – #LPObirthday

80th Birthday Appeal

The London Philharmonic Orchestra celebrates its 80th Birthday this season, and we’re inviting everyone to give us a present!

We’ve identified some items that we really need, like new double bass stools, some percussion instruments, and a new computer server for the office….

To find out more, and to send us a present visit:  www.lpo.org.uk/birthday