Founded by Harry Blech in 1949 as the UK’s first chamber orchestra, the London Mozart Players (LMP) has achieved international renown for its outstanding live performances and CD recordings of the core Classical repertoire. Music Directors have included Gérard Korsten, Andrew Parrott, Matthias Bamert and Jane Glover, who grew and developed the orchestra’s strong Classical tradition. The LMP enjoys connections with Hilary Davan Wetton as Associate Conductor, and Howard Shelley as Conductor Laureate, and continues to work closely with many of the world’s finest conductors and soloists, including Tasmin Little and Anthony Marwood. In 2015 the LMP appointed cellist Laura van der Heijden as its first Young Artist in Residence.
In addition the LMP also plays an active part in contemporary music, giving many world premières and commissioning new works, in recent years by composers including Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Tarik O’Regan, Sally Beamish, Cecilia McDowall, Lynne Plowman, Fraser Trainer and Jonathan Dove. In March 2011 the LMP appointed Roxanna Panufnik as Associate Composer.
The LMP has been committed to providing a platform for sharing the creative arts with schools and communities for over 25 years. LMP Voyager is an education and community hub which allows music to inspire, educate and enrich communities through an extensive programme of work across the UK.
The LMP has a vast programme of work in the community, from visiting daycare centres and care homes to providing community concerts for elderly and disabled people. The LMP is associated with Royal Holloway, University of London, Wellington College, the Portsmouth Grammar School and the Whitgift Foundation Schools in Croydon. Other ongoing ventures include concert demonstrations in primary and secondary schools.
Touring is a major part of the orchestra’s schedule, with regular appearances at festivals and concert series throughout the UK and abroad. Overseas, the LMP has visited China, Spain, Belgium, France and Germany. Recording has played a major part in the orchestra’s life for many years. A long relationship with Chandos includes many recordings of works by Haydn and Mozart and an acclaimed Contemporaries of Mozart series numbers over 20 CDs. New Naxos release Flowers of the Field in collaboration with City of London Choir, Roderick Williams and Hilary Davan Wetton reached No.1 in the Classical Album Charts.
The LMP enjoys the patronage of HRH The Earl of Wessex. In June 2014 the LMP began a new and exciting phase in its history, becoming the first chamber orchestra in the UK to be managed both operationally and artistically by the players.
Partner Website: http://londonmozartplayers.com/London Concert Choir concerts:
