Philharmonia Orchestra    
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The Philharmonia was founded in 1945
by EMI producer Walter Legge, and
has worked with a who’s who of 20th-
and 21st-century musicians. Finnish
conductor Santtu-Matias Rouvali took
up the baton as Principal Conductor
in September 2021. The sixth person
to hold the title, he is known for his
expressive, balletic conducting style
and irrepressible energy.
Herbert von Karajan, Otto Klemperer,
Wilhelm Furtwängler, Arturo Toscanini,
Riccardo Muti and Esa-Pekka Salonen
are just a few of the great artists to be
associated with the Philharmonia, and
the Orchestra has premiered works
by Richard Strauss, Sir Peter Maxwell
Davies, Errollyn Wallen, Kaija Saariaho
and many others.
Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival
Hall, in the heart of London, has been
the Philharmonia’s home since 1995.
The Orchestra also has residencies
at venues and festivals across
England, each embracing a Learning
& Engagement programme that
empowers people to engage with,
and participate in, orchestral music.
The Philharmonia’s international
reputation is built in part on its
extraordinary 79-year recording legacy,
which in the last ten years has been
built on by pioneering work with digital
technology. The Orchestra’s installations
and VR experiences have introduced
hundreds of thousands of people to the
symphony orchestra. The Philharmonia
has won four Royal Philharmonic Society
awards for its digital projects and
audience engagement work. The Philharmonia is the go-to
orchestra for many film and videogame
composers in the UK and Hollywood,
and its music-making has been
experienced by millions of cinema-
goers and gamers. It has recorded
over 150 soundtracks, with film
credits stretching back to 1947. Since
2023, the Orchestra has released
live recordings on its own label,
Philharmonia Records, in collaboration
with Signum Records.
The Philharmonia has over 2m
listeners each month on Spotify,
and a vibrant YouTube channel
with over 140,000 subscribers. The
channel features free performances;
instrument guides; interviews with
artists; and in-depth documentaries.
The Philharmonia is an official
partner of Classic FM and broadcasts
extensively on BBC Radio 3.
The Philharmonia is a registered charity,
proud to be supported by Arts Council
England, many generous individuals,
corporate supporters and Trusts and
Foundations.
A team of 80 outstanding musicians
from 16 countries, the Philharmonia
looks forward to bringing music into
your life, through great concerts,
recordings and ground-breaking
projects, for many years to come.
