Orchestra of St John's
Encyclopedia
For forty years, Orchestra of St John's has been one of the most distinctive Orchestra
s in the United Kingdom
. Its ethos is underpinned by its breadth of activity which it has undertaken from concert
s all over the UK and abroad to its community projects – even recording award-winning rock albums.
“I founded the Orchestra because I wanted something that would be at the heart of the community, not just a part of the music scene”, wrote John Lubbock in 1967, the year that the Orchestra was founded.
At the heart of Orchestra of St John's are its musicians, many of whom have been with Lubbock since the early days. The Orchestra works with some of the UK’s top soloists including Dame Felicity Lott, Tasmin Little
, John Lill
and Stephen Kovacevich
, but are also committed to providing a platform for some of the most outstanding new musical talent emerging from the country, including performers such as Julian Bliss
and Chloë Hanslip
.
The Orchestra holds its own music festival each year at Dorchester Abbey
in Oxfordshire, now in its eleventh year, and regularly promotes concerts in London. These have included a one-hour series of early evening concerts at Cadogan Hall
as well as performances at St John's, Smith Square, the Southbank Centre and regular appearances at the BBC Proms.
The Orchestra has won awards for its work outside of the concert hall, in particular those involving the young, the homeless and those in prison or homes for the elderly. A particular focus at the moment is Music for Autism concerts for autistic children and their families and Moving Music for elderly people suffering from dementia, which was recently awarded Arts Council funding. The Orchestra regularly organises Come and Play and Come and Sing workshops to give amateurs the opportunity to work with its conductor and musicians. It also runs OSJ Soundynamics for corporate clients including Motorola and Lloyds TSB, which enables participants to explore their creativity to develop sustainable skills including teamwork, communication, time management and leadership.
With a reputation for commission and performing new music, the Orchestra has also featured on two albums by the rock group Radiohead
: the Grammy award-winning Kid A
and Grammy-nominated Amnesiac
. OSJ performed the première of Escape Velocity by Benjamin Wallfisch, our Associate Composer, at the 2006 BBC Proms festival
. The composer Matthew King
has recently collaborated with the orchestra and the savant pianist Derek Paravicini
on a new piano concerto entitled "Blue".
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
s in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. Its ethos is underpinned by its breadth of activity which it has undertaken from concert
Concert
A concert is a live performance before an audience. The performance may be by a single musician, sometimes then called a recital, or by a musical ensemble, such as an orchestra, a choir, or a musical band...
s all over the UK and abroad to its community projects – even recording award-winning rock albums.
“I founded the Orchestra because I wanted something that would be at the heart of the community, not just a part of the music scene”, wrote John Lubbock in 1967, the year that the Orchestra was founded.
At the heart of Orchestra of St John's are its musicians, many of whom have been with Lubbock since the early days. The Orchestra works with some of the UK’s top soloists including Dame Felicity Lott, Tasmin Little
Tasmin Little
Tasmin Little is an English violinist.She studied under Pauline Scott at the Yehudi Menuhin School and later at the Guildhall School of Music, coming to prominence as a string section finalist in the 1982 BBC Young Musician of the Year competition...
, John Lill
John Lill
John Lill CBE is an English classical pianist.-Biography:Lill studied at the Royal College of Music and with Wilhelm Kempff. His talent emerged at an early age, as he gave his first piano recital at the age of nine. At age 18, he performed Rachmaninoff's 3rd Piano Concerto under Sir Adrian Boult...
and Stephen Kovacevich
Stephen Kovacevich
Stephen Kovacevich , who has also been known as Stephen Bishop and Stephen Bishop-Kovacevich is an American classical pianist and conductor.-Biography:...
, but are also committed to providing a platform for some of the most outstanding new musical talent emerging from the country, including performers such as Julian Bliss
Julian Bliss
Julian Bliss is a British clarinetist and clarinet designer. He has performed both as a soloist and as a chamber musician, notably with his teacher Sabine Meyer...
and Chloë Hanslip
Chloe Hanslip
Chloë Elise Hanslip is a British violinist.Chloë was born in Guildford, Surrey and has been playing the violin since she was two. At the age of four she performed solo at the Purcell Room. When she was five she performed for Yehudi Menuhin and subsequently, at his invitation, studied with Natasha...
.
The Orchestra holds its own music festival each year at Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey
Dorchester Abbey is a Church of England parish church in Dorchester on Thames, Oxfordshire, about southeast of Oxford. It was formerly a Norman abbey church and was built on the site of a Saxon cathedral.-History:...
in Oxfordshire, now in its eleventh year, and regularly promotes concerts in London. These have included a one-hour series of early evening concerts at Cadogan Hall
Cadogan Hall
Cadogan Hall is a 900-seat capacity concert hall on Sloane Terrace in Chelsea / Belgravia in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, United Kingdom...
as well as performances at St John's, Smith Square, the Southbank Centre and regular appearances at the BBC Proms.
The Orchestra has won awards for its work outside of the concert hall, in particular those involving the young, the homeless and those in prison or homes for the elderly. A particular focus at the moment is Music for Autism concerts for autistic children and their families and Moving Music for elderly people suffering from dementia, which was recently awarded Arts Council funding. The Orchestra regularly organises Come and Play and Come and Sing workshops to give amateurs the opportunity to work with its conductor and musicians. It also runs OSJ Soundynamics for corporate clients including Motorola and Lloyds TSB, which enables participants to explore their creativity to develop sustainable skills including teamwork, communication, time management and leadership.
With a reputation for commission and performing new music, the Orchestra has also featured on two albums by the rock group Radiohead
Radiohead
Radiohead are an English rock band from Abingdon, Oxfordshire, formed in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke , Jonny Greenwood , Ed O'Brien , Colin Greenwood and Phil Selway .Radiohead released their debut single "Creep" in 1992...
: the Grammy award-winning Kid A
Kid A
Kid A is the fourth studio album by the English rock band Radiohead, released in October 2000 by the Parlophone label. A commercial success worldwide, Kid A went platinum in its first week of release in the United Kingdom. Despite the lack of an official single or music video as publicity, Kid A...
and Grammy-nominated Amnesiac
Amnesiac
Amnesiac was generally well-received by critics. It was also ranked as one of the best albums of the year by several publications. The Village Voice Pazz and Jop poll ranked it number 6 on their top 10 albums of the year. Alternative Press declared it the #1 album of the year...
. OSJ performed the première of Escape Velocity by Benjamin Wallfisch, our Associate Composer, at the 2006 BBC Proms festival
Night of the Proms
Night of the Proms is a series of concerts held yearly in Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark and Poland. Regularly there are also shows in France, Spain, Austria, Switzerland and Luxembourg...
. The composer Matthew King
Matthew King
Matthew Thomas King is a fictional character from the British soap opera Emmerdale played by Matt Healy. First appearing in 2004, Matthew arrived as part of the King family, a family of successful businessmen....
has recently collaborated with the orchestra and the savant pianist Derek Paravicini
Derek Paravicini
Derek Paravicini is a blind English autistic savant and a musical prodigy. He lives in Surrey.-Biography:Paravicini was born extremely prematurely, at 25 weeks . His blindness was caused by oxygen therapy given during his time in a neonatal intensive care unit...
on a new piano concerto entitled "Blue".