Discography
Over 100 years and more than 2,700 recordings.
Our Discography
Our discography contains details of every recording session the Orchestra has undertaken and is a document that charts the history of recorded classical music from the infancy of the technology to the present day. It details the where, when, who and what of our recordings – from core classical works to pop crossovers, films sessions to video games – along with the details of subsequent releases and reissues. The discography also lists the recordings physically held in our archives, and indeed those we have not been able to locate.
Try looking up the first LSO disc you bought. Search for artists, repertoire and record labels or discover where the Orchestra has made its recordings (not just Abbey Road, but more than a hundred different venues over the years). You may find that you can re-hear a concert you attended at the Barbican, the Proms or long ago at the Royal Festival Hall.
First published for our centenary in 2004, compiled by Philip Stuart, the discography continues to be updated with our latest sessions and revised as new information comes to light. If you are able to assist in filling in the gaps, either with information or a donation of recordings, please email philip.stuart@lso.co.uk.
Discography Highlights
The official opening of Abbey Road Studios, 11 & 12 November 1931
Edward Elgar conducted Land of Hope and Glory, Nursery Suite and Falstaff for visitors. A Pathé news reel documented the occasion.
The 15-year-old Yehudi Menuhin’s first concerto recording, 25 & 26 November 1931
Bruch’s Violin Concerto conducted by Landon Ronald.
Sergei Prokofiev recording his own Third Piano Concerto, 27 & 28 June 1932
Conducted by Piero Coppola. The discography notes that Prince George made a visit to the studio during these sessions, and that the visit was filmed.
Elgar’s last recording before he died, 22 January 1934
The discography notes that Elgar was too ill to leave home in Worcester, and so the sessions were relayed to him there so he could supervise. The Orchestra was conducted by the producer Lawrance Collingwood.
Polish propaganda recorded during World War II, 5 March 1945
Polish works recorded by Polish musicians, paid for by the Polish government’s Ministry of Information while in exile in London.
Pinchas Zukerman’s first recording, 16 & 17 December 1968
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto conducted by Antal Dorati. Zuckerman was a last minute replacement for Raymond Lewenthal who had been taken ill.
Ravi Shankar’s Sitar Concerto, 29 & 30 May 1971
An LSO commission.
André Previn’s Music Night album, 15 & 16 May 1974
An album of music to accompany the hit BBC TV series that ran 1971–78.
Classic Rock, 1976 onwards
The first sessions of the perennially popular Classic Rock albums took place in 1976 and continued into the 1990s.
Simon Rattle’s first recording with the LSO and the legend that followed, 7–9 July 1977
The 22-year-old Rattle was a late replacement for Louis Frémaux. Rumour has it that he and the Orchestra did not get on and he refused to conduct the Orchestra for many years afterwards.
The first digital recordings made in the UK, October 1978
It was still more than four years before analogue recording was superseded.
The first recording for LSO Live, September 1999
Sir Colin Davis’ Barbican performance of Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 in the autumn of 1999 is the first to be released on the Orchestra’s own label later that year.
