The History of LSO Live

Hello both! Thank you very much for meeting with us. Clive, could you start by telling us what prompted the LSO to start their own record label back in 1999? 

CLIVE: In the 90s, it was becoming increasingly clear that the market for classical music CDs was going to start diminishing, since most of the repertoire had already been recorded, and much of it many times over. That was one big factor. The other was, when you’re recording for recording companies, you tend to have to record whatever it is that fills a gap in their catalogue, but you can’t necessarily record what’s important for the orchestra. So, it was the combination of the two things. 

I was discussing the idea with the orchestra for two or three years, and initially it was difficult to persuade the union to accept the players doing it for no money, but just the share of profits, if there were a profit. That, understandably, was a huge gulf for the union to cross at that time. 

Then we had to agree that none of our guest artists would be paid—if the players were not paid and would instead receive a share of profits, it should be the same for everyone. There were a few artists who were reluctant to join at the beginning, but almost everybody joined once they saw the success of the label. 

Eventually, the union reached an understanding of where the market was going to go and that we needed to do this, both to make sure we continued to be recorded, and to make sure that what was recorded represented our artistic vision. 

Could you tell us about the first recording projects the label worked on? 

CLIVE: In the end, the early years turned out to be a huge hurry. For me, the reason was that I wanted to capture Colin Davis’ Berlioz cycle, because I felt that was a piece of LSO history. If we didn’t capture it then, we would probably never have the chance to do this with Colin again! 

The Trojans was the first work we recorded. At the time, I talked to people about how they expected the recording to do, and they said ‘well, perhaps you can sell a few thousand CDs.’ It was 60,000 in the first year! 

One of the key things we did – and I was really keen for this to be the case – was to sell LSO Live at a price that was accessible, so that it wasn’t a considered purchase, it could be a whim purchase. A lot of CDs were at least double the price of what we were charging, but to get into the market and establish ourselves I felt we had to be very accessible. We wanted people to say ‘well, it’s the price of a beer.’

Kathryn, would you say this ethos around accessibility has remained with the LSO since then? 

KATHRYN: Accessibility across all our work is key and has informed so much of what we do. As Clive says, LSO Live was set up with the same values, and that’s something that has been sustained throughout the history of the label. 

We do our utmost to ensure that people can access our work at affordable prices, and I think we’ve been able to use the digital aspect of LSO Live to really good effect. In many ways, that’s where we’ve seen the most ambition in terms of accessibility and reach. It has really complemented the philosophy that underpins everything we do across live concerts and our LSO Discovery programme.

What have been the major changes and milestones over LSO Live’s more recent years? 

KATHRYN: I think for me, the move into audio-visual production has been an important way to reach a much wider audience. We struggled for some years to find the right model, and it was only through a major fundraising campaign to cover the costs of production that the model then became viable. We were just starting to create a proper repertoire of audiovisual recordings when the pandemic struck, and that suddenly became our principal way of keeping in touch with our audiences – it was much more important than we could have ever imagined! 

Since then, our approach to filming and distribution has become even more sophisticated, allowing us to license our content to different platforms. We also tested different ways to make our own filming unique – I’ll never forget the first time I saw the conductor’s expression on camera, as if looking through the eyes of the musician. I think it helps you to hear things differently. 

We are now making another new step into documentaries with Sir Antonio Pappano which I find really exciting for the future—not only do we have the performance available, but we have the contextual material. We spoke about accessibility in price, but there’s also accessibility in content. I think Antonio has a way of talking to the audience that is quite unlike anyone else. He speaks about music in a very relatable way, and I think this will really broaden our reach in the years to come. 

One of the other major innovations of the last 15 years is our group of partner labels, which includes the Choir of King’s College Cambridge, The Cleveland Orchestra, percussionist Colin Currie, the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center, and most recently Melbourne Symphony Orchestra. We have become a port of call for people who have interesting ideas, and I think LSO Live has only been strengthened by this. I feel proud that the team has been able to develop a wide range of services and relationships to help make others successful, and I hope that the partner labels feel they’ve been able to gain from the experience that LSO Live has, but also keep their distinctiveness and forge their own paths. Together we’ve been able to widen our distribution and take a greater share of the market. 

Do either of you have any favourites from the LSO Live catalogue?  

CLIVE: Well, of course The Trojans, that was key. Also, the Sibelius cycle was very interesting because Colin had recorded it with the LSO for BMG, but he always said to me ‘I hate recording in the studio because you can’t perform properly. I need to be a performer.’ And so, we agreed we were going to do the Sibelius cycle again. 

I remember when we programmed it, saying to him ‘Colin, I know what the emotion is going to feel like at those concerts. You have to have encores ready.’ Orchestras don’t normally do encores in their home base but in this instance, we prepared them and the audience went wild! So, not only were they extraordinary concerts, but Colin was so much happier recording the Sibelius symphonies from live performances. For him that was a huge deal.

KATHRYN: As time has passed, having LSO Live has meant that we have a proper audio record of the main works different chief conductors have explored with the orchestra. As Clive mentioned, we have a real body of work with Sir Colin Davis now, and it was wonderful to see the Dvořák symphonies remastered this year—they were some of the earliest works we did with him. 

There were some really beautiful recordings made in Sir Simon Rattle’s time. I was just looking back at the triple bill of the Stravinsky Ballets, which was one of his first programmes in his inaugural week as Music Director. I still remember that concert live— it was absolutely electric, and the sheer energy and joy of that live performance comes across on the recording. 

Thanks to the label, we have created a digital record of what we did with all these amazing conducting figures. That goes also for the likes of Gianandrea Noseda, whose Shostakovich and Prokofiev cycles have really been the defining aspects of his tenure as Principal Guest Conductor. And now with Sir Antonio Pappano, I would say it’s the recording of Vaughan Williams Symphonies Nos 4 & 6 that stands out for me—it captured two extraordinary moments in the concert hall. Number four was on the eve of the 2019 general election, and then when we did the sixth symphony, it turned out to be the last concert we played before the pandemic. For both performances there was such an atmosphere of uncertainty and expectancy in the hall, and we’ve captured that. I think that’s why these recordings have been so well reviewed as well, because they were of their moment. 

I also wanted to mention the Panufnik Legacies recordings. Being able to capture the work of the young composers on the Helen Hamlyn Panufnik Composers’ Scheme has been really fascinating. It has become an encyclopedia of what new music is today, and it’s also an invaluable calling card for the young musicians themselves, so that is definitely a favourite for me. We’ve formed lasting relationships with many of the composers, a great example being the dynamic young artist Ayanna Witter-Johnson, who we’ve recently made a wonderful recording with, featuring the LSO Percussion Ensemble.  

Have you followed the work of LSO Live in the years since? What have you most enjoyed about watching from afar? 

CLIVE: The fact of the matter is that, at the time, it was a huge risk. We were the first major orchestra with its own label, and we had no idea whether it was going to work. So, to see it thrive in the way it has is very meaningful. 

One of the things that I loved about it was that all the discussions with the players at the beginning – where they were asking whether it was really going to be worth anything to them financially (this was their primary concern at the start) – these disappeared the minute the label launched. They were just so proud that LSO Live existed and their whole mentality changed completely. I certainly hadn’t anticipated that, but for them, they suddenly valued it – not because of the money, but because it was their own. They’d been willing to invest in their own future, and it made them a leader in the field. 

I’ll admit I don’t listen to every new recording, but it’s been fantastic to watch the breadth of repertoire, and the wonderful artists you’ve been working with and recording. The label has become something that has a life of its own, and I think the fact that the LSO still has a recording policy that’s directly related to its artistic policy means you can ensure that your recording output reflects what you believe in.

What can we expect from LSO Live over the coming years? 

KATHRYN: I’m excited to be planning our work into the next three to five years with some of the world’s most amazing artists, and I think the work that we’re doing to refurbish LSO St Luke’s and to equip it for the digital age is going to give us an amazing resource for making beautiful recordings, videos, documentaries and learning resources. There are so many new and developing technologies that we’re dipping our toes into at the moment, and having enhanced facilities at LSO St Luke’s will allow us to explore and deliver them, while continuing to do fantastic LSO Discovery projects in the community. 

LSO Live has been remarkably fortunate in having two fantastic leaders in the course of its 25-year history. Chaz Jenkins had a real entrepreneurial spirit and was able to drive the label forward in those early days. Handing over to Becky Lees in 2012 has allowed LSO Live to move up a gear and into another era, and the fact that they both built excellent teams around them has really been part of the label’s success story. Looking back, I think the LSO was incredibly brave to embrace LSO Live when it did, and to take that leap of faith. The Orchestra and staff have continued to invest their time and energy in the label since the beginning, and I hope they will do so for many years to come. 

Learn more about the 25th anniversary of LSO Live and explore the latest recordings