At the LSO, we want to bring great music to everyone, everywhere – and that doesn’t stop while we’re unable to perform live. Even though concert halls are closed, we’re bringing the LSO to your living rooms, with a digital programme of full-length archive concerts, live lunchtime recitals, interviews, articles, playlists, and activities for young people and families.
Use the tabs below to browse the full programme, and see what’s coming up this week. Don’t forget to sign up to our mailing list to stay up-to-date, to follow us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and to subscribe on YouTube.
Browse the full programme
Archive Broadcasts on YouTube
On Friday 10 July we’re streaming a lunchtime concert from our archive on our YouTube channel, with introductions from our musicians and presenter Rachel Leach, and digital programme notes to guide you through the music.
> View the Full Schedule of broadcasts
Summer Shorts
From 17 July to 21 August live music will be returning to LSO St Luke's in our new Summer Shorts series. These short lunchtime recitals will be performed by LSO musicians and will be streamed live on our YouTube channel. Digital programme notes will be available, and each concert will be available for a week after the broadcast.
> View the full schedule of broadcasts
Coffee Sessions
Short performances, with music chosen by LSO musicians, performed and recorded at home. Coffee Sessions are released every Monday morning, and are the perfect length for you to grab a cup of coffee and take a short break.
> Watch all of our Coffee Sessions
LSO Discovery: Activities for Schools, Families and Young People
Fun, creative music-based tasks for young people, to continue learning whether you’re at home or at school.
> Explore our Resources
Read
Read a series of blog posts about life in lockdown by LSO Violinist Maxine Kwok, interviews, composer timelines and articles by music writers.
> Read them all on our blog
Listen
Get some listening inspiration from our themed playlists, recommendations, and our Discographer Philip Stuart’s picks from the archive.
> Get some listening inspiration
Watch
Delve deeper into the music with interviews, performances and behind-the-scenes clips from lockdown and from our archives.
> Explore our videos
Movie & Book Recommendations
Each week, we recommend one great film from the hundreds that the LSO has recorded music for. Plus our Stage Manager Nathan has brought together a selection of his favourite audiobooks.
> Explore our Movie Night Recommendations
> Join our Truck Drivers’ Book Club
This week
Monday 6 July
Watch
For this week's Coffee Session, we welcome LSO violin Rhys Watkins with his wife Rowie on cello (and their little baby cooing in the background! ), performing an arrangement by composer Simon Parkin of Paganini's Caprice No 24. Grab your flat white and enjoy!
> See our previous Coffee Sessions
Tuesday 7 July
Quiz
It’s Tuesday which can mean only one thing – our Classical pub quiz! Join us at 7pm (BST) on our Instagram stories.
> Take part in the quiz and see previous quizzes
Wednesday 8 July
Listen
Our discographer Philip brings us another set of listening recommendations for the LSO's extensive archive.
> Read Philip's Archive Recommendations
Thursday 9 July
Watch
Where's Simon, Part 2! If you enjoyed our online Family Concert in which the orchestra played a special performance of The Marriage of Figaro for Sir Simon Rattle's friend's wedding (depsite Simon not making the sectional rehearsals!), now you can play along.
> Watch Part 2 and download the play along parts
Friday 10 July
Watch
This week presenter Rachel Leach introduces a lunchtime concert from our archive, recorded at LSO St Luke's in November 2018 featuring Brahms' Trio for PIano, Horn and Violin performed by Naoko Keatley, Angela Barnes and Zeynep Özsuca.
> Watch on our YouTube channel
> Read the digital programme notes
> Explore our listening recommendations
Saturday 10 July
Watch
Settle in with some snacks for our weekly Movie Night Recommendation, taken from the many films the LSO has recorded the soundtrack for.
> See all our Movie Night Recommendations
Last week's highlights
Last week's highlights
Monday 29 June
Watch
On Monday you can see our 10th Coffee Session, which is a special New Music, New Ideas recording. Started in workshops as part of the LSO Panufnik Composers Scheme and completed in lockdown, Joe Bates’ Street Through A Window is a piece for de-tuned harp. Performed by the LSO’s Principal Harp Bryn Lewis, it is an evocation of the strange times we are living in.
> Watch the Coffee Session and hear from Bryn and Joe
Read
‘I wrote a scherzo which is subject to ‘chance’, with material which may, or may not, get played according to the performer as an individual. Performance directions like ‘play if you’re a man’, or ‘play if you have blue eyes’ divide players in the orchestral sections unnaturally.’ Read more about Cevanne Horrocks-Hopayian's Marx Brothers-inspired piece A Dancing Place, which features on the recently released Panufnik Legacies III.
Tuesday 30 June
Quiz
It’s Tuesday, which can only mean... LSO Classical Quiz Time! Join us on our Instagram stories from 7pm (BST).
> Take part in the quiz and see previous quizzes
Watch
The London Symphony Chorus was joined by musicians from the LSO for a digital performance of Never to Forget by composer Howard Goodall. Specially commissioned by the LSC, Never to Forget pays tribute to the first 122 NHS health and care workers who lost their lives in the COVID-19 pandemic. Join us on Sunday 5 July for the premiere of this powerful tribute.
Wednesday 1 July
Listen
This week, our discographer Philip suggests that you have a listen to an all-too-often neglected composer: Anton Webern. With around 30 works, lasting less than 4 hours in total, you could even binge listen to the whole lot today!
Get some more Webern in your life in this box set conducted by Pierre Boulez
Thursday 2 July
Listen
We asked if you could think of any pieces of music that related to the theme of 'architecture', and you blew us away with all of your responses!
> Have a listen to our playlist, based on your suggestions
Friday 3 July
Read
Today LSO violin Tom Norris and pianist Philip Moore perform in an archive broadcast recorded at LSO St Luke’s earlier this year. It features Bach, Stravinsky and Schnittke and you can read all about it in our digital programme notes.
> Read the digital programme notes
Saturday 4 July
Watch
For this week's Movie Night, how about taking a trip back to the prehistoric age for 'The Land Before Time'? With the combination of James Horner’s score and Diana Ross' iconic theme song, this film is every bit as thrilling and inspiring as you would expect for a story of Jurassic proportions!
> See all of our Movie Night Recommendations
Sunday 5 July
Listen
Tonight LSO Violinist Maxine Kwok presents Sunday Night Scala In the Orchestra, on Scala Radio. Tune in to hear her selection of music at 8pm (BST)
Support Us
We’re delighted to be able to share Always Playing for free. There are a number of ways that you can support the LSO through these difficult times, and help us to keep the music Always Playing. You can buy our music on LSO Live, become an LSO Friend, buy a ticket for a future concert, make a donation, and more.
> Find out more
