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 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
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 3 August
Watch
Up on their roof, Principal Oboe Juliana Koch and Principal E-flat Clarinet Chi-Yu Mo perform Richard Rodney Bennett's Crosstalk, originally written for two clarinets. They also discover that there are never quite enough clothes pegs...
> See our previous Coffee Sessions
Tuesday 4 August
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 5 August
Listen
Our discographer Philip brings us another set of listening recommendations for the LSO's extensive archive.
> Read Philip's Archive Recommendations
Thursday 6 August
Watch
Our musicians were due to be coaching the fellows of Music Academy of the West in Santa Barbara, CA, this summer, but instead have taken part in their online academy. Meet the fellows chosen to visit London next year and watch a specially-recorded chamber concert by LSO players.
> Watch the concert
Friday 7 August
Watch
For the fourth instalment of our Summer Shorts series, we welcome LSO First Violin Rhys Watkins and his wife, cellist Rowena Calvert, to LSO St Luke's to perform works by Scarlatti, Wieniawski and Monti, among others, many of which have been specially arranged for Rhys and Rowena. Watch live on our YouTube channel at 1pm BST, and join in with a Q&A at the end of the concert.
> Read the digital programme notes
Saturday 8 August
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
Sunday 9 August
Listen
First Violin Maxine Kwok will be on Scala Radio 1–3pm to present 'Scala Radio celebrates John Williams'. Stories aplenty on working with the great maestro no doubt! Listen on DAB | Online | App | Smart Speaker | SKY TV.
Check out the latest LSO Live playlist, featuring the stars of the LSO brass section. Discover the versatility of the instruments.
> See all our LSO Live playlists
Last week's highlights
Monday 27 July
Watch
This week a string quartet featuring Clare Duckworth, Tom Norris, Malcolm Johnston and Eve-Marie Caravassilis have something a little different up their sleeves for this week's Coffee Session. Perfect for your mid-morning cuppa.
> See our previous Coffee Sessions
Tuesday 28 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 29 July
Listen
Our discographer Philip brings us another set of listening recommendations for the LSO's extensive archive.
> Read Philip's Archive Recommendations
Thursday 30 July
Read
First Violin Maxine Kwok has been chronicling her experience through lockdown, and in her latest blog talks about the experience of performing live to an audience again after four months.
> Read the full story on our blog
Friday 31 July
Watch
For the third instalment of our Summer Shorts series, we welcome Co-Leader Carmine Lauri and his daughter, Francesca, to LSO St Luke's for a performance of works by an array of composers, from Lili Boulanger to Tchaikovsky. Available to watch on YouTube until Friday 7 August.
> Read the digital programme notes
Saturday 1 August
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
Autumn 2020
Due to the continuing restrictions caused by Covid-19, the LSO’s planned concerts at the Barbican Centre, as well as Discovery Days and Singing Days at LSO St Luke’s, are unavoidably cancelled until 14 December. We will be continuing our programme of online performances throughout this period, presenting streamed chamber and orchestral concerts from LSO St Luke’s.
We are pleased to be continuing Always Playing throughout the Summer and Autumn. Staff at LSO St Luke’s have been working hard to get the building ready to safely welcome back musicians, staff and audience members, and the venue has recently been fitted with new technology from our Technical Partner, Yamaha Professional Audio, to enable us to achieve high-quality broadcast, recording and streaming.
Forthcoming highlights include:
- Summer Shorts
A series of short chamber-style concerts with LSO musicians and friends throughout July and August, streamed live from LSO St Luke’s every Friday at 1pm BST. - Chamber Music
Chamber music performances and broadcasts from LSO St Luke’s throughout the Autumn, including BBC Radio 3 Lunchtime Concerts and Discovery Friday Lunchtime Concerts. We will introduce smaller, socially distanced audiences as government guidelines allow. - Streamed Orchestral Concerts
From September, a programme of streamed orchestral concerts recorded at LSO St Luke’s. We will announce more details shortly.
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
