The BBC Radio Orchestra was a broadcasting orchestra based in London, maintained by the
British Broadcasting Corporation #REDIRECT BBC
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from 1964 until 1991.
The BBC Radio Orchestra was formed in 1964 as a large, flexible studio orchestra on the
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...
/
Henry Mancini
Henry Mancini ( ; born Enrico Nicola Mancini, ; April 16, 1924 – June 14, 1994) was an American composer, conductor, arranger, pianist and flautist. Often cited as one of the greatest composers in the history of film, he won four Academy Award ...
model, featuring a full jazz Big Band combined with symphonic strings.
The various sections of the Radio Orchestra, prefixed A-E, could be used for different kinds of recordings and sessions. Of all these sections, only the "C1" big band section of the Radio Orchestra had its own real identity and was known as the
BBC Radio Big Band. The orchestra’s primary function was to accompany popular singers in ‘cover versions’ and play instrumental arrangements of the popular tunes of the day on
BBC Radio 2
BBC Radio 2 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It is the most popular station in the United Kingdom with over 15 million weekly listeners. Since launching in 1967, the station broadcasts a wide range of content. ...
, as in the 1960s, broadcasting regulations meant the BBC was only allowed to play five hours of commercial gramophone records per day on air. However, the Radio Orchestra did play a great deal of
jazz
Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...
and
light music by leading light composers and arrangers including
Robert Farnon
Robert Joseph Farnon CM (24 July 191723 April 2005) was a Canadian-born composer, conductor, musical arranger and trumpet player. As well as being a composer of original works (often in the light music genre), he was commissioned by film and ...
,
Angela Morley
Angela Morley (10 March 192414 January 2009) was an English composer and conductor who became a familiar household name to BBC Radio listeners in the 1950s. She attributed her entry into composing and arranging largely to the influence and en ...
and
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...
,
Neil Richardson and
Ron Goodwin
Ronald Alfred Goodwin (17 February 19258 January 2003) was an English composer and conductor known for his film music. He scored over 70 films in a career lasting over fifty years. His most famous works included ''Where Eagles Dare'', ''Battle ...
and at its peak was considered one of the finest studio orchestras in the world.
The BBC Radio Orchestra was disbanded in 1991, with the BBC Big Band retained as a full-time ensemble till 1994 when the corporation made the band a freelance unit, whilst allowing it to retain its name and identity.
History
When the BBC Radio Popular Music department was formed in the early 1960s, it inherited both the BBC Revue Orchestra and the BBC Variety Orchestra. The Revue Orchestra started life as the
BBC Television Orchestra
The BBC Television Orchestra (1936–1939) was a broadcast orchestra founded in 1936 by conductor, violinist and composer Hyam Greenbaum and led by Boris Pecker. Hyam Greenbaum's wife Sidonie Goossens was the first solo harpist with the Orchest ...
in 1936, founded and conducted by
Hyam Greenbaum
Hyam 'Bumps' Greenbaum (12 May 1901 – 13 May 1942) was an English conductor, violinist and composer, who, in 1936, became the world's first conductor of a television orchestra. He was friendly with many of his English music contemporaries, incl ...
. There were 28 players. It was disbanded in September 1939 on the outbreak of war, but Greenbaum used a nucleus of its players to form the BBC Revue Orchestra, playing light variety music for BBC radio from its base in
Bangor, North Wales.
Harry Rabinowitz
Harry Rabinowitz MBE (26 March 1916 – 22 June 2016) was a South African-British conductor and composer of film and television music. Born in Johannesburg, South Africa, he was the son of Israel and Eva Rabinowitz. He was educated at the Univ ...
was its conductor between 1953 and 1960.
The BBC Variety Orchestra was formed in 1934 with Kneale Kelly as its first conductor until 1936, when
Charles Shadwell took over for a decade.
Rae Jenkins
Rae Jenkins , born Henry Horatio Jenkins (19 April 1903 – 29 March 1985) was a Welsh violinist and later conductor of light music, notably with the BBC Midland Light Orchestra (1942–1946), the BBC Variety Orchestra
(from 1946), and as pr ...
succeeded Shadwell in 1946.
[Philip L. Scowcroft, "A Twenty-Third Garland of British Light Music Composers", ''Music Web International'']
Retrieved 25 March 2021
The two ensembles had similar instrumentation and virtually duplicated each other's outputs, so the department immediately began to investigate their possible amalgamation. Michael Standing, the then head of sound broadcasting at the BBC, suggested creating an orchestra that would form a flexible pool of players that could be used for various combinations. The complete listing of the proposed combinations which could be formed out of the 56 musicians who were to make up the new orchestra, comprised, in addition to the full "A" orchestra, no fewer than 10 separate combinations across four groups, B, C, D and E.
On 9 September 1964, Mark White (Organiser, Popular Music Services) produced what was possibly the smallest memo ever sent within the BBC, with the subject "New Aeolian Hall Orchestra", stating definitively that "It has now been decided that the title of the New Aeolian Hall Orchestra will be The Radio Orchestra. Unfortunately the effect was spoilt by the insertion in red ink of the word New between The and Radio ! The orchestra made its first broadcast as part of the
BBC Light Programme
The BBC Light Programme was a national radio station which broadcast chiefly mainstream light entertainment and light music from 1945 until 1967, when it was replaced by BBC Radio 2 and BBC Radio 1. It opened on 29 July 1945, taking over the ...
show ''Sunday Best'' on 18 October 1964. It continued to be billed as the New Radio Orchestra until the end of 1965.
Sections of the Radio Orchestra
The A Orchestra
Initially, the Radio Orchestra had 56 full time staff players, comprising
*20 violins
*6 violas
*6 cellos
*2 orchestral basses
*Flute/piccolo/bass flute
*Flute/clarinet/alto saxophone
*Oboe/Cor Anglais
*5 Saxophones, all doubling woodwinds
*4 Trumpets
*4 Trombones (including 1 bass trombone)
*2 Percussion (drums and auxiliary percussion)
*Piano
*Rhythm /jazz bass
*Harp
*Guitar
In addition, the Radio Orchestra was often augmented with extra strings, four French Horns, Tuba, bassoons and extra percussion making the full ensemble up to almost 70 players. The only studio large enough for the A1 orchestra was the Camden, and in May 1967 a series of recording sessions with a range of conductors – one each week - was scheduled. Titled “This is the Radio Orchestra”, the series was produced by John Billingham and introduced by
Michael Aspel
Michael Terence Aspel (born 12 January 1933) is an English retired television newsreader and host of programmes such as '' Crackerjack'', ''Aspel & Company'', ''Give Us a Clue'', '' This is Your Life'', '' Strange but True?'' and ''Antiques Ro ...
. The Studio Manager was John Andrews, and the conductors, who brought their own arrangements, included
Ron Goodwin
Ronald Alfred Goodwin (17 February 19258 January 2003) was an English composer and conductor known for his film music. He scored over 70 films in a career lasting over fifty years. His most famous works included ''Where Eagles Dare'', ''Battle ...
,
John Fox, John Gregory,
Roland Shaw
Roland Shaw (born Roland Edgar Shaw-Tomkins; 26 May 1920 – 11 May 2012) was an English composer, musical arranger, and orchestra leader.
Shaw was born in Leicester and attended the Trinity College of Music. He served in the Royal Air Force in ...
,
Frank Chacksfield
Francis Charles Chacksfield (9 May 1914 – 9 June 1995) was an English pianist, organist, composer, arranger, and conductor of popular light orchestral easy listening music, who had great success in Britain and internationally in the 1950s and e ...
, “Monty” Mantovani,
Johnny Harris,
Geoff Love
Geoffrey Love (4 September 1917 – 8 July 1991) was a prolific British arranger and composer of easy listening and pop versions of film themes. He became famous in the late 1950s, playing under the pseudonym of Manuel and The Music of The Mo ...
and, with his Frank Sinatra arrangements, Nelson Riddle. The orchestra’s first staff conductor was
Malcolm Lockyer
Malcolm Neville Lockyer (5 October 1923 – 28 June 1976) was a British film composer and conductor.
Biography
Lockyer was born in Greenwich, London, England. In his early years he developed an interest in dance and from here gathered an interest ...
, who had previously conducted the Revue Orchestra. When the Camden studios closed, the Radio Orchestra and Big Band moved operation to the BBC’s
Maida Vale Studios
Maida Vale Studios is a complex of seven BBC sound studios, of which five are in regular use, in Delaware Road, Maida Vale, west London.
It has been used to record thousands of classical music, popular music and drama sessions for BBC Radio 1, ...
, namely studio MV3, alongside the BBC Symphony Orchestra.
The B1 and B2 Orchestras
The B1 Orchestra, with a complement of 30, was effectively a big band with strings in the
Billy May
Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''The Mod Squad'' (1968), ''Batman'' (with '' Batgirl'' them ...
/
Nelson Riddle
Nelson Smock Riddle Jr. (June 1, 1921 – October 6, 1985) was an American arranger, composer, bandleader and orchestrator whose career stretched from the late 1940s to the mid-1980s. He worked with many world-famous vocalists at Capitol Records ...
style, with 5 saxes, 4 trumpets, 4 trombones, piano, guitar, bass, drums, 10 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellos. All the players in the sax section played one or more other instruments including flutes, piccolo, clarinets and different varieties of saxophones, and the pianist was surrounded by a celeste, an upright "jangle" piano and often an electric organ. This totals 31, as the guitar was an official "augmentation". This lineup was unofficially titled the Radio Showband by radio producers and music staff, as it had the same instrumentation as the BBC Showband of the late 1950s. This was also the full line up of the
BBC Scottish Radio Orchestra
The BBC Scottish Radio Orchestra (SRO) was a light music broadcasting orchestra based in Glasgow, Scotland, maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation from 1940 until disbandment in 1981.
History
Established by the BBC in 1940 as the S ...
.
The B2 Orchestra, with a complement of 26, used the components of the A Orchestra not required for the B1, which resulted in a line-up of 10 violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, 2 basses, 2 flutes, oboe, percussion, harp and guitar.
The C1 and C2 Orchestras
The C1's 16 players formed the same big band as that which was the basis of the B1, augmented by a guitar, and was known as the
BBC Radio Big Band. This left 40 players for the C2, which gave a very good
Frank Chacksfield
Francis Charles Chacksfield (9 May 1914 – 9 June 1995) was an English pianist, organist, composer, arranger, and conductor of popular light orchestral easy listening music, who had great success in Britain and internationally in the 1950s and e ...
style orchestra of 20 violins, 6 violas, 6 cellos, 2 basses, 2 flutes, oboe, percussion, harp and guitar, with the augmentation of a piano. One of the basses would be a jazz ‘rhythm’ player. The Stings of the Radio Orchestra were often conducted by arrangers including
John Fox, John Gregory, Ronnie Aldrich and
Neil Richardson
D1, D2 and D3 Orchestras
The D1 orchestra was identical to the C1, and the D2 was the same combination as the B2 but less one bass and plus a piano. This left the D3 comprising the string section of the B1 orchestra (10 violins, 2 violas and 2 cellos) plus a bass - not a particularly useful combination. In practice, BBC producers moved four of the violins into the D2 to match the arrangements used by
Semprini
Alberto Fernando Riccardo Semprini (27 March 1908 – 19 January 1990), known as Alberto Semprini (), or by his stage name Semprini, was an English pianist, composer and conductor, known for his appearances on the BBC, mainly on radio.
Ea ...
, and the "leftover" strings were utilised by pianist/arranger Ken Moule, with the addition of a drummer.
E1, E2 and E3 Orchestras
These three combinations were proposed during the planning of the re-organisation but were never implemented.
The E1 (7 players) was to comprise 4 trumpets, an electric organ, bass and drums. The E2 (29 players) was the largest combination, with 10 violins, 4 violas, 4 cellos, 2 flutes, oboe, 4 trombones, percussion, harp, guitar and piano, with the addition of a bass. The E3 (20 players) would have 10 violins, 2 violas, 2 cellos, bass and 5 saxes. A footnote suggested that the trombone and sax sections could be interchanged between the combinations. It does not seem surprising that no E orchestra sessions ever took place!
Arrangements for various sections of the Radio Orchestra were utilised across BBC’s Regional Radio Orchestras: The B1, B2, C1, C2 and D combinations matched the line up of the largest regional orchestra, the
BBC Scottish Radio Orchestra
The BBC Scottish Radio Orchestra (SRO) was a light music broadcasting orchestra based in Glasgow, Scotland, maintained by the British Broadcasting Corporation from 1940 until disbandment in 1981.
History
Established by the BBC in 1940 as the S ...
, which would occasionally receive augmentation to A size. The BBC Northern Radio Orchestra (previously the
BBC Northern Dance Orchestra
The BBC Northern Dance Orchestra was a big band run by the BBC and formed in 1956 as the successor to the BBC's Northern Variety Orchestra, which had been formed on 1 April 1951. Known to listeners as the NDO, it broadcast on the radio daily, usual ...
) utilised C and D combinations, as did the BBC Midland Radio Orchestra.
Closure
In a change of musical policy at the BBC, the corporation disbanded many of its light orchestras in 1979, including the regional Radio Orchestras, resulting in a dispute with the
Musicians' Union that disrupted
the Proms
The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...
that year.
The BBC Radio Orchestra survived, but no Principal Conductor had ever been appointed to the orchestra. In 1988, the Controller of Radio 2, Frances Line, decided that such a position should be created, and Iain Sutherland, who had been the regular conductor of "Friday Night Is Music Night", and many other shows, was appointed. New, regular programmes were created showcasing the versatility and range of the Radio Orchestra with great success,but quite suddenly, it was disbanded in 1991. The BBC Big Band was, however, retained as a full-time staff ensemble until 1994, when the staff musicians were made freelance players, and the management of the band was moved outside the BBC.
[Michael Leapman, ''BBC to scrap Radio Orchestra in pounds £75m cuts package'', ''The Independent'' (London), 27 January 1990]
References
External links
BBC Radio 2 Big Band Special
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bbc Radio Orchestra
Radio Orchestra
A radio orchestra (or broadcast orchestra) is an orchestra employed by a radio network (and sometimes television networks) in order to provide programming as well as sometimes perform incidental or theme music for various shows on the network. In ...
BBC Radio
British symphony orchestras
Radio and television orchestras
Disbanded orchestras
1965 establishments in the United Kingdom
1991 disestablishments in the United Kingdom
Musical groups established in 1965
Musical groups disestablished in 1991