Great Marlborough Street, Soho (33100262490)

The Royal Philharmonic Society (RPS) is a British

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

society, formed in 1813. Its original purpose was to promote performances of instrumental music in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. Many

composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and Defi ...

s and performers have taken part in its concerts. It is now a membership society, and while it no longer has its own orchestra, it continues a wide-ranging programme of activities which focus on composers and young musicians and aim to engage audiences so that future generations will enjoy a rich and vibrant musical life. Since 1989, the RPS has promoted the annual

Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards The Royal Philharmonic Society Music Awards are given annually for live classical music-making in the United Kingdom. The awards were first held in 1989 and are independent of any commercial interest. Since 2003, BBC Radio 3 has been the media ...

for live music-making in the United Kingdom. The RPS is a registered UK charity No. 213693, located at 48 Great Marlborough Street in London. The current chief executive of the RPS is James Murphy, and its current chairman is

John Gilhooly John Gilhooly, , OSI (born 15 August 1973, Castleconnell, County Limerick, Ireland) is a British and Irish arts administrator. He is currently artistic and executive director of Wigmore Hall. Education Gilhooly was educated at Lisnagry National ...

History

In London, at a time when there were no permanent London orchestras, nor organised series of

chamber music Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numb ...

concerts, a group of thirty music professionals formed the ''Philharmonic Society of London'' on 6 February 1813. The idea was that by cooperating, they could build a stronger orchestra than by competing against one another. However, given the organization's choice to hold its concerts at the

Argyll Rooms The Argyll Rooms (sometimes spelled Argyle) was an entertainment venue on Little Argyll Street, Regent Street, London, England, opened in 1806. It was rebuilt in 1818 due to the design of Regent Street. It burned down in 1830, but was rebuilt, bu ...

, it is likely that the society was initiated because of John Nash's bold urban redesign of

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...

. In this way, the society would gain an impressive performing space once the old Argyll Rooms had to be rebuilt due to the Regent Street plan, and

Prince regent A prince regent or princess regent is a prince or princess who, due to their position in the line of succession, rules a monarchy as regent in the stead of a monarch regnant, e.g., as a result of the sovereign's incapacity (minority or illness ...

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

could promote classical music as a British institution and thereby improve his reputation. Concerts were held in the Argyll Rooms until it burned down in 1830. The Society's aim was "to promote the performance, in the most perfect manner possible of the best and most approved instrumental music". The first concert, on 8 March 1813, was presided over by

Johann Peter Salomon Johann Peter Salomon (20 February 1745 aptized– 28 November 1815) was a German violinist, composer, conductor and musical impresario. Although he was an accomplished violinist, he is best known for bringing Joseph Haydn to London and for c ...

, with Muzio Clementi at the piano and the violin prodigy

Nicolas Mori Nicolas Mori (24 January 1796 – 14 June 1839) was an Anglo-Italian violinist, music publisher and conductor. Once regarded as the finest violinist in Europe, Mori was somewhat overshadowed by the rise of Paganini. Life Born in London, the son ...

as lead violinist, performing symphonies by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

and

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

. Among the founders were the pianist and violinist

William Dance William Dance (20 December 1755 – 5 June 1840) was an English pianist and violinist. Life William Dance was the grandson of the architect George Dance (c.1694–1768). His father was the actor James Dance (1721–1774) and his mother may have ...

(who became the society's first director and treasurer until his death in 1840), composer Henry Bishop, and

Charles Neate Charles Neate (1806–1879) was an English politician and academic, economist and political writer. Life He was the fifth of the eleven children of Thomas Neate, rector and squire of Alvescot, Oxfordshire, and his wife Catherine, born at Adsto ...

, a pianist and friend of Beethoven, who publicised Beethoven's music at the Society. The Society asked Beethoven to come to London, but the composer's health prevented his accepting the invitation. However the society's request for a new symphony from him resulted in the '' Choral Symphony''. In 1827 Beethoven wrote to the society outlining his straitened circumstances; at a special general meeting the society resolved to send the composer £100 immediately (;

George Bernard Shaw George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 – 2 November 1950), known at his insistence simply as Bernard Shaw, was an Irish playwright, critic, polemicist and political activist. His influence on Western theatre, culture and politics extended from ...

once referred to this as "the only entirely creditable incident in English history"). Other works written for the Society include the '' Italian Symphony'' by

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

. Distinguished conductors included Ludwig Spohr, one of the first conductors to use a baton,

Hector Berlioz In Greek mythology, Hector (; grc, Ἕκτωρ, Hektōr, label=none, ) is a character in Homer's Iliad. He was a Trojan prince and the greatest warrior for Troy during the Trojan War. Hector led the Trojans and their allies in the defense o ...

, who conducted a concert of his works in 1853,

Richard Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, polemicist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most op ...

, who conducted the whole 1855 season of orchestral concerts, William Sterndale Bennett for the following ten years,

Arthur Sullivan Sir Arthur Seymour Sullivan (13 May 1842 – 22 November 1900) was an English composer. He is best known for 14 comic opera, operatic Gilbert and Sullivan, collaborations with the dramatist W. S. Gilbert, including ''H.M.S. Pinaf ...

, and Tchaikovsky, who conducted his own works in 1888 and 1893. From 1830 to 1869, the Society gave its concerts in the concert-hall of Hanover Square Rooms, which had seating for only about 800. The Society decided to move permanently to St James's Hall, and a complimentary additional concert, held at the hall, was given to its subscribers at the end of the 1868–69 season.

Charles Santley Sir Charles Santley (28 February 1834 – 22 September 1922) was an English opera and oratorio singer with a ''bravura''From the Italian verb ''bravare'', to show off. A florid, ostentatious style or a passage of music requiring technical skill ...

, Charles Hallé,

Thérèse Tietjens Thérèse Carolina Johanne Alexandra Tietjens (17 July 1831, Hamburg3 October 1877, London) was a leading opera and oratorio soprano. She made her career chiefly in London during the 1860s and 1870s, but her sequence of musical triumphs in th ...

and

Christina Nilsson Christina Nilsson, Countess de Casa Miranda, also called Christine Nilsson (20 August 1843 – 22 November 1921) was a Swedish dramatic coloratura soprano. Possessed of a pure and brilliant voice of first three then two and a half octaves tra ...

were the soloists. When the move was made, the Society remodelled its charges to obtain a wider audience and compete with

the Crystal Palace The Crystal Palace was a cast iron and plate glass structure, originally built in Hyde Park, London, Hyde Park, London, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. The exhibition took place from 1 May to 15 October 1851, and more than 14,000 exhibit ...

and other large venues, and introduced annotated programmes. The Society remained at the hall until 28 February 1894, when it moved to the Queen's Hall. The society became the ''Royal Philharmonic Society'' during its 100th concert season in 1912, and continued organising concerts through the two world wars. It is now a membership society which "seeks to create a future for music through the encouragement of creativity, the recognition of excellence and the promotion of understanding." * ''See Works commissioned by the RPS for a list of works commissioned by or dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic Society.''

The Gold Medal

The Gold Medal was first awarded in 1871. The medal depicts the profile of a bust of Beethoven by Johann Nepomuk Schaller (1777–1842) which was presented to the society in 1870, Beethoven's centenary. It is awarded for "outstanding musicianship", and is given rarely – in 2015 the medal was awarded for the hundredth time.

Recipients

* 1871 ** Sir William Sterndale Bennett **

** Charles Gounod ** Joseph Joachim **

Helen Lemmens-Sherrington Helen Lemmens-Sherrington (4 October 1834 – 9 May 1906) was an English concert and operatic soprano prominent from the 1850s to the 1880s. Born in northern England, she spent much of her childhood and later life in Belgium, where she studied at ...

Arabella Goddard Arabella Goddard (12 January 18366 April 1922) was an English pianist. She was born and died in France. Her parents, Thomas Goddard, an heir to a Salisbury cutlery firm, and Arabella née Ingles, were part of an English community of expatriat ...

** Sir

William Cusins Sir William George Cusins (14 October 183331 August 1893) was an English pianist, violinist, organist, conductor and composer. Biography Born in London, Cusins entered the Chapel Royal in his tenth year and studied music in Brussels under Fran ...

** Felix Janiewicz ** Fanny Linzbauer (the donor of the bust of Beethoven) * 1872 **

Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa Euphrosyne Parepa-Rosa (7 May 1836 – 21 January 1874) was a British operatic soprano who established the Carl Rosa Opera Company together with her husband Carl Rosa. Parepa's Boyars of Wallachia and Moldavia, aristocratic father died soon afte ...

* 1873 ** Hans von Bülow * 1876 ** Louisa Bodda-Pyne ** Anton Rubinstein * 1877 **

Johannes Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid- Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped wit ...

* 1880 ** Stanley Lucas * 1895 **

Adelina Patti Adelina Patti (19 February 184327 September 1919) was an Italian 19th-century opera singer, earning huge fees at the height of her career in the music capitals of Europe and America. She first sang in public as a child in 1851, and gave her la ...

* 1897 ** Dame

Emma Albani Dame Emma Albani, DBE (born Marie-Louise-Emma-Cécile Lajeunesse; 1 November 18473 April 1930) was a Canadian-British operatic soprano of the 19th century and early 20th century, and the first Canadian singer to become an international star. He ...

** Ignacy Jan Paderewski * 1900 ** Edward Lloyd * 1901 **

Eugène Ysaÿe Eugène-Auguste Ysaÿe (; 16 July 185812 May 1931) was a Belgian virtuoso violinist, composer, and conductor. He was regarded as "The King of the Violin", or, as Nathan Milstein put it, the "tsar". Legend of the Ysaÿe violin Eugène Ysaÿe ...

* 1902 ** Jan Kubelík * 1903 ** Dame Clara Butt * 1904 **

Fritz Kreisler Friedrich "Fritz" Kreisler (February 2, 1875 – January 29, 1962) was an Austrian-born American violinist and composer. One of the most noted violin masters of his day, and regarded as one of the greatest violinists of all time, he was known ...

* 1909 **

Louise Kirkby Lunn Louise Kirkby Lunn (8 November 1873 – 17 February 1930) was an English contralto (sometimes classified as a mezzo-soprano). Born into a working-class family in Manchester, She appeared in many French and Italian operas, but was best known as ...

* 1910 **

Emil von Sauer Emil Georg Conrad von Sauer (8 October 186227 April 1942) was a German composer, pianist, score editor, and music (piano) teacher. He was a pupil of Franz Liszt and one of the most distinguished pianists of his generation. Josef Hofmann called vo ...

* 1912 **

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

** Harold Bauer ** Luisa Tetrazzini * 1914 ** Muriel Foster * 1916 ** Vladimir de Pachmann * 1921 ** Sir Henry Wood * 1922 ** Sir Alexander Mackenzie * 1932 (??) **

Alfred Cortot Alfred Denis Cortot (; 26 September 187715 June 1962) was a French pianist, conductor, and teacher who was one of the most renowned classical musicians of the 20th century. A pianist of massive repertory, he was especially valued for his poeti ...

* 1925 ** Frederick Delius ** Sir

Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

* 1928 ** Sir

Thomas Beecham Sir Thomas Beecham, 2nd Baronet, Order of the Companions of Honour, CH (29 April 18798 March 1961) was an English conductor and impresario best known for his association with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonic and the Roya ...

* 1930 **

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams, (; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

** Gustav Holst * 1931 ** Arnold Bax * 1932 **

Sergei Rachmaninoff Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one o ...

* 1934 ** Sir Edward German ** Sir

Hamilton Harty Sir Herbert Hamilton Harty (4 December 1879 – 19 February 1941) was an Irish composer, conductor, pianist and organist. After an early career as a church organist in his native Ireland, Harty moved to London at about age 20, soon becoming a w ...

* 1935 **

Jean Sibelius Jean Sibelius ( ; ; born Johan Julius Christian Sibelius; 8 December 186520 September 1957) was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and 20th-century classical music, early-modern periods. He is widely regarded as his country's greatest com ...

* 1936 **

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...

* 1937 **

Felix Weingartner Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist. Life and career Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. T ...

Arturo Toscanini Arturo Toscanini (; ; March 25, 1867January 16, 1957) was an Italian conductor. He was one of the most acclaimed and influential musicians of the late 19th and early 20th century, renowned for his intensity, his perfectionism, his ear for orch ...

* 1942 ** Dame Myra Hess * 1944 **

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

** Sir

Adrian Boult Sir Adrian Cedric Boult, CH (; 8 April 1889 – 22 February 1983) was an English conductor. Brought up in a prosperous mercantile family, he followed musical studies in England and at Leipzig, Germany, with early conducting work in London ...

* 1947 ** Sir William Walton * 1950 ** Sir John Barbirolli * 1953 **

Kathleen Ferrier Kathleen Mary Ferrier, CBE (22 April 19128 October 1953) was an English contralto singer who achieved an international reputation as a stage, concert and recording artist, with a repertoire extending from folksong and popular ballads to the cl ...

* 1954 **

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

* 1957 ** Bruno Walter * 1959 ** Sir Malcolm Sargent * 1961 **

Arthur Rubinstein Arthur Rubinstein ( pl, Artur Rubinstein; 28 January 188720 December 1982) was a Polish Americans, Polish-American pianist.

* 1962 **

Yehudi Menuhin Yehudi or Jehudi (Hebrew: יהודי, endonym for Jew) is a common Hebrew name: * Yehudi Menuhin (1916–1999), violinist and conductor ** Yehudi Menuhin School, a music school in Surrey, England ** Who's Yehoodi?, a catchphrase referring to the v ...

* 1963 ** Sir Arthur Bliss **

Pierre Monteux Pierre Benjamin Monteux (; 4 April 18751 July 1964) was a French (later American) conductor. After violin and viola studies, and a decade as an orchestral player and occasional conductor, he began to receive regular conducting engagements in ...

* 1964 ** Lionel Tertis **

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

* 1966 **

Dmitri Shostakovich Dmitri Dmitriyevich Shostakovich, , group=n (9 August 1975) was a Soviet-era Russian composer and pianist who became internationally known after the premiere of his Symphony No. 1 (Shostakovich), First Symphony in 1926 and was regarded throug ...

* 1967 ** Zoltán Kodály * 1970 **

Mstislav Rostropovich Mstislav Leopoldovich Rostropovich, (27 March 192727 April 2007) was a Russian cellist and conductor. He is considered by many to be the greatest cellist of the 20th century. In addition to his interpretations and technique, he was wel ...

* 1974 ** Vladimir Horowitz * 1975 **

Olivier Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithologist who was one of the major composers of the 20th century. His music is rhythmically complex; harmonically ...

* 1976 ** Sir Michael Tippett * 1980 ** Sir

Clifford Curzon Sir Clifford Michael Curzon CBE (né Siegenberg; 18 May 19071 September 1982) was an English classical pianist. Curzon studied at the Royal Academy of Music in London, and subsequently with Artur Schnabel in Berlin and Wanda Landowska and Nad ...

* 1984 ** Herbert von Karajan * 1986 ** Andrés Segovia ** Witold Lutosławski * 1987 **

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

* 1988 ** Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau * 1989 ** Sir

Georg Solti Sir Georg Solti ( , ; born György Stern; 21 October 1912 – 5 September 1997) was a Hungarian-British orchestral and operatic conductor, known for his appearances with opera companies in Munich, Frankfurt and London, and as a long-servin ...

* 1990 ** Claudio Arrau **

Janet Baker Dame Janet Abbott Baker (born 21 August 1933) is an English mezzo-soprano best known as an opera, concert, and lieder singer.Blyth, Alan, "Baker, Dame Janet (Abbott)" in Sadie, Stanley, ed.; John Tyrell; exec. ed. (2001). ''New Grove Dictionar ...

** Bernard Haitink ** Sviatoslav Richter * 1991 ** Isaac Stern * 1992 ** Alfred Brendel * 1994 ** Sir

Colin Davis Sir Colin Rex Davis (25 September 1927 – 14 April 2013) was an English conductor, known for his association with the London Symphony Orchestra, having first conducted it in 1959. His repertoire was broad, but among the composers with whom h ...

* 1995 ** Elliott Carter ** Rafael Kubelík * 1997 **

Pierre Boulez Pierre Louis Joseph Boulez (; 26 March 1925 – 5 January 2016) was a French composer, conductor and writer, and the founder of several musical institutions. He was one of the dominant figures of post-war Western classical music. Born in Mont ...

* 1999 ** Sir

Simon Rattle Sir Simon Denis Rattle (born 19 January 1955) is a British-German conductor. He rose to international prominence during the 1980s and 1990s, while music director of the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra (1980–1998). Rattle was principal ...

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

* 2002 ** Dame

Joan Sutherland Dame Joan Alston Sutherland, (7 November 1926 – 10 October 2010) was an Australian dramatic coloratura soprano known for her contribution to the renaissance of the bel canto repertoire from the late 1950s through to the 1980s. She possessed ...

* 2003 ** Claudio Abbado * 2004 **

György Ligeti György Sándor Ligeti (; ; 28 May 1923 – 12 June 2006) was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as "one of the most important avant-garde composers in the latter half of the twentieth century" ...

* 2005 ** Sir Charles Mackerras * 2007 **

Daniel Barenboim Daniel Barenboim (; in he, דניאל בארנבוים, born 15 November 1942) is an Argentine-born classical pianist and conductor based in Berlin. He has been since 1992 General Music Director of the Berlin State Opera and "Staatskapellmeist ...

* 2008 **

Henri Dutilleux Henri Paul Julien Dutilleux (; 22 January 1916 – 22 May 2013) was a French composer active mainly in the second half of the 20th century. His small body of published work, which garnered international acclaim, followed in the tradition of ...

* 2009 ** Thomas Quasthoff * 2012 **

Nikolaus Harnoncourt Johann Nikolaus Harnoncourt or historically Johann Nikolaus Graf de la Fontaine und d'Harnoncourt-Unverzagt; () (6 December 1929 – 5 March 2016) was an Austrian conductor, particularly known for his historically informed performances of music ...

** Dame

Mitsuko Uchida is a classical pianist and conductor, born in Japan and naturalised in Britain, particularly noted for her interpretations of Mozart and Schubert. She has appeared with many notable orchestras, recorded a wide repertory with several labels, w ...

* 2013 ** Sir

András Schiff Sir András Schiff (; born 21 December 1953) is a Hungarian-born British classical pianist and conductor, who has received numerous major awards and honours, including the Grammy Award, Gramophone Award, Mozart Medal, and Royal Academy of Musi ...

György Kurtág György Kurtág (; born 19 February 1926) is a Hungarian classical composer and pianist. He was an academic teacher of piano at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music from 1967, later also of chamber music, and taught until 1993. Biography György ...

* 2014 ** Sir John Tomlinson * 2015 ** Sir Antonio Pappano ** Martha Argerich * 2016 ** Sir Peter Maxwell Davies * 2017 **

Charles Dutoit Charles Édouard Dutoit (born 7 October 1936) is a Swiss conductor. He is currently the principal guest conductor for the Saint Petersburg Philharmonia and co-director of thMISA Festival in Shanghai In 2017, he became the 103rd recipient of th ...

** Mariss Jansons * 2018 ** Jessye Norman * 2019 **

Sofia Gubaidulina Sofia Asgatovna Gubaidulina (russian: Софи́я Асгáтовна Губaйду́лина, link=no , tt-Cyrl, София Әсгать кызы Гобәйдуллина; born 24 October 1931) is a Soviet-Russian composer and an established ...

* 2020 **

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review ''WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who wa ...

* 2021 **

Vladimir Jurowski Vladimir Mikhailovich Jurowski (; born 4 April 1972) is a Russian conductor. He is the son of conductor Michail Jurowski, and grandson of Soviet film music composer Vladimir Michailovich Jurowski. Early life Born in Moscow, Jurowski began hi ...

Honorary membership

Through awarding honorary membership the society recognises "services to music". Like the Gold Medal, honorary membership is awarded rarely; first awarded in 1826, by 2006 only 117 honorary members had been created.

Honorary members

* 1826 ** Carl Maria von Weber * 1829 ** Daniel Auber ** Jean-François Le Sueur **

Giacomo Meyerbeer Giacomo Meyerbeer (born Jakob Liebmann Beer; 5 September 1791 – 2 May 1864) was a German opera composer, "the most frequently performed opera composer during the nineteenth century, linking Mozart and Wagner". With his 1831 opera ''Robert le di ...

George Onslow George Onslow may refer to: *George Onslow (British Army officer) (1731–1792), British politician and army officer *George Onslow, 1st Earl of Onslow (1731–1814), British peer and politician *George Onslow (composer) André George(s) Louis ...

* 1830 **

Johann Nepomuk Hummel Johann Nepomuk Hummel (14 November 177817 October 1837) was an Austrian composer and virtuoso pianist. His music reflects the Transition from Classical to Romantic music, transition from the Classical period (music), Classical to the Romantic ...

* 1836 **

Sigismond Thalberg Sigismond Thalberg (8 January 1812 – 27 April 1871) was an Austrian composer and one of the most distinguished virtuoso pianists of the 19th century. Family He was born in Pâquis near Geneva on 8 January 1812. According to his own account, h ...

* 1839 **

Gioachino Rossini Gioachino Antonio Rossini (29 February 1792 – 13 November 1868) was an Italian composer who gained fame for his 39 operas, although he also wrote many songs, some chamber music and piano pieces, and some sacred music. He set new standards f ...

* 1859 **

Niels Gade Niels Wilhelm Gade (22 February 1817 – 21 December 1890) was a Danish composer, conductor, violinist, organist and teacher. Together with Johan Peter Emilius Hartmann, he was the leading Danish musician of his day. Biography Gade was born ...

** Fromental Halévy **

Moritz Hauptmann Moritz Hauptmann (13 October 1792, Dresden – 3 January 1868, Leipzig), was a German music theorist, teacher and composer. His principal theoretical work is the 1853 ''Die Natur der Harmonie und der Metrik'' explores numerous topics, particular ...

** Ferdinand Hiller **

Franz Liszt Franz Liszt, in modern usage ''Liszt Ferenc'' . Liszt's Hungarian passport spelled his given name as "Ferencz". An orthographic reform of the Hungarian language in 1922 (which was 36 years after Liszt's death) changed the letter "cz" to simpl ...

** Heinrich Marschner ** Ignaz Moscheles **

Julius Rietz August Wilhelm Julius Rietz (28 December 1812 – 12 September 1877) was a German composer, conductor, cellist, and teacher. His students included Woldemar Bargiel, Salomon Jadassohn, Arthur O'Leary, and (by far the most celebrated) Sir Arthur ...

Johannes Verhulst Johannes Joseph Hermann Verhulst (March 19, 1816 in The Hague – January 17, 1891 in Bloemendaal) was a Dutch composer and conductor. As a composer mainly of songs and as administrator of Dutch musical life, his influence during his lifet ...

* 1860 **

* 1861 **

* 1869 **

Lucy Anderson Lucy Anderson (bap. 18 February 1795 – 24 December 1878) was the most eminent of the English pianists of the early Victorian era. She is mentioned in the same breath as English pianists of the calibre of William Sterndale Bennett. She ...

* 1869 **

Otto Goldschmidt Otto Moritz David Goldschmidt (21 August 1829 – 24 February 1907) was a German composer, conductor and pianist, known for his piano concertos and other piano pieces. He married the "Swedish Nightingale", soprano Jenny Lind. Life Goldschmidt w ...

** Charles Gounod **

Stephen Heller Stephen Heller (15 May 1813 – 14 January 1888) was a Hungarian pianist, teacher, and composer whose career spanned the period from Schumann to Bizet. Heller was an influence for later Romantic composers. He outlived his reputation, and was a ...

* 1870 ** Joseph Joachim * 1882 **

Joachim Raff Joseph Joachim Raff (27 May 182224 or 25 June 1882) was a German-Swiss composer, pedagogue and pianist. Biography Raff was born in Lachen in Switzerland. His father, a teacher, had fled there from Württemberg in 1810 to escape forced recruitme ...

Alberto Randegger Alberto Randegger (13 April 1832 – 18 December 1911) was an Italian-born composer, conductor and singing teacher, best known for promoting opera and new works of British music in England during the Victorian era and for his widely used textbook o ...

Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi (; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for his operas. He was born near Busseto to a provincial family of moderate means, receiving a musical education with the h ...

* 1884 **

Antonín Dvořák Antonín Leopold Dvořák ( ; ; 8 September 1841 – 1 May 1904) was a Czechs, Czech composer. Dvořák frequently employed rhythms and other aspects of the folk music of Moravian traditional music, Moravia and his native Bohemia, following t ...

Sophie Menter Sophie Menter (29 July 1846 – 23 February 1918) was a German pianist and composer who became the favorite female student of Franz Liszt.Schonberg, 262. She was called ''l'incarnation de Liszt'' in Paris because of her robust, electrifying playing ...

** Wassily Sapellnikoff **

Pablo de Sarasate Pablo Martín Melitón de Sarasate y Navascués (; 10 March 1844 – 20 September 1908), commonly known as Pablo de Sarasate, was a Spanish (Navarrese) violin virtuoso, composer and conductor of the Romantic period. His best known works include ...

* 1885 **

Giovanni Bottesini Giovanni Bottesini (22 December 1821 – 7 July 1889) was an Italian Romantic composer, conductor, and a double bass virtuoso. Biography Born in Crema, Lombardy, he was taught the rudiments of music by his father, an accomplished clarinetist ...

** Hans von Bülow * 1886 **

Franz Rummel Franz Rummel (January 11, 1853May 2, 1901) was a German pianist, born in England and active across continental Europe. Rummel was born in London into a prominent German musical family, the son of pianist Joseph Rummel (musician), Joseph Rummel an ...

* 1887 ** Moritz Moszkowski **

Camille Saint-Saëns Charles-Camille Saint-Saëns (; 9 October 183516 December 1921) was a French composer, organist, conductor and pianist of the Romantic music, Romantic era. His best-known works include Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso (1863), the Piano C ...

** Clara Schumann * 1888 **

Johan Svendsen Johan Severin Svendsen (30 September 184014 June 1911) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway, he lived most his life in Copenhagen, Denmark. Svendsen's output includes two symphonies, a violin ...

* 1889 ** Edvard Grieg **

Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky , group=n ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer of the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music would make a lasting impression internationally. He wrote some of the most popu ...

** Charles-Marie Widor * 1891 **

František Ondříček František Ondříček (29 April 1857 – 12 April 1922) was a Czech violinist and composer. He gave the first performance of the Violin Concerto by Antonín Dvořák, and his achievements were recognised by the rare award of honorary memb ...

* 1893 ** Ignacy Jan Paderewski * 1894 ** Max Bruch * 1897 **

Alexander Glazunov Alexander Konstantinovich Glazunov; ger, Glasunow (, 10 August 1865 – 21 March 1936) was a Russian composer, music teacher, and conductor of the late Russian Romantic period. He was director of the Saint Petersburg Conservatory between 1905 ...

* 1899 **

Moriz Rosenthal Moriz Rosenthal (17 December 18623 September 1946) was a Polish pianist and composer. He was an outstanding pupil of Franz Liszt and a friend and colleague of some of the greatest musicians of his age, including Johannes Brahms, Johann Strauss, A ...

* 1902 **

Jules Massenet Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are '' Manon'' (1884) and ''Werther' ...

* 1906 **

Raoul Pugno Stéphane Raoul Pugno (23 June 1852) was a French composer, teacher, organist, and pianist known for his playing of Mozart's works. Biography Raoul Pugno was born in Paris and was of Italian origin. He made his debut at the age of six, and with t ...

** Hans Richter **

* 1908 ** Jan Kubelík * 1912 ** Vasily Safonov * 1913 ** Willem Mengelberg ** Arthur Nikisch * 1921 **

Maurice Ravel Joseph Maurice Ravel (7 March 1875 – 28 December 1937) was a French composer, pianist and conductor. He is often associated with Impressionism along with his elder contemporary Claude Debussy, although both composers rejected the term. In ...

* 1922 ** Harold Bauer * 1927 ** Leopold Stokowski * 1929 **

* 1930 **

Pablo Casals Pau Casals i Defilló (Catalan: ; 29 December 187622 October 1973), usually known in English by his Castilian Spanish name Pablo Casals,

* 1948 ** Keith Douglas (Hon. Sec. of the Society) **

John Mewburn Levien John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

* 1951 **

Frederic Austin Frederic William Austin (30 March 187210 April 1952) was an English baritone singer, a musical teacher and composer in the period 1905–30. He is best remembered for his restoration and production of ''The Beggar's Opera'' by John Gay and Joha ...

Ernest Irving Kelville Ernest Irving (6 November 1878 – 24 October 1953) was an English music director, conductor and composer, primarily remembered as a theatre musician in London between the wars, and for his key contributions to British film music as m ...

* 1953 ** Marion Scott ** Albert Schweitzer * 1959 **

Arthur Rubinstein Arthur Rubinstein ( pl, Artur Rubinstein; 28 January 188720 December 1982) was a Polish Americans, Polish-American pianist.

* 1956 **

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ''Ne ...

Gregor Piatigorsky Gregor Piatigorsky (, ''Grigoriy Pavlovich Pyatigorskiy''; August 6, 1976) was a Russian Empire-born American cellist. Biography Early life Gregor Piatigorsky was born in Ekaterinoslav (now Dnipro, Ukraine) into a Jewish family. As a child, ...

* 1959 **

Benno Moiseiwitsch Benno Moiseiwitsch CBE (22 February 18909 April 1963) was a Russian-born British pianist. Biography Moiseiwitsch was born to Jewish parents in Odessa, Russian Empire (today part of Ukraine), and began his studies at age seven with Dmitry Klimo ...

* 1960 ** George Baker * 1970 ** Aaron Copland * 1971 ** William Glock * 1984 **

Eric Fenby Eric William Fenby Order of the British Empire, OBE (22 April 190618 February 1997) was an English composer, conductor, pianist, organist and teacher who is best known for being Frederick Delius's amanuensis from 1928 to 1934. He helped Delius ...

* 1985 **

Lennox Berkeley Sir Lennox Randal Francis Berkeley (12 May 190326 December 1989) was an English composer. Biography Berkeley was born on 12 May 1903 in Oxford, England, the younger child and only son of Aline Carla (1863–1935), daughter of Sir James Char ...

** Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau **

** Gerald Moore **

Solomon Solomon (; , ),, ; ar, سُلَيْمَان, ', , ; el, Σολομών, ; la, Salomon also called Jedidiah (Hebrew language, Hebrew: , Modern Hebrew, Modern: , Tiberian Hebrew, Tiberian: ''Yăḏīḏăyāh'', "beloved of Yahweh, Yah"), ...

* 1986 **

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...

* 1987 ** Dame

** Peter Maxwell Davies **

Léon Goossens Léon Jean Goossens, CBE, FRCM (12 June 1897 – 13 February 1988) was an English oboist. Career Goossens was born in Liverpool, Lancashire, and studied at Liverpool College of Music and the Royal College of Music. His father was violinist and ...

* 1988 ** Claudio Arrau **

Julian Bream Julian Alexander Bream (15 July 193314 August 2020) was an English classical guitarist and lutenist. Regarded as one of the most distinguished classical guitarists of the 20th century, he played a significant role in improving the public per ...

** Bernard Haitink * 1989 ** John Denison **

Vernon Handley Vernon George "Tod" Handley (11 November 1930 – 10 September 2008) was a British conductor, known in particular for his support of British composers. He was born of a Welsh father and an Irish mother into a musical family in Enfield, Middles ...

* 1990 ** Sir

Charles Groves Sir Charles Barnard Groves CBE (10 March 191520 June 1992) was an English conductor. He was known for the breadth of his repertoire and for encouraging contemporary composers and young conductors. After accompanying positions and conducting ...

** Rafael Kubelík * 1991 ** Thomas Armstrong ** Harrison Birtwistle **

** Elliott Carter ** Joan Cross **

** Paul Sacher ** Katharine, Duchess of Kent * 1994 **

Felix Aprahamian Felix Aprahamian ( arm, Ֆելիքս Աբրահամեան; 5 June 1914 – 15 January 2005), born Apraham Felix Bartev Aprahamian, was an English music critic, writer, concert promoter, publisher's adviser, supporter of young musicians, and frien ...

** Sir Charles Mackerras * 1996 ** Howard Ferguson * 1997 ** John Gardner * 1998 ** George Lascelles, 7th Earl of Harewood ** Sir George Christie * 1999 ** Sir

David Willcocks Sir David Valentine Willcocks, (30 December 1919 – 17 September 2015) was a British choral conductor, organist, composer and music administrator. He was particularly well known for his association with the Choir of King's College, Cambridge ...

** Richard Steinitz **

Philip Jones Philip, Phillip, Phil or Phill Jones may refer to: Sports *Phil Jones (American football) (born 1946), American football coach * Phil Jones (footballer, born 1961), English footballer who played for Sheffield United in the Football League * Phil J ...

** Anthony Payne * 2001 **

Evelyn Barbirolli Evelyn, Lady Barbirolli OBE (24 January 191125 January 2008) was an English oboist, and the wife of the eminent conductor Sir John Barbirolli. She was born Evelyn Rothwell, and was known professionally by that name until after she was widowed, ...

* 2002 ** Oliver Knussen * 2004 **

Richard McNicol Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

* 2006 ** Michael Kennedy * 2007 ** David Lloyd-Jones * 2008 ** José Antonio Abreu * 2009 **

Brian McMaster Sir Brian John McMaster CBE (born 9 May 1943) is an English arts administrator from Hitchin. Major positions * Managing director at the Welsh National Opera (1976–1991) * Director of the Edinburgh International Festival (1991–2006) McMaster r ...

* 2010 ** Graham Johnson **

Fanny Waterman Dame Fanny Waterman (22 March 192020 December 2020) was a British pianist and academic piano teacher, who is particularly known as the founder, chair and artistic director of the Leeds International Piano Competition. She was also president of ...

* 2011 ** George Benjamin **

Tony Fell Robert Anthony "Tony" Fell (27 December 1931, Liverpool6 December 2011) was a British businessman and musician. Fell worked for various firms, including ICI in the 1950s, becoming managing director of Hortors Printers from 196874, and managi ...

Mark Elder Sir Mark Philip Elder (born 2 June 1947) is a British conductor. He is currently music director of the Hallé Orchestra in Manchester, England. Life and career Elder was born in Hexham, Northumberland, the son of a dentist. He played the ba ...

* 2012 ** John Stephens * 2013 ** Ricardo Castro (Bahia, Brazil) ** Armand Diangienda (Kinshasa, DRC) **

Aaron Dworkin Aaron Paul Dworkin (born September 11, 1970) is an American violinist and music educator. Early life Dworkin was born on September 11, 1970, in Monticello, New York, to Vaughn and Audeen Moore, but they were forced to give their son up for adopt ...

(USA) ** Rosemary Nalden (Soweto, SA) ** Ahmad Sarmast (Kabul, Afghanistan) * 2014 ** Martin Campbell-White (artist manager) **

Marin Alsop Marin Alsop ( �mɛər.ɪn ˈæːl.sɑːp born October 16, 1956) is an American conductor, the first woman to win the Koussevitzky Prize for conducting and the first conductor to be awarded a MacArthur Fellowship. She is music director laureate ...

* 2015 ** Evelyn Glennie * 2016 **

Graham Vick Sir Graham Vick (30 December 1953 – 17 July 2021) was an English opera director known for his experimental and revisionist stagings of traditional and modern operas. He worked in many of the world's leading opera houses and was artistic d ...

* 2017 **

Barrie Gavin Barrie Gavin (born 10 June 1935) is a British film director. Early years Barrie Gavin was educated at St Paul's School, and studied history at Corpus Christi College, Cambridge from 1954 to 1957.'Cambridge Tripos Lists', ''Times'', 28 June ...

* 2018 ** Stephen Hough * 2019 **

Stephen Sondheim Stephen Joshua Sondheim (; March 22, 1930November 26, 2021) was an American composer and lyricist. One of the most important figures in twentieth-century musical theater, Sondheim is credited for having "reinvented the American musical" with sho ...

Alexander Goehr Peter Alexander Goehr (; born 10 August 1932) is an English composer and academic. Goehr was born in Berlin in 1932, the son of the conductor and composer Walter Goehr, a pupil of Arnold Schoenberg. In his early twenties he emerged as a centra ...

David Pountney Sir David Willoughby Pountney (born 10 September 1947) is a British-Polish theatre and opera director and librettist internationally known for his productions of rarely performed operas and new productions of classic works. He has directed over ...

* 2022 **

Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish conductor, composer and viol player. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for popularizing the viol family of ...

References

External links

The Royal Philharmonic Society

Royal Philharmonic Society Gold Medal

British Library: Royal Philharmonic Society Archive
{{coords, 51.5144, -0.1384, display=title 1813 establishments in the United Kingdom Classical music in the United Kingdom Charities based in London Organizations established in 1813 Arts organizations established in the 1810s