The Sheffield Philharmonic Orchestra is an amateur symphony

orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

based in

Sheffield Sheffield is a city status in the United Kingdom, city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is Historic counties o ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. Based in the cultural heart of the City of Sheffield at the Victoria Hall, the SPO draws on players of all backgrounds from across Yorkshire & the Humber, Lincolnshire and Derbyshire. The orchestra prides itself on its rich musical history, as well as its core ethos of providing a medium for local musicians to flourish. The Orchestra gives no fewer than five concerts a year across Sheffield and beyond, and its regular programme of season concerts is supplemented by music weekends, foreign tours, collaboration with local choral societies and open air charity concerts. Over the years the SPO has performed in many notable venues, such as:

Sheffield City Hall Sheffield City Hall is a Grade II* listed building in Sheffield, England in Barker's Pool, one of the city's central squares. It was built and is owned by Sheffield City Council but is now managed by the Sheffield City Trust, under a 99-year l ...

Buxton Pavilion Gardens Buxton Pavilion Gardens is a Victorian landscaped public park in the spa town of Buxton in Derbyshire. The River Wye flows through the gardens, which are a Grade II* listed public park of Special Historic Interest. Features The site of the Pa ...

and

Birmingham Symphony Hall Symphony Hall is a 2,262 seat concert venue in Birmingham, England. It was officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II on 12 June 1991, although it had been in use since 15 April 1991. It is home to the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and hos ...

, where they recorded a live CD with revered acoustic and electric guitarist,

Gordon Giltrap Gordon Giltrap, MBE (born 6 April 1948) is an English guitarist and composer. His music crosses several genres. He has been described as "one of the most revered guitarists of his generation", and has drawn praise from fellow musicians including S ...

MBE. The Orchestra has also performed at music festivals on the islands of Crete, Malta and Sardinia. The Sheffield Philharmonic are committed to performing a broad range of symphonic repertoire and commissioning new work by local composers and arrangers. The SPO have accompanied a number of internationally acclaimed soloists, such as:

Fenella Humphreys Fenella Humphreys (born ) is a British classical violinist. Career and education She studied under Sidney Griller, Itzhak Rashkovsky, Ida Bieler and David Takeno at the Purcell School, Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and the Robert-Schum ...

Benjamin Frith Benjamin Frith is a British classical pianist. He was born in South Yorkshire, England, on 11 October 1957. He began taking piano lessons with Fanny Waterman at age ten. He was encouraged by Waterman to pursue a career after winning the Dudley N ...

and Rohan da Saram. Further to this, the SPO are committed to supporting local talent across South Yorkshire; many of its younger members have gone on to study at leading UK Conservatoires.

History

The SPO gave its first public performance on Sunday 22 April 1945 in

under the baton of Hermann Lindars, the founder of the orchestra. The audience included the Lord and Lady Mayoress of Sheffield and the Master and Mistress Cutler, Lord and Lady Riverdale. At the time the orchestra was known as the 'Sheffield Amateur Symphony Orchestra' but a year or so later it was incorporated into the Philharmonic Concerts Department of the

Sheffield Corporation Sheffield City Council is the city council for the metropolitan borough of Sheffield in South Yorkshire, England. It consists of 84 councillors, elected to represent 28 wards, each with three councillors. It is currently under No Overall Contr ...

, taking on the name by which it is known today. Over the next forty years, the SPO gave concerts regularly at the

City Hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...

, performing with distinguished soloists and guest conductors. During the 1980s the orchestra played concerts in St. Johns Church (Ranmoor),

Beverley Minster Beverley Minster, otherwise known as the Parish Church of Saint John and Saint Martin, in Beverley, East Riding of Yorkshire, is a parish church in the Church of England. It is one of the largest parish churches in the UK, larger than one-third ...

, St Marie’s Catholic Cathedral, The Octagon Centre and

. Family concerts were usually given once a year in the

with well-known personalities such as

Johnny Morris Johnny or Johnnie Morris may refer to: * Johnnie Morris (actor) (1887–1969), American comedian and actor *Johnny Morris (television presenter) (1916–1999), British television presenter *Johnny Morris (footballer) (1923–2011), English football ...

and

Anthony Hopkins Sir Philip Anthony Hopkins (born 31 December 1937) is a Welsh actor, director, and producer. One of Britain's most recognisable and prolific actors, he is known for his performances on the screen and stage. Hopkins has received many accolad ...

. Following a few years of decline, the orchestra began rebuilding its membership and prestige under the baton of Andrew Lucas and its fortunes were further revived when John Pearson took on the role of Musical Director. Over time, membership continued to increase and the quality of performance improved, and it was during this period that the Orchestra played a highly successful concert in

featuring the music of folk guitar virtuoso,

, followed by a commercial recording of his symphonic work, ''The Eye of the Wind''.

Conductors

*Hermann Lindars 1945 – *Andrew Lucas *John Pearson * Ewa Strusinska *Jonathan Lo *Jack Lovell-Huckle 2016 – 2018 *George Morton 2018 – Present

References

External links

official siteblog
Musical groups from Sheffield English orchestras British symphony orchestras {{Orchestra-stub