Liverpool musicians named one of the ‘greatest’ in the country

The musicians “not only survived but thrived”

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra conductor Vasily Petrenko(Image: PA)

Liverpool’s Philharmonic Orchestra has been named one of the “greatest” orchestras in the country. The Telegraph critic, Ivan Hewett, named his 10 favourite orchestras and a upcoming concert and a recording that captures the essence of the musicians.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Hall stands on the same site as the original venue before it was destroyed by a fire in 1933. The new building was opened in 1939 and the hall today remains home to the award-winning Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, the UK’s oldest continuing professional symphony orchestra.

The origins of the orchestra’s concert series date back to the formation of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic by a group of music lovers in 1840. Through the generations, many of the musicians have seen the industry and city change around them, as well as life at the hall from its beginning to now being packed with multiple events throughout the week.

The Telegraph’s list includes regional and London orchestras, a chamber (small-scale) orchestra, one using period instruments for ancient classical music and a “radical new kid on the block”.

All of the orchestras have distinct characteristics, with Liverpool’s Royal Philharmonic Hall credited for its “daring programming” and “huge global audience”.

The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Hall(Image: Liverpool Echo)

Ivan said: “The British orchestra with the longest unbroken tradition is the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, founded in 1840 by a group of amateurs who wanted to encourage “the Science and Practice of Music”.

“Their enterprise was hardly plain sailing. Money was embezzled, the new concert hall wasn’t always full, and celebrity performers, including Charles Dickens’s theatre company, had to be booked to raise money.

“But spurred on by rivalry with the Hallé in Manchester, the orchestra not only survived but thrived. The greatest European musicians including Rachmaninov, the cellist Pablo Casals and conductor Wilhelm Furtwängler performed with the RLPO.

“Later in the 20th century, the orchestra won a reputation for daring programming under its principal conductor Charles Groves, and in 1991 the orchestra reached a huge global audience with Paul McCartney’s Liverpool Oratorio.

Domingo Hindoyan conducting the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra(Image: Mark McNulty)

Ivan said Domingo Hindoyan’s 2025/2026 programme is a must-see, providing an evening that captures the essence of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

He added: “The orchestra’s Venezuelan chief conductor Domingo Hindoyan has brought a dash of American and Latin American pizazz to the orchestra’s programme.

“In the orchestra’s season opener, there’s music from Cuban composer Amadeo Roldán, the Mexican Arturo Márquez and the American Jennifer Higdon, all capped by a Czech composer’s attempt to be American, Dvořák’s New World Symphony.”

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