Royal Scottish National Orchestra

Since its establishment many decades ago, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra has cultivated a distinguished profile through a demanding concert calendar, an expansive repertoire, and substantial presence on disc. Listeners encountered the ensemble on the 2021 BIS release Xiaogang Ye: Winter and on a Chandos account of Mozart Concertos that featured Francesca Dego.

The present orchestra traces its lineage directly to the Scottish Orchestra, which began its activities in Glasgow in 1891. During the first four decades, leadership changed hands among several principal conductors, the earliest being George Henschel, who served from 1893 to 1895. In 1933, when economic pressures threatened the ensemble’s survival, loyal subscribers and patrons secured its continuation. That same year John Barbirolli became principal conductor; thereafter the podium was occupied by such figures as George Szell, Walter Süsskind, and Alexander Gibson, the first Scottish musician to hold the post and the longest-serving to date. Under Süsskind’s direction the Scottish National Orchestra Society was formed with financial support from several Scottish cities, transforming the group into a fully professional body and prompting the 1950 adoption of the name Scottish National Orchestra.

For many years the orchestra performed its Glasgow concerts in the acoustically distinguished St. Andrew’s Hall. After the building was lost to fire in 1962, the musicians appeared in a succession of less ideal spaces. During Gibson’s tenure Queen Elizabeth II bestowed royal patronage in 1977; the same year, coinciding with the Queen’s Silver Jubilee and Birthday Honours, Gibson received his knighthood. In 1979 the conversion of Trinity Church on Claremont Street provided a permanent base at Henry Wood Hall. The ensemble adopted its present title, Royal Scottish National Orchestra, in 1991 to reflect that patronage; for a brief interval it was styled the Royal Scottish Orchestra before restoring the current name in 1992.

Although the orchestra’s programming spans many eras and styles, its recordings of Bruckner, Barber, and twentieth-century British composers such as Bax, MacMillan, and Holst have drawn particular notice. It has also become recognized for its film-score projects, among them the 1997 Gramophone Award-winning performance of Bernard Herrmann’s Vertigo. Since 2015 the musicians have been based at the RSNO Centre inside the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. Neeme Järvi, principal conductor from 1984 to 1988, now holds the title of conductor laureate, while Alexander Lazarev, who led the orchestra from 1997 to 2005, serves as conductor emeritus. After six seasons as principal guest conductor, Thomas Søndergård assumed the role of music director in 2018. In 2021 the orchestra appeared on a BIS collection of works by Xiaogang Ye and, with Roger Norrington conducting, supported Francesca Dego on the Chandos recording of Mozart Concertos.