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As the London Symphony Orchestra celebrates its 100th anniversary season this year, a new book by the British music critic Richard Morrison paints a colorful behind-the-scenes portrait of the fabled orchestra. Morrison joins us today on Soundcheck to reveal the tales of drunken revelry, weeping conductors, and belligerent violinists that have populated this fascinating history. Also on the show is Clive Gillinson, managing director (and a former cellist) of the LSO, who tells us why, as a self-governing orchestra, it represents an unusual model in the orchestral world. Gillinson also sheds light on the LSO’s long-standing association with film soundtracks, its past brushes with disaster, and its pioneering in-house record label.
Additional Resources:
• The London Symphony Orchestra’s Web site
• Richard Morrison’s The LSO: A Century of Triumph and Turbulence
• More on WNYC’s Live Broadcast of the LSO