Page 977 - Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Coverage Book 2023-24

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World's best orchestras: UK

Academy of St Martin in the Fields

This revered chamber orchestra has been synonymous with beautiful performances of

works from the Baroque and Classical eras ever since their inception in 1958. They have
strayed into the Romantic, with some success: their pared-down readings of the Schumann

symphonies - with founder and conductor Neville Marriner, who was so inextricably
linked to their success.

The ASMF and Marriner are perhaps best remembered, though, for recording the

soundtrack to the Oscar-winning film Amadeus, a fictional account of the life of Mozart and
his (alleged) feud with rival Antonio Salieri and arguably the greatest classical music film

ever made. The soundtrack for the film features the ASMF performing many of Mozart's
most popular compositions.

Recorded in 1984, the soundtrack soared to the very top spot in the Billboard Classical

Albums Chart, and even (no mean feat this) topped out at number56 in the Billboard
Popular Albums Chart. To date it has sold more than 6.5 million copies, making it one of

the most popular classical music recordings of all time.

Recommended recording:

Mozart: The Great Piano Concertos Vol. 1 (numbers 19-24)

Alfred Brendel (piano); Academy of St Martin in the Fields/Neville Marriner

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BBC Symphony Orchestra

You don't get the honour of performing at both the First Night and Last Night of the
Proms without being a pretty crack orchestra. And that's just the privilege that the BBC SO,
the BBC's principal broadcast orchestra, has enjoyed since its formation in 1930.

Standards of performance really started to take an upward turn in the 1960s,
when William Glock was controller of music at the BBC. Some golden patches followed,
including under two much-missed condiuctors, Andrew Davis in the 1990s

and Jiří Bělohlávek the following decade. These days, the BBC SO is generally considered
one of Britain's very best orchestras. Its current conductor is the dynamic Dalia Stasevska.

• Watch: Andrew Davis wraps up the 1992 Proms in style

Recommended recording