About Us
During the last ten years, Oxford’s professional symphony orchestra has become, in the words of the Oxford Times, ‘a musical resource for the city and beyond’. In October 2002 we became the first-ever Orchestra in Residence at the University of Oxford, and our all-year-round service to town and gown alike has attracted consistent critical praise and loyal and growing public support. Highlights from Oxford Philomusica’s first decade include the unique 2006 Mainly Mozart Festival – an epic journey of twenty-seven celebratory concerts marking the 250th anniversary of Mozart's birth, an outstanding recording of The Creation - CD of the Month in the December 2008 issue of BBC Music Magazine,, the annual staging of the International Piano Festival and Summer Academy, the Beethoven Festival in November 2008 to mark the 10th anniversary of the Orchestra and, most recently, the widely-acclaimed bicentennial celebration of ‘Dr Haydn, Friends, Forbears and Followers’.
Beyond Oxford, the Orchestra is rapidly developing a national and international profile. A London presence has been established with appearances at the Barbican, Queen Elizabeth Hall and Cadogan Hall in parallel with a touring programme in key regional centres. Further afield, the Orchestra has visited Switzerland, France, and Greece, and major tours of Scandinavia, France, Belgium and the USA will take place later this year and beyond.
This rapid rise in the Orchestra’s standing is founded on uncompromising artistic standards, maintained by some of the very best orchestral musicians in the London/Oxford Thames Valley. From the start Oxford Philomusica has enjoyed endorsement of its mission from a remarkable roster of distinguished artists, including Vladimir Ashkenazy, our Patron, who first appeared with the Orchestra in 2001.
Education and community work is central to the Orchestra's mission. As part of the University Residency, the Orchestra collaborates with the Faculty of Music in educational programmes for the benefit of the student community, and its dedicated team of specialists maintains an ongoing programme of work in schools, hospitals and community centres. The Orchestra has recently formed a partnership with Oxfordshire County Council to provide performance opportunities and tuition to the hundreds of talented young musicians in the area. In recognition of its far-reaching work in the community, including its artistic leadership of the celebrated Blackbird Leys Choir, Oxford Philomusica won the Oxford Times Charity and Community Award in the Oxfordshire Business Awards 2007.
As it enters its second decade, Oxford Philomusica embraces its Arts Council-recognised role to fill ‘an identifiable regional need’, and continues to play its full part in the provision of first-rate orchestral music for the nation.