Formed in 1891 as the Scottish Orchestra, and subsequently known as the Scottish National Orchestra before being granted Royal Patronage in 1991, the Royal Scottish National Orchestra is one of Europe’s leading ensembles. The orchestra performs a busy schedule of concerts across Scotland, tours internationally to Europe’s greatest concert halls and makes frequent appearances at the BBC Proms and the Edinburgh International Festival.
Distinguished conductors who have contributed to the success of the orchestra include Sir John Barbirolli, Karl Rankl, Hans Swarowsky, Walter Susskind, Sir Alexander Gibson, Conductor Laureate Neeme Järvi and Conductors Emeriti Walter Weller and Alexander Lazarev. Stéphane Denève was appointed Music Director in 2005 and his first recording with the RSNO, Albert Roussel’s Symphony No. 3 and the complete ballet suite Bacchus et Ariane (Naxos 8.570245) was released in 2007, receiving the Diapason d’Or de l’Année for Symphonic Music. The second disc in the series featuring Roussel’s Symphony No. 2, Pour une fête de printemps and Suite in F (Naxos 8.570529) was released in 2008 to widespread critical acclaim.
The RSNO has made an important contribution to the authoritative Naxos series of Bruckner Symphonies under the late Georg Tintner, and recorded a complete cycle of the orchestral works of Samuel Barber under former Principal Guest Conductor Marin Alsop. The orchestra is one of Scotland’s National Performing Companies, supported by the Scottish Government.
Photo courtesy of Peter Devlin
