The English Chamber Orchestra, formed in 1960, enjoys an international reputation as one of the world's most celebrated ensembles. The orchestra undertakes a busy annual schedule of concert appearances, which include its prestigious London series. Overseas touring fills approximately three months of the schedule each year and since its first foreign tour the orchestra has performed in almost four hundred cities across the globe. Its world-wide reputation is enhanced by its recordings of over a thousand works and includes numerous award-winning discs as well as those of historic interest.
Over the years the English Chamber Orchestra has formed lasting and fruitful relationships with a multitude of great performers, with guest soloists including Maxim Vengerov, Mstislav Rostropovich, Vladimir Ashkenazy, Joshua Bell, Pinchas Zukerman and Mitsuko Uchida amongst many others. In 2000 the widely acclaimed and highly individual Finnish musician Ralf Gothóni was appointed Principal Conductor, and in 2004 Roy Goodman accepted the post of Principal Guest Conductor.
