More recently, its principal conductors have included Pierre Monteux (1961–64), Istvan Kertesz (1965–68), André Previn (1968–79) and Claudio Abbado (1979–88). From 1988-1995, the American Michael Tilson-Thomas took over, and in 1995, became principal guest conductor. Sir Colin Davis served as the LSO's Principal Conductor from 1995-2006, and in 2007 took the post of President of the orchestra. On 1 January 2007, Valery Gergiev became the LSO's Principal Conductor. Previn holds the title of Conductor Laureate. In 2006, Daniel Harding became the co-principal guest conductor alongside Tilson Thomas. Richard Hickox is the Associate Guest Conductor of the LSO.
The LSO became the first British orchestra to play overseas when it went to Paris in 1906. The LSO was due to sail on the RMS Titanic for a concert in New York in April 1912 but fortunately had to change the booking at the last minute. It was also the first to play in the United States, in 1912, and in 1973 it was the first to be invited to take part in the Salzburg Festival. It continues to make tours around the world.
In 1966 the London Symphony Chorus (LSC) was formed to complement the work of the LSO. with more that two hundred amateur singers, the LSC maintains a close association with the LSO; however it has developed an independent life, which allows it to partner other leading orchestras.
The LSO has long been considered the most extraverted of the London orchestras. For most of its life it refused to allow women to become members, ostensibly on the grounds that women would affect the sound of the orchestra (there has been a similar controversy at the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra). There is an air of youthful high spirits to much of its music-making that is shown off in performances of such composers as Berlioz and Prokofiev. The LSO has often had internationally-known players as wind soloists, including such artists as James Galway (flute), Gervase de Peyer (clarinet), Roger Lord (oboe), Osian Ellis (harp), John Georgiadis (violin) and Barry Tuckwell (horn). Like most ensembles, the orchestra has a great ability to vary its sound, producing very different tone colours under such diverse conductors as Stokowski (with whom it made a series of memorable recordings), Adrian Boult, Jascha Horenstein, Georg Solti, André Previn, George Szell, Claudio Abbado, Leonard Bernstein, John Barbirolli, and Karl Böhm, who developed a close relationship with the orchestra late in his life. Böhm and Bernstein each held the title of LSO President in their later years.
Clive Gillinson, a former cellist with the orchestra, served as the LSO's Managing Director from 1984 to 2005, and is widely credited with bringing great stability to the LSO's organization after severe fiscal troubles.[1] Since 2005, Kathryn McDowell is the Managing Director of the LSO.[2]
A Day in the life
London Symphony Orchestra Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
About a lucky man who made the grade
And though the news was rather sad
Well I just had to laugh
I saw the photograph.
He blew his mind out in a car
He didn't notice that the lights had changed
A crowd of people stood and stared
Nobody was really sure
If he was from the House of Lords.
I saw a film today oh boy
The English Army had just won the war
A crowd of people turned away
But I just had to look
Having read the book.
I'd love to turn you on
Woke up, fell out of bed,
Dragged a comb across my head
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup,
And looking up I noticed I was late.
Found my coat and grabbed my hat
Made the bus in seconds flat
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke,
Somebody spoke and I went into a dream
I read the news today oh boy
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire
And though the holes were rather small
They had to count them all
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall.
I'd love to turn you on
The lyrics of "A Day In The Life" by the London String Orchestra start with the singer reading the news of the day, which reports on a man who successfully "made the grade" but eventually committed suicide by "blowing his mind out in a car." Despite the sadness of the news, the singer found it amusing and laughed as he saw the photograph of the man. The people who witnessed the incident were uncertain about the man's status, speculating that he could have been from the aristocratic House of Lords.
In the next stanza, the singer watched a victorious film about the English Army while a crowd of people turned away. The book he had read only intensified his interest in the events of history. The lyrics then transition to the mundane routine of the singer's own day, which begins by waking up, dragging a comb across his head, and rushing out of the house to catch the bus. The last stanza of the song brings the news story back into focus and reports on the discovery of thousands of small holes in Blackburn, Lancashire. The lyrics end with a desire to "turn you on," inviting the listener into their worldview.
Line by Line Meaning
I read the news today oh boy
I read the news today and it's an indication of how bad things can become
About a lucky man who made the grade
The news was about a man who was successful, but the success did not bring him happiness
And though the news was rather sad
The news was not uplifting, it was negative
Well, I just had to laugh
Despite the negativity, the person still found a way to cope with it through humor
I saw the photograph
The person saw a picture of the unlucky man from the news story
He blew his mind out in a car
The unlucky man had a mental breakdown while driving
He didn't notice that the lights had changed
The unlucky man was too preoccupied to notice the change in traffic lights and this led to his accident
A crowd of people stood and stared
People were watching the accident happen, helpless to intervene
They'd seen his face before
The unlucky man was a familiar sight and people recognized him
Nobody was really sure
There was uncertainty and confusion about who the unlucky man was
If he was from the House of Lords
People wondered if the unlucky man had any connections to the affluent House of Lords
I saw a film today oh boy
The person watched a film that left a strong impression on them
The English Army had just won the war
The movie depicted the English Army as victorious in a war
A crowd of people turned away
Other people may not have been interested in the film, but the person was captivated
But I just had to look
The person was fascinated and unable to take their eyes from the screen
Having read the book
The person had read a book that the film was based on
I'd love to turn you on
The person writes this line after each of the preceding verses, leaving its meaning purposefully ambiguous
Woke up, fell out of bed
The person woke up and exited bed without any struggle
Dragged a comb across my head
The person tidied themselves up by running a comb through their hair
Found my way downstairs and drank a cup
The person moved downstairs for some coffee or tea in the morning
And looking up I noticed I was late
The person realized they were running behind schedule
Found my coat and grabbed my hat
The person located their coat and hat, then retrieved them
Made the bus in seconds flat
The person was able to catch the bus almost instantly
Found my way upstairs and had a smoke
The person went back upstairs and smoked a cigarette
Somebody spoke and I went into a dream
The person heard something that sent them into a trance-like state of mind
Four thousand holes in Blackburn, Lancashire
This is another news story, but this time bizarre and trivial
And though the holes were rather small
The story is about a phenomenon that might be considered meaningless
They had to count them all
People went so far as to count these holes
Now they know how many holes it takes to fill the Albert Hall
The number of small holes is now known, but it is useless knowledge or an impractical result
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: John Lennon, Paul McCartney
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@pinkshrimp
More of Life in a day please!! They are fascinating!
@LondonSymphonyOrchestra
Been spending some time tidying up our YouTube channel during the "quiet" summer break. Enjoying coming across videos we made a couple of years back that haven't seen the light of day in a while. This was one of three mini-documentaries we made in 2011, following conductors and musicians to capture what a working musician's day is like. Our Principal Flute Gareth Davies even let us film him scooting from one session to another on his Brompton! Fun times...
@amydunne25
London Symphony Orchestra although Gareth's life looks fun, he also seems very busy. But apart from that, he seems by to be a bit of 2 in 1. Principal Flutist and Chairman, but fair a play for him being able to do both. Past! I also want to be a conductor aswell Gareth.
@zavierspires7713
My life's dream summed up in a 15 minute video. I love this man.
@amydunne25
Zavier Spires so do I and am friends with him on Facebook
@m.st.6657
Same
@m.st.6657
Man, I would be my dream to be first flute of such a great orchestra and have a life like him!
I'm working on it. ❤
@clifvage
More of these please LSO!!
@topolinik
Che stile!!! Un grande davvero!!!
@AMARINS
Aw nice to see my old school (Guildhall 🥳) - cool to see another musician’s day in the life :) thanks for sharing :)