The London Philharmonic Orchestra is a central institution of the British classical concert scene, performing major repertory works, British standards, contemporary music, and more. Especially on recordings, the group has also engaged with music from beyond the classical sphere.

The London Philharmonic Orchestra was formed in 1932 in response to a consensus that London's major orchestras, lacking strong artistic leadership, were inferior to those in Germany and even the U.S. So conductor Sir Thomas Beecham assembled a crack membership of 106 players, and the new orchestra was successful from the start. Beecham steered the group through financial difficulties at the beginning of World War II before resigning for health reasons and due to conflicts over the ensemble's artistic direction. Postwar conductors included Eduard van Beinum (1947 to 1951) and Sir Adrian Boult (1951 to 1958); the latter inaugurated an active recording program, releasing albums that remain standards to this day.

In 1966, Bernard Haitink became the orchestra's principal conductor; his tenure, lasting until 1979, was longer than that of any other conductor of the group until Vladimir Jurowski. The orchestra renovated a disused church, renamed it Henry Wood Hall, and began to use the space for rehearsals and recordings in 1975. Haitink's successor was another giant, Sir Georg Solti, who served as principal conductor from 1979 to 1983 and continued as conductor emeritus afterward, often appearing and recording with the orchestra. Solti was succeeded by a trio of Germans, Klaus Tennstedt in 1983, Franz Welser-Möst in 1990, and Kurt Masur in 2000. Welser-Möst officially installed the orchestra as the resident ensemble of the Royal Festival Hall, which remains its main concert venue.

The orchestra has also had numerous guest conductors over the years, and these have been responsible for many of its crossover releases. Although not as active in this field as the London Symphony Orchestra, the London Philharmonic has made high-visibility film soundtrack recordings. These include soundtracks for such films as Jesus Christ Superstar (1973), The Fly (1986), and the trilogy The Lord of the Rings, as well as the anthology Academy Award Themes (1984). The orchestra has released albums devoted to the music of progressive rock bands Pink Floyd and Yes, and as far back as 1959, it released the album Hawaiian Paradise. In 2011, the London Philharmonic recorded 205 national anthems in preparation for the London Olympic Games of the following year. The orchestra's album releases, classical and otherwise, numbered 280 by 1997 and has increased by well over 250 albums since then; in the year 2001 alone, the orchestra released 21 albums. The London Philharmonic established its own LPO label in the mid-2000s decade and has issued large amounts of music, both classical and not, including Genius of Film Music: Hollywood Blockbusters 1980s to 2000s, in 2018.

In 2007, the London Philharmonic was in the forefront of taking advantage of the wave of talented Russian musicians who had emigrated to the West, installing Vladimir Jurowski as principal conductor. He remained in the post until 2020, becoming the orchestra's longest-serving conductor and leading the group in a 2021 recording of Mahler's Symphony No. 8 ("Symphony of a Thousand"). In 2020, Karina Canellakis became the orchestra's first female principal guest conductor. Jurowski was succeeded in 2021 by Edward Gardner, who became the group's first British principal conductor for decades. ~ James Manheim

Germany's Klaus Tennstedt was one of the most influential conductors of the 20th century. He was known for his expressive interpretations of Mahler and other Austrian and German composers.

Born in 1926, Tennstedt's earliest musical instruction came in the form of violin lessons from his father, Hermann Tennstedt. Later, he attended the Leipzig Conservatory and studied violin, piano, and conducting. During World War II, he joined a Baroque orchestra, which allowed him to avoid military service under the Nazi regime. In 1948, he was appointed concertmaster of the Halle Stadttheater, but he was later forced to abandon the violin due to an injury or growth on his left hand. Remaining at the Halle, Tennstedt first worked as a vocal coach and accompanist, and then turned to conducting and made his debut in 1952. From 1954 to 1971, he held appointments conducting mostly opera, with the Chemnitz Opera from 1954 to 1957, the Dresden Opera from 1958 to 1962, and then with the Schwerin State Theater until 1971.

At this point, Tennstedt realized that he was being excluded from more ambitious opportunities since he was not a member of the dominant political party in East Germany. However, a concert in Sweden in 1971 gave him the opportunity that he needed to defect from the oppressive society. He remained in Sweden and conducted at the Göteborg Theater, and he also worked with the Swedish RSO. The following year, he relocated to Kiel in Northern Germany for an appointment as the music director at the Kiel Opera, which he held until 1976. In 1974 Walter Homburger invited Tennstedt to conduct Bruckner's Symphony No. 7 with the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. His performance inspired a frenzy of glowing reviews, which led to an invitation to conduct Bruckner's Symphony No. 8 with the Boston Symphony Orchestra. This concert created an explosive turning point in his career, attracting the attention of practically all of the major orchestras throughout the United States and Europe.

Tennstedt then received invitations from New York, Chicago, and Philadelphia, and made his British debut in 1976 with the London Symphony Orchestra, which generated even more demand and critical acclaim. He became the first German to conduct the Israel Philharmonic in 1978, and in the following season he began as the principal conductor for the NDR Symphony Orchestra and principal guest conductor for the Minnesota Orchestra. In 1980, he began as the principal guest conductor for the London Philharmonic, and by 1983 he became the music director and led several major tours and recordings until his resignation in 1987 due to health problems. However, Tennstedt continued working with the LPO in a reduced capacity with the title of conductor laureate until he retired in 1994. His recordings of the Mahler Symphonies with the LPO from this time are an important legacy, showcasing his mature and refined style. ~ RJ Lambert