A radio orchestra (or broadcast orchestra ) is an orchestra employed by a radio network (and sometimes television networks ) in order to provide programming as well as sometimes perform incidental or theme music for various shows on the network. In the heyday of radio such orchestras were numerous, performing classical, popular, light music and jazz. However, in recent decades, broadcast orchestras have become increasingly rare. Those that still exist perform mainly classical and contemporary orchestral music, though broadcast light music orchestras, jazz orchestras and big bands are still employed by some radio stations in Europe.
18-632: The BBC Television Orchestra (1936–1939) was a broadcast orchestra founded in 1936 by conductor, violinist and composer Hyam Greenbaum and led by Boris Pecker. Greenbaum's wife Sidonie Goossens was the first solo harpist with the Orchestra in that year. It was disbanded in September 1939 when the outbreak of the Second World War caused the BBC Television service to be suspended so as not to create
36-792: A Big Band in Frankfurt and the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra, Berlin. The British Broadcasting Corporation operates five full-time permanent orchestras, as well as a full-time chamber choir, the BBC Singers and the BBC Big Band . Denmark also maintains orchestra in the form of the Danish National Symphony Orchestra , the Danish Radio Big Band , Chamber Orchestra and Radio Choir. In Norway NRK runs
54-759: A VHF beacon for German bombers. After that Greenbaum used a nucleus of its players to form the BBC Revue Orchestra, playing light variety music for BBC radio from its base in Bangor , North Wales. Its successor, the BBC Revue Orchestra, was amalgamated with the BBC Variety Orchestra in 1964 to form the BBC Radio Orchestra . The orchestra played on the first ever programme broadcast when regular British television broadcasts commenced on 26 August 1936 to an estimated 123,000 viewers. The orchestra also played on
72-930: A year. In the Netherlands, the Muziekcentrum van de Omroep ( Broadcasting Music Centre ), an umbrella organization of the Netherlands Public Broadcasting associations, supports the Radio Filharmonisch Orkest , the Radio Kamer Filharmonie , the Groot Omroepkoor ( Netherlands Radio Choir ), and the Metropole Orkest , the world's largest professional pop and jazz orchestra. The last surviving broadcast orchestra in North America
90-619: Is a Norwegian orchestra based in Bergen . Its principal concert venue is the Grieg Hall . Established in 1765 under the name Det Musicalske Selskab (The Musical Society), it later changed its name to Musikselskabet Harmonien . Bergen citizens often refer to the ensemble as "Harmonien" (the Harmony). After World War I, there was strong interest in the major Norwegian cities of Bergen and Kristiania (later Oslo ) in having larger orchestras. In 1919,
108-726: The Late Show with David Letterman whimsically called itself the CBS Orchestra though it was not a classical musical orchestra and did not perform on CBS outside of the Late Show . The last permanent studio orchestra in America was The Tonight Show Band , also known as the NBC Orchestra, a big band led by trumpeter Doc Severinsen . Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra ( Norwegian : Bergen filharmoniske orkester)
126-900: The NBC Symphony Orchestra (1937–1954) conducted by Arturo Toscanini , the five orchestras maintained by the BBC , particularly the BBC Symphony Orchestra founded in 1930, the MDR Symphony Orchestra founded in 1923, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra founded in 1949, the Tokyo-based NHK Symphony Orchestra , the Danish National Symphony Orchestra founded in 1925, the Vienna Radio Symphony Orchestra founded in 1969 and
144-487: The Norwegian Radio Orchestra (Norwegian, Kringkastingsorkestret, abbreviated as KORK). The orchestra specializes in classical music as well as popular music. This makes it quite unique in that the musicians are trained both classically and rhythmically to a high degree. The Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and Stavanger Symphony Orchestra also have agreements with NRK too make a number of broadcast recordings
162-654: The Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra of Moscow Radio (formerly the USSR State Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra among other names) founded in 1930. Germany has an especially large number of radio orchestras. Eleven radio orchestras perform and produce classical as well as contemporary music and jazz for the North German Broadcasting ( NDR ) with two orchestras in Hamburg and Hanover as well as
180-469: The Bergen Festival have included Eugene Ormandy and Sir Thomas Beecham . Andrew Litton became principal conductor in 2003 and artistic director in 2005. In 2002, the orchestra began to record the complete orchestral works of Edvard Grieg, the first Norwegian orchestra to do so. Norwegian conductor Ole Kristian Ruud and the orchestra recorded the final of the 7 CDs for BIS , in 2005. Litton now has
198-878: The NDR Big Band. West German Broadcasting ( WDR ) has two orchestras in Cologne and a Big Band, Southwest German Broadcasting ( SWR ) with one orchestra (2016 merged) and the SWR Big Band in Stuttgart and Baden-Baden/Freiburg, Bavarian Broadcasting ( BR ) with two orchestras in Munich, Central German Broadcasting ( MDR ) with one orchestra in Leipzig, Saarland Broadcasting ( SR ) with one orchestra (2006 merged) in Saarbrücken/Kaiserslautern, Hessian Broadcasting ( HR ) with one orchestra and
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#1733085529854216-460: The opening day of BBC Television high-definition broadcast on Monday, 2 November 1936, with Adele Dixon performing the song "Television" live on its launch programme. For the three years of its life the orchestra's repertoire was wide, ranging from music for drama productions through to a televised adaptation of Wagner 's Tristan and Isolde in two, one hour sections on 24 January 1938. Radio orchestra Famous broadcast orchestras include
234-485: The orchestra announced the appointment of Sir Mark Elder as its next principal guest conductor, effective 1 August 2022, with an initial contract of three years through 31 July 2025. Gardner concluded his tenure as chief conductor at the close of the 2023–2024 season, at which time the orchestra named him its æresdirigent (honorary conductor). Many members of the orchestra teach at the Grieg Academy of Music , which
252-466: The orchestra continues to commission and perform new compositions on a regular basis. Other composers who have conducted their own works with the orchestra include Aaron Copland , Karl Nielsen , Jean Sibelius , Witold Lutosławski , Lukas Foss , and Krzysztof Penderecki . In 1953, the Festspillene i Bergen was started and Leopold Stokowski was contracted to conduct the orchestra. Other conductors at
270-502: The orchestra in Bergen was reorganized to employ 40 professional full-time musicians. As of 2015, the orchestra has 101 musicians. The orchestra has had a long tradition of playing contemporary music. Ludwig van Beethoven 's second symphony was performed in Bergen in the year it was published, 1804 , even before it was performed in Berlin. Bergen-born composer Edvard Grieg had close ties with
288-439: The orchestra, and was artistic director from 1880 to 1882. He also bequeathed a portion of his estate to a fund which continues to provide financial support for the orchestra. Other composers have served as principal conductor of the orchestra, including Arvid Fladmoe , Johan Halvorsen , Iver Holter , Richard Henneberg , Olav Kielland and Per Winge . Composer Harald Sæverud was frequently invited to conduct his own works, and
306-446: The title of conductor laureate with the orchestra. The orchestra's most recent chief conductor was Edward Gardner , beginning in 2015. In January 2017. the orchestra announced the extension of Gardner's contract in Bergen through 2021. In September 2019, the orchestra further extended Gardner's contract through 2023. In June 2021, the orchestra announced a 1-year extension of Gardner's contract through July 2024. In November 2021,
324-784: Was the CBC Radio Orchestra founded in 1938. On March 28, 2008 the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation announced that the orchestra would be dissolved at the end of November. The ensemble has continued independent of network affiliation as the National Broadcast Orchestra based in Vancouver. The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) in Australia operates six state radio symphony orchestras through its subdivision Symphony Australia . The house band for
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