| Biography | The Royal Orchestral Society for Amateur Musicians is the oldest of its kind in the country. It was founded in 1872 by Queen Victoria's second son the Duke of Edinburgh, himself an enthusiastic violinist and the Society's first President. At that time the only other large body of players in London was the orchestra of the Royal Philharmonic Society.
The new Society's first concert was conducted by Sir Arthur Sullivan in the Royal Albert Hall in 1873, and in 1879 the then Prince of Wales, later King Edward VII, graciously consented to become Patron of the Society, an honour which was also conferred by Queen Victoria in 1880, after a Command Performance at Windsor Castle. Since then it has given numerous concerts in the presence of Royalty, and has performed in many different venues, including St. James' Palace, Arundel Castle, the Mansion House and the Royal Naval College Chapel, Greenwich.
Musicians connected with the Society include Fritz Kreisler, Sir Edward Elgar and Dame Clara Butt. Until his death in 1992 Arthur Davison had been Conductor and Musical Director for over 40 years. His successor, Anthony Hopkins, retired as Principal Conductor in 1997.
The society has been responsible for introducing many new works to England, including Brahms' Liebeslieder, Dvorak's Symphony no.6 in D major, Coppelia suite by Delibes. In June 2002, the Society presented a World Premier performance of 'Awake, the Voice Commands' by Berthold Goldschmidt
In recent years, soloists who have played with the society include Christopher Bunting, Alan Civil, Carlos Bonell, Piers Lane, Kathryn Stott, Timothy Hugh and Bradley Creswick
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