Orchestra

In 2004 the London Symphony Orchestra celebrated its hundredth birthday. The centenary finds the orchestra acclaimed as one of the best in the world, making music with the most charismatic conductors and soloists on the planet. In this compelling and highly praised biography, leading columnist Richard Morrison examines all sides of the LSO: from the notorious playboy era of the 1970s and the disastrous early years at the Barbican to the remarkable transformation into one of the most dazzling and ambitious arts organisations that Britain has ever produced.'Richard Morrison has done a splendid job for the LSO. The historical facts are all here, laced with saucy criticism and spiced with anecdotes . . . a fine achievement.' Sunday Telegraph'Owned and organised by its players, the LSO is a glorious example of teamwork in an industry of prima donnas. Richard Morrison writes enjoyably about the telepathy that binds a string section, the gesticulations that distinguish a great conductor and the schoolboy humour that enlivens rehearsals.' Observer'Contains all the elements of a Hollywood blockbuster . . . The fact that Morrison's book is non-fiction does little to detract from the glitzy, compelling, moving and fascinating story.' Scotland on Sunday

Richard Morrison is chief music critic of The Times and writes a wide-ranging weekly column on cultural and social matters, which is noted for its humour and passion. From 1989 to 1999 he also edited the paper's arts pages. He is a music graduate of Cambridge University and former orchestral trombonist and organist.He was taken to his first London Symphony Orchestra concert in 1960, aged five, and wrote his first professional review of the orchestra 16 years later. Since then he has heard the orchestra perform under most of the world's top conductors.

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