The BBC Concert Orchestra is a British orchestra based in London, one of the British Broadcasting Corporation's five radio orchestras. With around fifty players, it is the only one of the five which is not a full-scale symphony orchestra.
The parent ensemble of the orchestra was the BBC Theatre Orchestra, which was formed in 1931 and based in Bedford. The orchestra also did opera work and was occasionally billed as the BBC Opera Orchestra. In August 1949, the ensemble was formally renamed the BBC Opera orchestra. In January 1952, the BBC Opera Orchestra was disbanded and the BBC Concert Orchestra was formed from players formerly from the BBC Opera Orchestra.
The BBC Concert Orchestra is the BBC's most populist ensemble, playing a mixture of classical music, light music and popular numbers. Its primary role is to produce music for radio broadcast, and it is the resident orchestra of the world's longest running live music programme, Friday Night is Music Night on BBC Radio 2. Until 1972, the orchestra was based at the Camden Theatre. From 1972 to 2004, the orchestra performed regularaly at the Golders Green Hippodrome. It also appears regularly at the Royal Festival Hall and The Proms in London, as well as venues around the United Kingdom.
Gilbert Vinter served as its first principal conductor, and Stanford Robinson, the former principal conductor of the BBC Opera, was a regular guest conductor with the ensemble. Barry Wordsworth, principal conductor from 1989 to 2006, now holds the title of Conductor Laureate. Jonny Greenwood was named the orchestra's composer-in-residence in 2004.
The orchestra has recorded commercially for the NMC Recordings label.
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