The Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra (RPCO) is a dynamic and versatile ensemble that performs a wide range of styles and genres of music in shows across the UK and around the world. The Orchestra’s repertoire includes film music, video game scores, music from the musicals and symphonic arrangements of classic rock and pop songs, as well as new commissions and the traditional core orchestral repertoire, reaching a live audience of over 170,000 people per year. The Orchestra’s creative partnerships with artists, promoters and producers have resulted in ambitious performances from exclusive and intimate audiences with stars to spectacular performances in vast arenas and leading concert venues around the UK and the world. The RPCO aims to reach as wide and diverse an audience as possible and is unafraid to explore new orchestral experiences.
The Orchestra is a regular visitor to the Royal Albert Hall where it has premiered many films ‘Live in Concert’ such as Top Gun: Maverick, Avatar, The English Patient, Brassed Off! in a collaboration with the Grimethorpe Colliery Band, Skyfall, and the blockbuster Bollywood film Baahubali – The Beginning screened in the original language of Tamil. The 2025–26 Season sees the ‘Live in Concert’ premiere of S. S. Rajamouli's RRR, as well as performances of Gladiator, How to Train Your Dragon, Back to the Future and Home Alone. The RPCO also regularly appears with some of the world’s most famous pop acts, including Ellie Goulding, Kylie Minogue, Jake Shears, Neil Tennant, Monica Mancini and Lulu.
The RPCO performs at festivals across the world and in 2025 they made appearances at The Mighty Hoopla with Kate Nash, British Summer Time Festival in London’s Hyde Park, The London Soundtrack Festival and Battersea Park in Concert. 2025 also saw performances with Diana Ross at the o2 in London and The Grateful Dead’s Bob Weir at the Royal Albert Hall.
The RPCO continues to be at the forefront of bringing new audiences to orchestral performances, specialising in innovative concert formats and diverse repertoire. The Orchestra has toured the UK with the music of Roy Orbison, featuring the late artist in a groundbreaking hologram format, followed by performances at the London Coliseum alongside the hologram of Maria Callas. 2023 also saw the RPCO’s fourth national arena tour of Elvis in Concert, accompanying the ‘King of Rock and Roll’ up close and on screen. The Orchestra also remains a leader in the field of video game music concerts, having recently performed sell-out concerts of the music of Genshin Impact and NieR and Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Orchestra World Tour. In 2025, they premiered METAL GEAR in Concert at the Royal Albert Hall, and performed the music of Distant Worlds at the Eventim Apollo, Hammersmith.
Further recent highlights for the RPCO include multiple performances with the hugely popular Italian tenor, Andrea Bocelli, as well as concerts with José Carreras, Anna Netrebko and the stars of the West End stage, such as Kerry Ellis, Alfie Boe and Ruthie Henshall. The Orchestra premiered the Legendary and award-winning Indian composer Ilaiyaraaja’s historic Symphony No. 1 – ‘Valiant’ in London in January 2025 and also performed it, alongside other works by Ilaiyaraaja in Chennai, India in the summer of 2025. Recent international touring has also seen the RPCO visit Gibraltar, Greece, India, Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi, as part of the UAE National Day.
"...the orchestra [had a] rich, lavish flow." The Arts Desk
"An orchestra in sparkling form... the famous opening fanfare was glorious." Broadway World
"Music was provided by the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra, and every piece was simply beautifully performed." Reece Goodall, theboar.org
