It won’t have gone without notice in the music world that we started this year’s London Philharmonic Orchestra and London Philharmonic Choir season with a phenomenal performance of Britten’s War Requiem on September 26th, a perfect piece in so many ways – and especially for this opening concert for the year’s LPO theme, In Search of Purpose.

This pertinent theme was the brainchild of Jesús Herrera who has been the LPO’s Artistic Director since June 2025. We talked to him about the theme, why he chose it and how it fits into his programming. We also chatted about what other works we will be performing together throughout the season and how important the choir is as part of the LPO family.

 “Well of course the choir is important”, Jesús told us. “The LPC is a very special part of the LPO family and has to be a key part of our musical season. Having the LPC in our family is also part of our purpose and so fits into the theme perfectly too.

In Search of Purpose is a great example of a concept that offers an inspiring opportunity to portray something profoundly valuable to everyone, and which can be widely interpreted at all kinds of levels. The purpose of music, the purpose of performing together, the purpose of the individual pieces we have chosen for each concert, the purpose of sharing our music with audiences and the purpose of the composers in creating their music. These are all so important, especially now in times of adversity. They help us to find a way forward and find a spark that allows us to gather strength that perhaps we didn’t even know we possessed, and then share that in a way that we hope will lift and inspire everyone through music.

Looking forward into this season of purposeful concerts, it’s true that many of the iconic works we are so fortunate to perform were written decades, or often centuries ago but they all emerged from artists who were driven to express something fundamentally human. This means the inspiration within these compositions can reflect experiences just as close to anyone in today’s audience, regardless of their previous exposure to an orchestral or choral concert. So many of us are searching for purpose today in these challenging times, so this felt like a particularly important pathway to pursue.

Britten’s War Requiem clearly has a profound purpose in advocating for peace amidst conflict. It is such a special piece which was absolutely fantastic for us to perform, and of course for the choirs to sing. I feel that this very special piece resonates with where we are right now and how we always need to be thinking about the pity of war. I think it is the 20th century’s most powerful musical piece for reconciliation.

I remember when I first came to visit the choir at a rehearsal in September 2025. To be honest I wasn’t quite sure what to expect as of course you are an ‘amateur’ choir, so I was absolutely amazed when I heard you singing and realised then that the only thing that made you amateur really was that you weren’t paid!  Your sound and singing are of the highest level and you’re also super friendly and sociable so it was great getting to meet you all. We’re really fortunate to have such a choir and to be able to make you an important part of our season’s programming.

A choir is also such an important part of what music means to listeners, as well as the players – there’s something extra special about the human voice, or rather human voices together, that has a profound and touching effect in reaching audiences and sharing musical messages; singing really helps bring us back to our humanity.

Now that the season has begun I’m really looking forward to the future concerts we are performing together. The new year of course sees our special celebration of your 80th birthday in February 2027 which we’re very excited about, and have commissioned a new work for, by Dame Judith Weir. There are actually three carefully chosen choral pieces in this concert which show different points of purpose in their messages – and of course we also have the purpose of creating a new piece to celebrate with.

The first two pieces are heartfelt prayers for peace; Fauré’s Requiem finds serenity in sorrow, in music whose beauty has made this one of the best-loved of all choral masterpieces. Vaughan Williams’s Dona Nobis Pacem is a stirring plea for sanity, composed in an anxious decade. And best of all, there is a birthday gift from Dame Judith Weir, a composer who proves that nothing speaks louder than simplicity: the world premiere of her new piece, Respire, Inspire.

Towards the end of the season, we have two more wonderful concerts together, the first on April 10th being a very rarely performed secular oratorio by Schumann, Das Paradies und die Peri. This heartfelt and romantic piece tells the story of the Peri, who has been cast out of Paradise and is now walking the Earth, a wounded but gentle spirit, seeking the good deed or the loving heart that will guide her back to happiness.

And finally our season ends on April 24th with the familiar and spiritual British choral masterpiece by Elgar, The Dream of Gerontius. This story of a lonely soul’s journey towards eternity is an unforgettable human drama, told in music of startling sincerity and breathtaking beauty. I can’t wait to hear you, the orchestra, and three great soloists, under the baton of Edward Gardner, performing this profoundly purposeful music which comes straight from the heart.

You can book tickets for these concerts here.