Europe's largest city: five world-class orchestras and not a decent hall among them

Royal Albert Hall, home of the Proms (1871)
Capacity: over 5,500--suitable for a symphony?

At the turn of the twentieth century, London boasted three orchestras (note that most U.S. cities are lucky to have one): the Covent Garden, Queen's Hall, and the Philharmonic Society, the organization that commissioned Beethoven's Ninth Symphony.  Each would eventually morph into other ensembles.  The driving factor behind symphonic music-making in the city would be conductor Sir Thomas Beecham.

Edward Elgar at the helm of the LSO, Queen's Hall

The London Symphony, founded in 1904, was established by disgruntled players from Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orchestra, who objected to what they deemed unfair labor practices.  The LSO has been built as a cooperative ensemble, wherein the players are managers and owners (similar to practices in Berlin, Vienna, and other cities).  The orchestra initially performed at Queen's Hall.  During the First War, large donations from Thomas Beecham kept the orchestra afloat.  Although the cooperative would long court Beecham as a permanent conductor, he refused to work for an ensemble with which he would not have sole control.

The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) founded its own orchestra in 1930 as the first permanent salaried orchestra in London (it is also the only of London's major ensembles that is not self-governed).  With Adrian Boult as its founding conductor (Beecham also spurned the BBC), the orchestra has survived a "fallow period" for four decades beginning around 1950, during which time the orchestra was unable to attract the talent drawn to the other London ensembles.  With the arrival of Andrew Davis the orchestra has performed an amazing turnaround and has only recently regained its world status.

The London Philharmonic, founded by (none other than) Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932, readily took on London's musical establishment.  The founders' ambition was to build an orchestra the equal of any European or American rival. Between 1932 and the Second World War the LPO was widely judged to have succeeded in this regard.

The unrecognizable remains of Queen's Hall.

Of course, the Second World War wrecked havoc on London's cultural scene and the famed Queen's Hall was destroyed during the Blitz.  It was not rebuilt.

Post-war London has seen two more orchestras pop up (the Royal Philharmonic--yet another Beecham ensemble--and the Philharmonia).  The addition of rebuilt or newly constructed concert halls should have provided happy homes for the five major orchestras as well as the numerous chamber orchestras dotting the landscape.  Unfortunately....

The Barbican Centre, reportedly Europe's largest arts complex, houses both the LSO and the BBC Symphony.  Its conglomeration of brutalist structures, in an aerial view below, was voted "London's ugliest building" in a 2003 poll.

The Barbican--huh?

And it's no better once you stumble through the doors (don't you love those colors?).

The LPO has found its way to the Royal Festival Hall, a 1950's monstrosity.

And one has to wonder what Queen Elizabeth thinks of the hall that bears her name.  It might just challenge the Barbican in ugliness.

Fit for Her Highness?  I think not.

So many orchestras.  So many concert halls.  And none of the latter worthy of the former...Perhaps Sir Simon Rattle will come riding in on a white horse (after his announced departure from the Berlin Phil following the 2018 season) and somehow save the day.  Maybe, just one day, London could get something like this ("the hall that Simon built" in Birmingham):

Them Brits sure like red!

TOMORROW:  The boondoggle of boondoggles:  Avery Fischer Hall, or whatever they're going to call it.