City of London Sinfonia

City of London Sinfonia (CLS) is an English chamber orchestra based in London. CLS performs regularly across the city of London in venues from East London clubs to traditional Central London concert halls. CLS is Orchestra-in-Residence at the critically acclaimed Opera Holland Park, and has developed close links with joint venture partners in Mexico and Japan. They toured Mexico in May 2015, and will be embarking on a concert tour to Japan in March 2017. The CLS performs chamber orchestra and ensemble repertoire from the Baroque period to the present day, and has a particular reputation for its programming focus on the human voice.

Richard Hickox founded the CLS in 1971 and remained its music director and artistic director until his death in November 2008. Past principal guest conductors have included Marin Alsop and Douglas Boyd. In November 2009, the CLS announced the appointment of Stephen Layton as its second Artistic Director, effective with the 2010-2011 season. Simultaneously, the CLS announced the appointment of Michael Collins also as Principal Conductor, effective in September 2010.

The CLS has won various awards, such as the Royal Philharmonic Society's Large Ensemble Award, the 'Best Opera Recording' Grammy for its recording of Benjamin Britten's Peter Grimes, and the Arts, Business and Sustainability Award from the national organisation Arts & Business, in recognition of the achievements of its partnership with principal sponsor MMC.

The CLS has recorded chamber orchestra and opera repertoire for a number of labels, including Chandos and Hyperion.

CLS's Meet the Music programme spends over 170 days in the community every year making music with over 14,000 people. Current projects include Wellbeing through Music in healthcare settings, where musicians deliver performances, often at patients’ bedsides, and end-of-term projects for young children in major London teaching hospitals including Great Ormond Street. They also undertake regular visits to care homes in North London, making music with Holocaust survivors or those suffering from dementia. CLS education projects, Growth through Music, see CLS musicians working with very young children (aged 3–7) in communities that are geographically or economically isolated, including rural Suffolk and Tower Hamlets. Working closely with schools and Music Education Hubs these projects address a significant gap in provision for children at a crucial time in their academic and social development.

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