In London, at a time when there were no permanent London orchestras, nor organised series of
chamber music concerts, a group of thirty music professionals formed the
Philharmonic Society of London on 6 February 1813. One of the most prominent members was the famous Polish composer and violinist in exile
Feliks Janiewicz, in English often spelled as
Felix Yaniewicz who is also the co-founder of the famous Edinburgh Festival. The idea was that by cooperating, they could build a stronger orchestra than by competing against one another. However, given the organization's choice to hold its concerts at the
Argyll Rooms, it is likely that the society was initiated because of
John Nash's bold urban redesign of
Regent Street. In this way, the society would gain an impressive performing space once the old Argyll Rooms had to be rebuilt due to the Regent Street plan, and
Prince regent George IV could promote classical music as a British institution and thereby improve his reputation. Concerts were held in the Argyll Rooms until it burned down in 1830. The Society's aim was "to promote the performance, in the most perfect manner possible of the best and most approved instrumental music". The first concert, on 8 March 1813, was presided over by
Johann Peter Salomon, with
Muzio Clementi at the piano and the violin prodigy
Nicolas Mori as lead violinist, performing symphonies by
Joseph Haydn and
Ludwig van Beethoven. Among the founders were the pianist and violinist
William Dance (who became the society's first director and treasurer until his death in 1840), composer
Henry Bishop, and
Charles Neate, a pianist and friend of Beethoven, who publicised Beethoven's music at the Society. The Society asked Beethoven to come to London, but the composer's health prevented his accepting the invitation. However the society's request for a new symphony from him resulted in the
Choral Symphony. In 1827 Beethoven wrote to the society outlining his straitened circumstances; at a special general meeting the society resolved to send the composer £100 immediately (;
George Bernard Shaw once referred to this as "the only entirely creditable incident in English history").
Felix Mendelssohn also wrote his
Italian Symphony for the Society, which he finished in 1833. Distinguished conductors included
Ludwig Spohr, one of the first conductors to use a baton,
Hector Berlioz, who conducted a concert of his works in 1853,
Richard Wagner, who conducted the whole 1855 season of orchestral concerts,
William Sterndale Bennett for the following ten years,
Arthur Sullivan, and
Tchaikovsky, who conducted his own works in 1888 and 1893. From 1830 to 1869, the Society gave its concerts in the concert-hall of
Hanover Square Rooms, which had seating for only about 800. The Society decided to move permanently to
St James's Hall, and a complimentary additional concert, held at the hall, was given to its subscribers at the end of the 1868–69 season.
Charles Santley,
Charles Hallé,
Thérèse Tietjens and
Christina Nilsson were the soloists. When the move was made, the Society remodelled its charges to obtain a wider audience and compete with
the Crystal Palace and other large venues, and introduced annotated programmes. The Society remained at the hall until 28 February 1894, when it moved to the Queen's Hall. The society became the
Royal Philharmonic Society during its 100th concert season in 1912, and continued organising concerts through the two world wars. It is now a membership society which "seeks to create a future for music through the encouragement of creativity, the recognition of excellence and the promotion of understanding." •
See Works commissioned by the RPS for a list of works commissioned by or dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic Society. == The Gold Medal ==