Our orchestra

The English Philharmonia is a freelance orchestra, made up of the finest orchestral musicians in the UK. A vibrant group of players, they share a commitment and a passion to perfect their performance and play to the highest level. They work regularly with renowned international soloists, most recently Richard Watkins horn, James Gilchrist tenor.

The orchestra has delighted audiences in a wide variety of venues from leading concert halls, theatres and cathedrals to more intimate local venues.

They perform a wide range of music spanning five centuries and have a reputation of being invited to play newly commissioned work - the most recent being the ‘Tsunami Requiem’, and ‘Songs of the Coromandel Coast’ by Chris Williams. The first marks the tragic events of the tsunami in 2004 and the second depicts the resilience and recovery of those affected in India.

Every new project is exciting and we are constantly looking to expand our repertoire and bring a wide range of music to new and larger audiences. So if you have an event or project in mind we would like to hear from you.

Musical Director: Graham Wili
Graham made his conducting debut at the Royal Festival Hall in 2003, with a performance of Verdi's Requiem and returned two years later to conduct Truly, Madly, Mozart - a combination of operatic excerpts and the C Minor Mass. His most recent RFH appearance was in May 2008 when he conducted the World premiere of Songs of the Coromandel Coast to a standing ovation.

In addition to his role as Musical Director and Conductor of the English Philharmonia, he is also Musical Director of Berkhamsted Choral Society, Chorleywood Choral Society and the English Philharmonia Chorus. Performances include Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No 1 and Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast at St Albans Abbey returning in 2001, 2003 and 2005 for highly acclaimed performances of Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius, Verdi’s Requiem and Truly Madly Mozart. In 2005 he performed a concert version of Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess at the Swan Theatre, High Wycombe.

Leader: Matthew Scrivener
Matthew studied at the Royal Northern College of Music and during his time there won the highly acclaimed Eleanor Warren Salon Competition . He then became a scholar to the Royal Academy of Music. In addition to his current position of leader to the English Philharmonia, Matthew has also been leader of The Orchestra of English National Ballet since 2004.

He has also performed as guest leader of many of the country’s leading orchestras including National Symphony Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, The London Mozart Players, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra,The Ulster Orchestra, National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland and the B.B.C. Scottish Symphony Orchestra.