Scottish Chamber Orchestra
Welcome to the SCO. We have been inspiring audiences and connecting with communities since 1974, delivering diverse programmes that are open to all. Embrace the classics, discover exciting new music, and create beautiful musical memories with us!
We are now closed for Christmas.
SCO offices will reopen on the 3 January when phone lines will be on from 10am-4pm as usual.
We hope you have a merry Christmas, and look forward to seeing you in the New Year!
Coming up
![A cartoon drawing of a champagne bottle with the cork popping out alongside confetti, with a chandelier hanging above, set against a dark green and bright red background.]()
New Year Gala
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1 Matinee
Edinburgh
Ayr
Dumfries
Celebrate the New Year in style with musical glitz and glamour – from both sides of the Atlantic.![Violinist Rachel Podger holds her instrument, smiling at the camera, against a light pink and dark green background.]()
Bach's Brandenburg Concertos
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Matinee
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Aberdeen
Join British violinist Rachel Podger in a concert focusing on some of JS Bach’s most iconic orchestral music.![Geneva Lewis with her violin, smiling at the camera against a dark background with shapes in various shades of pink.]()
Sibelius Violin Concerto
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Edinburgh
Glasgow
SCO Conductor Emeritus Joseph Swensen directs the fiery Sibelius Violin Concerto, alongside the coolly elegant Sixth Symphony.![Maxim Emelyanychev looking into the camera, hand touching his jawline, against a gradient background of blue, pink, and orange waves.]()
Ad Absurdum
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New Dimensions
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Jörg Widmann’s whirlwind of a trumpet concerto from Sergei Nakariakov forms the centrepiece of a concert to raise a laugh.![A bright yellow, green, and white background with a cartoon drawing of the Great Grumpy Gaboon, a brown creature with white wings, sitting in a bed of flowers.]()
The Great Grumpy Gaboon
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Matinee
Dundee
Aberdeen
Inverness
Join the Grumpy Gaboon and friends on this brand-new musical adventure as they discover the importance of friendship and forgiveness.![Composer Ruth Gipps leaning forward with both hands gently touching her face.]()
GIPPS Seascape
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Digital Season
Online
Take a dip in the watery wonders of Gipps’s passionate music - and discover her pastoral idyll 'Cringlemire Garden' played live in February.![Ivan Podyomov smiling, and holding his oboe, against a dark background with bright blue, red, and green shapes.]()
Mozart Oboe Concerto
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Dumfries
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Discover Mozart’s song-like Oboe Concerto in the hands of Ivan Podyomov, principal oboist at Amsterdam’s Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra.![Conductor Andrew Manze with his baton raised, and baritone Roderick Williams singing, against a dark background with bright yellow, green, and pink shapes.]()
Fauré Requiem
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Choral
Edinburgh
Glasgow
Fauré’s hushed prayer for the departed, from outstanding British baritone Roderick Williams, conductor Andrew Manze and the SCO Chorus.![Violinist Pekka Kuusisto standing and playing his violin against a dark background with bright green, blue, and pink shapes.]()
Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto
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Edinburgh
Glasgow
Outstanding Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto directs and plays one of the best-loved masterpieces in the Romantic violin repertoire.![Pekka Kuusisto strumming his violin in front of a background with bright pink, green, and blue waves.]()
An afternoon with Pekka & friends
Matinee
Edinburgh
Get up close with Finnish violin superstar Pekka Kuusisto in this intimate chamber afternoon.
7 Latest videos
Serenade in Seven Colours
10:00
Novelletten
13:58
24/25 Season Outline
8:32
Supporting the SCO
2:37
Principal Guest Conductor
3:09
The Great Grumpy Gaboon 2024
0:47
Making of The Gaboon
2:08
Latest news
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The violin concerto
16 December 2024
We've reached the violin in our series on the concerto, and there's no end of them! (You might want to pour yourself a cup of tea for this.)![]()
Rachel Podger: "I'm especially fond of the Polonaise in the First Brandenburg Concerto"
9 December 2024
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SCO players in the spotlight: solo recordings
2 December 2024
Some Christmas present ideas for the music-lover.![]()
Farewell to Nikita!
26 November 2024
It is with sadness that we bid a fond farewell to Principal Double Bass, Nikita Naumov.![]()
The waltz goes international
25 November 2024
We look at what happened when composers outside Austria turned their hands to the waltz ...![]()
The Great Grumpy Gaboon: a chat with Jay Capperauld and Corrina Campbell
21 November 2024
What is a Gaboon, and why is it grumpy? We chatted to the creators of our new Family Festival to find out ...![]()
The story behind Silent Night and other carols
18 November 2024
The history of Christmas carols is long and surprisingly varied - we look at a few of them.![]()
The clarinet concerto
11 November 2024
It's the clarinet's turn to step centre-stage for a look at their concerto repertoire. It's possible Mozart is mentioned!![Composer Andrea Tarrodi leaning forward with one arm resting on a surface and her face resting on the palm of her other hand.]()
Digital Season: Andrea Tarrodi Serenade in Seven Colours
6 November 2024
Read the programme note for our online performance of Tarrodi's Serenade in Seven Colours.![]()
The search for Beethoven's successor
4 November 2024
Beethoven died in 1827. Who would be worthy to take on his mantle?
