ABOUT US
ORIGINS
The orchestra was founded in the Summer of 2021 by London-based conductor, Alex Mackinder.
After graduating from Durham University in 2019, he had been searching for a way to champion the wealth of young musicians studying and working in London and give them an opportunity to hone and develop their craft outside their weekly studies, rehearsals and work commitments.
The need for opportunities such as these became even more pronounced during the COVID-19 pandemic, a time when making music with other people in person was virtually impossible, and the musical, cultural and networking opportunities for young musicians, especially those studying at music conservatoires and universities across the country, were almost completely lost for nearly 18 months. As a means of going some way to making up for those lost opportunities, Alex formed The Sirius Orchestra, so named after Sirius, the brightest star in the night sky.
AIMS
The orchestra’s initial aims were to provide conservatoire students, whose professional training has been so significantly impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the in-person music-making opportunities and experiences that are so fundamental to their development. Its longer-term aims are to be a permanent outlet to future generations of London-based conservatoire students, providing them with chances to supplement their weekly rehearsals and studies with music-making experiences that they may not otherwise have.
We aim to perform four concerts a year, each with programmes that are as exciting and stimulating for the orchestra as it is for audiences. Past concerts have featured music such as Haydn’s The Creation and Strauss’ Metamorphosen to Schumann’s Symphony No. 3 and a world premiere by Australian composer Asher Joyce. Keep an eye on our What’s On page to see what programmes we have coming up over this coming season!
GET INVOLVED
The orchestra exists to offer opportunities to any musician currently studying (or about to begin study) at one of the four major London music conservatoires, either an instrumentalist or vocalist. If you would like to perform with the orchestra, please click the ‘Sign Up’ button below and fill out the form to register your interest, and we will get in touch with you in due course to invite you to perform at one of our forthcoming concerts. If you are a composer currently studying at conservatoire, we would also be eager for you to get in touch to see if there is a possibility of us programming some of your music.
Please note that we are unfortunately not currently accepting applications for concerto soloists.
We are utterly thrilled to have had our fantastic logo designed by musician, writer and freelance artist, Georgie Proctor.