BBC Scotland Executive Report 2007/08

2007/08 was another defining year in the history of BBC Scotland's cultural flagship, the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra. As well as presenting acclaimed performances and broadcasts, the orchestra, under Chief Conductor Ilan Volkov, performed its traditional key roles at the BBC Proms and Edinburgh International Festival and gave successful performances at the Prague Autumn Festival.

The orchestra delivered programmes for BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio Scotland, BBC Two and BBC Four, took on a high profile artistic role in the Celtic Connections festival, and in September played before an audience of 20,000 on Glasgow Green at BBC Proms in the Park. At its home in City Halls, the orchestra provided accompaniment for the finalists of the Scottish International Piano Competition and the opening concert of its winter concert season, The Planets, was broadcast live on BBC Two Scotland.

The City Halls concert series was presented to large and enthusiastic audiences throughout the season, and the orchestra was joined by some of the world's leading artists including pianists Steven Osborne, Nelson Freire and John Lill. The orchestra is central to learning projects within City Halls, and it established an amateur orchestra, the Merchant Sinfonia, allowing musical enthusiasts of all abilities to participate in orchestral performance.

The BBC SSO was orchestra-in-residence at the St Magnus Festival in Orkney and presented successful concert seasons in Aberdeen and Perth as well as performing in Ayr, Aviemore, Dornoch, Durness, Edinburgh, Inverness, Leeds, London and Stirling. The orchestra continued to build on its close relations with communities across Scotland with its ongoing video-conferencing programme, which also allows it to connect to other orchestras and institutions internationally.

In October, the orchestra announced that the eminent Scottish-born conductor Donald Runnicles would succeed Ilan Volkov as Chief Conductor in 2009. The appointment was met with an extremely positive reaction in the international media and promises to reinforce the BBC SSO's position as one of the UK's finest orchestras.