Following its centenary celebrations last year, the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra becomes resident at Brighton Dome

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, music director Joanna MacGregor

The Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra, music director Joanna MacGregor, opened its 2026/27 season at the Brighton Dome at the weekend with a programme mixing Rachmaninoff, Gershwin, Piazzolla and Janacek. This season marks a new development in the relationship between orchestra and venue as it has now been announced that the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra has become the resident orchestra at the Dome.

Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra was founded in 1925 and first performed on Brighton Dome’s Concert Hall stage in 1928. It has been a fixture of the venue’s event seasons ever since, most recently celebrating its centenary last year. Sir Thomas Beecham became its first President in 1932, a position later held by Vaughan Williams and Benjamin Britten. The orchestra has a rich tradition of championing living composers; in 1946 Francis Poulenc performed his own concerto at Brighton Dome, while recent seasons have included music by James MacMillan, Gwilym Simcock and the upcoming premiere of Eric Vloeimans’ new work.

Joanna MacGregor, CEO and music director of Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra commented: “To become Brighton Dome’s Resident Orchestra is a wonderful recognition of BPO’s vibrant performances over the last century, and cements an already close partnership. We’re looking forward to developing ambitious, world class programmes and exciting artistic collaborations for Brighton audiences.“

Further ahead, the orchestra pairs Stravinsky’s Symphonies of Wind Instruments, and Concerto for Piano and Wind Instruments with Mozart’s Gran Partita (11 October).

Full details from the Brighton Philharmonic Orchestra’s website.