British orchestras have made little impression in a list of the world’s best. The London Symphony Orchestra, in fourth place, is the country’s sole representative among the twenty finest bands, according to a panel of leading international critics.

Seven American orchestras, four German and three Russian make the list, which is topped by the Royal Concertgebouw of Amsterdam.

The mighty Berlin Philharmonic and the refined Vienna Philharmonic are second and third respectively.

Both institutions will be unhappy with their ranking, having contested the unofficial title of world’s greatest orchestra since the mid-20th century, when they were under the batons of the conductors Herbert von Karajan and Leonard Bernstein.

The Berlin Philharmonic’s second place is at least a fillip of sorts for British music. The orchestra is now conducted by Sir Simon Rattle, a Liverpudlian, although this is rather cancelled out by the nationality of the LSO’s principal conductor. Valery Gergiev is a fiercely proud Russian and also musical director of the Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra in St Petersburg, at number14 in the list.

The poll was put together by Gramophone, the classical music magazine, and limited to modern romantic orchestras (so period bands such as the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment did not get a look in). The eleven-strong panel included three British critics from the magazine, two Americans, two Asians and one each from Le Monde (France), Die Welt (Germany), De Telegraaf (the Nether-lands) and Die Presse (Austria).

James Inverne, the editor of Gramophone, said that the aim had been to compile a selection that was not “patriotic or parochial.

The full survey is published in the December issue of Gramophone, which will be available today.

High notes

1 Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra

2 Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra

3 Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra

4 London Symphony Orchestra

5 Chicago Symphony Orchestra

6 Bavarian Radio Symphony

7 Cleveland Orchestra

8 Los Angeles Philharmonic

9 Budapest Festival Orchestra

10 Dresden Staatskapelle

11 Boston Symphony Orchestra

12 New York Philharmonic

13 San Francisco Symphony

14 Mariinsky Theatre Orchestra

15 Russian National Orchestra

16 Leningrad Philharmonic

17 Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra

18 Metropolitan Opera Orchestra

19 Saito Kinen Symphony Orchestra

20 Czech Philharmonic

Source: Gramophone

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