With the City of Oxford Orchestra entering its 50th year, Nicola Lisle chats to director Lindsay Sandison

When the City of Oxford Orchestra steps on to the Sheldonian Theatre stage next week, it will be marking half a century of music making.

In a world of increasing competition and ever-decreasing budgets, surviving for 50 years is an extraordinary achievement and says a lot for the orchestra’s popularity, with both audience and players, not to mention the determination and tenacity of its organisers.

Catching up with Lindsay Sandison, one of the orchestra’s two directors, I find her, understandably, in buoyant mood.

“It’s huge,” she says of the orchestra’s 50-year milestone. “It’s really important, it’s a big marker and everybody’s thrilled to bits. I love the orchestra because we’ve got such loyal players, who regard the orchestra as a family. They were all saying at Christmas, ‘You must never give up’. Not that we were thinking of it, but it’s nice to hear them say that!”

Oxford’s first professional orchestra started life as Oxford Pro Musica, and made its debut at Merton College Chapel on February 27, 1965.

Its special birthday concert, exactly 50 years later, is a suitably upbeat programme, with Rossini’s merry Barber of Seville overture, Brahms’ extraordinary Concerto for Violin and Cello, with Roland Roberts (director/violin) and Peter Adams (cello), and Dvorak’s stirring Symphony No.9, ‘From the New World’.

“They’re popular pieces because they’re good, but we haven’t done them for a while, so that will be quite special. And we’re having a party for the orchestra and friends of the orchestra, so that will be nice.”

One of the hallmarks of the orchestra is its emphasis on making concerts fun. “I have lovely comments from people saying the orchestra always look as if they’re enjoying themselves,” says Lindsay. “A lot of the music is to have fun with. It’s a joyful thing — it’s entertainment.”

Part of that enjoyment, Lindsay feels, comes from conductor Stephen Bell, who joined the orchestra five years ago. “He’s brilliant with the audience and he’s so full of enthusiasm. It’s lovely working with a professional who is absolutely passionate about what he’s doing, not about himself. It’s the music, not the ego. That’s made a massive difference.”

As a former nurse, one of Lindsay’s own passions is the orchestra’s outreach work with dementia patients. “Just watching these people being transformed into animated, laughing people, and having relations saying ‘You’ve given me back my mum for an hour a week’ is terribly special. And there’s a spill-over effect — it doesn’t just go when we go: for the next 24 hours they’re much calmer. So it’s an amazing thing.”

As for the orchestra’s future, Lindsay is cautious. “I can’t really talk about what might be happening because I think I’ll spook it if I do!” she laughs.

“I’m hoping we’re going to do another CD, because we haven’t done one for five years, and we’re debating how to do the summer season at the moment. We usually do a mixture of baroque and chamber music, and I love that variety. Something big might be happening at the end of the year, which would be fantastic, but I can’t say at the moment.

“But we’re very excited at having got to the golden, and hope we’re going to get to the diamond!”

City of Oxford Orchestra 50th Birthday Concert
Sheldonian Theatre
Friday, 7.30pm
Tickets: Call 01865 744457, 01865 305305 or visit ticketsoxford.com