0 years of ICSO

Who we are

Imperial's flagship orchestra

The Imperial College Symphony Orchestra ("ICSO") has been performing works to the highest standard and entertaining the masses since its founding in 1948. As Imperial's flagship orchestra, ICSO regularly plays challenging repertoire across London and beyond, all while the majority of ICSO members study STEM degrees at Imperial. We are proud to perform our annual Spring Concert at Cadogan Hall, home of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

ICSO has a vast history of performing with professional soloists (incl. Charles Owen, Raphael Wallfisch, Andrew Zolinsky, Michael Thompson, Bernard Roberts, and Lara Melda), as well as showcasing selected Imperial student soloists with termly concerto performances. Recent highlights include:

• Sold-out concerts at Cadogan Hall and the Royal College of Music.
• Holding a free-of-charge spring charity concert on Imperial campus, featuring ICSO musicians in student-led chamber ensembles.
• Playing the part of the main orchestra in a 2026 anniversary concert of Britten's War Requiem in Windsor Castle, performing to HRH The Duke of Edinburgh and the German Ambassador to the UK.

ICSO, joined by other ensembles, at Windsor Castle (February 2026)
Britten's War Requiem
Conductor: Oliver Gooch

ICSO Spring Concert at Cadogan Hall (March 2025)
Rachmaninoff's Third Piano Concerto
Soloist: Bendit Chan, Conductor: Oliver Gooch

Oliver Gooch
Conductor of ICSO; Director of the Blyth Centre for Music and Visual Arts; Director of Music at Imperial College London

ICSO Conductor

Oliver Gooch

The current Conductor of ICSO, as well as being the Director of the Blyth Centre for Music and Visual Arts, and the Director of Music at Imperial, is Oliver Gooch. An inspiring and charismatic musician, Oliver is highly regarded by colleagues, critics and audiences alike. He has collaborated in conducting several major UK orchestras (LSO, Philharmonia, BBC Symphony, Hallé, Orchestra of the Royal Opera House, Northern Sinfonia), and is also a regular guest conductor of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

Find out more by visiting Oliver Gooch's website.

"Oliver Gooch, conducting the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, approaches the score with a blend of command and flexibility, never short-changing the grand emotional climaxes."
- George Hall, The Guardian

Awards and on tour

Awards and a passport full of stamps

ICSO's first TV appearance came at Christmas 2002, in a Channel 4 documentary that transformed punk singer Chris Sweeney into a conductor capable of leading the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra: this won a BAFTA and the Golden Rose of Montreux. In 2003, ICSO featured in Robert Winston's BBC series "The Human Mind." In 2008, ICSO won "University Orchestra of the Year" in a one-off competition run by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, against university orchestras from Cambridge, Manchester and Southampton.

Recent ICSO international tours have been to Spain, South Africa, Italy, Czechia and Belgium. These tours have led ICSO to the Johannesburg International Mozart Festival, a 2014 UNICEF benefit in Helsinki's Sibelius Hall, and concerts in Ghent coalescing musicians from London, Belgian, and Spanish universities amidst the June 2026 heat.

ICSO Tour to Ghent, Belgium (June 2026)
Joined by players from IC Sinfonietta, Ghent University Harmony Orchestra, Ghent University Symphony Orchetra, Higher Conservatory of Music of Málaga, Royal Academy of Music, and University of London Symphony Orchestra