Since it re-opened in 2003, the Jerwood Hall has been the beating heart of the building.  As well as providing vital space for the Orchestra’s rehearsals and recording sessions, it is home to our pioneering education and community programme, LSO Discovery.  This would not have been possible without Jerwood Foundation’s visionary support. 

Kathryn McDowell CBE DL, Managing Director, London Symphony Orchestra

  • Jerwood Foundation made a grant of £1 million towards the London Symphony Orchestra's (LSO) transformation of Hawksmoor's Grade 1 listed...

    On 15 July 2020, instead of playing at the Fesitval Aix en Provence, LSO recorded a special socially-distanced performance in the Jerwood Hall, LSO St Luke's with conductor Duncan Ward.  Photo: © David Jackson, LSO.

     

    Jerwood Foundation made a grant of £1 million towards the London Symphony Orchestra's (LSO) transformation of Hawksmoor's Grade 1 listed St Luke's Church in London's EC1 from a derelict building into a unique education and performing arts venue. LSO St Luke's – with the Jerwood Hall at its heart – was opened by Baroness Blackstone, then Minister of the Arts in 2003.

    Providing vital space for the LSO's pioneering education and community programme – LSO Discovery, Jerwood Hall welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds into the building to engage in music, many for the very first time.   It also plays host to orchestral rehearsals, recordings, masterclasses and recitals, including free lunchtime concerts for the local community.  

    Jerwood Hall is the home of LSO Jerwood Composer+, a programme supported by Jerwood Arts since 2017, which gives early-career composers from diverse backgrounds the opportunity to curate their own chamber-style concerts in the Jerwood Hall. As well as providing mentoring and support for a new generation of entrepreneurial composers, the programme ensures that early-career artists play a vital role in the artistic programming of the building.

    The DCMS's choice of Nicholas Hawksmoor's St Luke's Church as one of its pilot venues for indoor socially-distanced concerts by the LSO is showcasing the Jerwood Hall on a global digital stage and adding to the sector's research and learning about how musicians can perform together safely.