Academy of St. Martin in the Fields

The Academy of St. Martin in the Fields is one of the most specialized in Baroque music and Viennese classical chamber orchestra playing on modern instruments. It is named after the Church of St. Martin-in -the-Fields in London, it occurred at the beginning.

Founded in 1959 by Sir Neville Marriner, ASMF which consisted initially as a pure string orchestra made ​​up of members of the major London orchestras, which in non- romanticized way played during the summer break baroque music without a conductor. Soon were added horns, and Neville Marriner took over the function of the conductor. From the mid- 1960s it dominated the market for recordings of baroque music and became a permanent orchestra with fixed members. From the mid- 1970s, the concertmaster Iona Brown and later concertmaster Kenneth Sillito also took over the line more often.

The supremacy of the orchestra ended with the arising popularity of performance on period instruments in the early 1980s ( Nikolaus Harnoncourt had already begun in the 1950s with original instruments, which the ASMF never joined ). The current 63- piece orchestra playing with some additional players today also romantic and contemporary repertoire. Moreover, since 1975, there is a choir that performs regularly in television broadcasts of the UEFA Champions League with a recording of the Champions League anthem of 1992.

The style of the ASMF in Baroque music was set new standards and is easily recognizable in his great vitality and rhythmic awareness pointedly. It achieved a synthesis of modern instruments with the ideal sound and touch which are idiomatic for old works.

The ASMF with over 500 recordings, the most recorded chamber orchestra at all. Particularly high requirements also scored the soundtracks to Amadeus, The English Patient, and Titanic.

From the season 2011/2012 the American violinist Joshua Bell took over the management of the orchestra for three years.