The RTÉ Concert Orchestra has been cherished by Irish audiences throughout its 60-year history, whether performing with international stars such as Luciano Pavarotti, Placido Domingo, Kiri Te Kanawa and Russell Watson or with leading Irish artists ranging from Cara O'Sullivan and Virginia Kerr to Altan and Declan O'Rourke.

In February 2009 the RTÉ CO performed Handel's Messiah in the presence of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI with Our Lady's Choral Society in the Vatican. Conductor Proinnsías Ó Duinn led the performance with Lynda Lee soprano, Robin Tritschler tenor, Ulrike Schneider mezzo-soprano and Ian Caddy bass. Watch the Six One News report (scroll down page and click on link).

With an unrivalled repertoire, the RTÉ CO appears at leading national and international festivals, on RTÉ Radio and Television and in the opera house, while through its commercial releases its recordings are distributed worldwide. The orchestra's education programme is presented nationwide to tens of thousands of young people as the RTÉ/The Irish Times Music in the Classroom series.

The RTÉ CO has been heard across the world in seven Eurovision Song Contests and its commercial recordings embrace many styles from the phenomenally successful Riverdance to Declan O'Rourke's Big Bad Beautiful World and Duke Special's I Never Thought This Day Would Come.

Recently the RTÉ CO gave memorable concerts with Ute Lemper, Lesley Garrett, Curtis Stigers, jazz legends Cleo Laine and John Dankworth and Duke Special. The RTÉ CO Signature Series 2009 continues with star soprano Lesley Garrett (31 Oct), Chanteuse Ute Lemper (1 Dec) and New Zealand sensation Hayley Westenra (8 Dec).

Following on from the success of multimedia concerts including The Wizard of Oz and "Bugs Bunny on Broadway", the RTÉ CO presents Rodgers and Hammerstein at the Movies. Excerpts from movie musicals Oklahoma!, The King and I, South Pacific, Carousel and The Sound of Music remastered in HD on the big screen with live orchestra at The Helix (Sun 20-Tues 22Dec).

Film credits for the RTÉ CO include The Island by Brian Byrne, Irish Destiny by Mícheál Ó Súilleabháin and The League of Gentlemen's Apocalypse by Joby Talbot.

The RTÉ CO has an extensive discography on the Marco Polo, Naxos and RTÉ lyric fm labels. A recent performance on the CD Perfect State (RTÉ lyric fm) won critical praise: 'dramatically realised by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra under David Brophy's tightly-managed conducting' (Journal of Music in Ireland) and 'great playing here by the RTÉ Concert Orchestra' (Sunday Business Post).