CDT retunes LCO for new season

The London Chamber Orchestra kicks off its 2007 season tomorrow at St John’s, Smith Square in London, with graphics and branding by CDT Design.

The consultancy has a long-standing relationship with the orchestra, having worked on its seasonal branding every year since 1990. According to Mike Dempsey, founding partner and chairman at CDT, this year – as previously – the group was given carte blanche to design graphics for use across all publicity material, programmes, stationery, banners and posters.

Despite previous difficulties in obtaining funding, the orchestra now has Waitrose and HSBC as sponsors, as well as a permanent residence at St John’s, Smith Square. ‘It’s always a struggle for orchestras to get good sponsorship; they have to look as professional as the organisation they are trying to get money out of. The LCO understands this,’ says Dempsey.

The graphics feature a vibrant colour palette and geometric shapes, which give an abstract quality and ‘vibrate’ optically. According to Dempsey, this is intended to reflect both the dynamism of the music and the energy of the orchestra’s conductor Christopher Warren-Green. The original LCO logo, created by CDT Design in the late 1980s, sits side-on within the graphic frame along with other information about the performances.