This morning, Mariss Jansons announced to the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra and staff that he will no longer be their chief conductor after the 2014/15 season. His final concert with the RCO is yet to be decided. The RCO's press release declares that both Jansons and the orchestra will depart on good terms.

The RCO were voted the 'world's greatest orchestra' in 2008 by a panel of critics assembled by Gramophone and Jansons will leave a rich recorded legacy behind him, not least last year's recording of Mahler's Eighth Symphony (on RCO Live), which Edward Seckerson declared was amongst the 'front-runners' for this work. 

Jansons will continue to lead his other orchestra - the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra - an orchestra he recently took to Japan, accompanied by Michael McManus for Gramophone.