The Frankfurt Radio Symphony (german: hr-Sinfonieorchester) is the

radio orchestra A radio orchestra (or broadcast orchestra) is an orchestra employed by a radio network (and sometimes television networks) in order to provide programming as well as sometimes perform incidental or theme music for various shows on the network. In ...

Hessischer Rundfunk Hessischer Rundfunk (HR; "Hesse Broadcasting") is the German state of Hesse's public broadcasting, public broadcasting corporation. Headquartered in Frankfurt, it is a member of the national consortium of German public broadcasting corporations, ...

, the public broadcasting network of the German state of

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...

. From 1929 to 1950 it was named ''Frankfurter Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester''. From 1950 to 1971 the orchestra was named ''Sinfonie-Orchester des Hessischen Rundfunks'', from then to 2005 ''Radio-Sinfonie-Orchester Frankfurt''. Prior to 2015, the English translation ''Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra'' was used for international tours. The orchestra's range of musical styles includes the classical-romantic repertoire, discoveries in experimental new music, concerts for children and young people and demanding programming concepts.

History

Hans Rosbaud Hans Rosbaud (22 July 1895 – 29 December 1962) was an Austrian conductor, particularly associated with the music of the twentieth century. Biography Rosbaud was born in Graz. As children, he and his brother Paul Rosbaud performed with thei ...

, its first conductor, put his stamp on the orchestra's orientation up to the year 1937 by focusing not only on traditional music but also contemporary compositions. '' Lindbergh's Flight'' was a piece of music specially commissioned for Radio performed by the orchestra with a text by

Bertolt Brecht Eugen Berthold Friedrich Brecht (10 February 1898 – 14 August 1956), known professionally as Bertolt Brecht, was a German theatre practitioner, playwright, and poet. Coming of age during the Weimar Republic, he had his first successes as a pl ...

and music by

Paul Hindemith Paul Hindemith (; 16 November 189528 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, teacher, violist and conductor. He founded the Amar Quartet in 1921, touring extensively in Europe. As a composer, he became a major advocate of the ''Ne ...

and

Kurt Weill Kurt Julian Weill (March 2, 1900April 3, 1950) was a German-born American composer active from the 1920s in his native country, and in his later years in the United States. He was a leading composer for the stage who was best known for his fru ...

and produced by

Ernst Hardt Friedrich Wilhelm Ernst Hardt (9 May 1876 – 3 January 1947), born Ernst Stöckhardt, was a German playwright, poet, and novelist. Hardt was born in Graudenz, West Prussia (now Grudziądz, Poland). He is the author of ''Priester des Todes' ...

. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Kurt Schröder Kurt Schröder (1888–1962) was a German composer and conductor. Schröder composed a number of film scores. During the 1930s he worked in Britain for Alexander Korda's London Film Productions, and scored the company's breakthrough hit '' The P ...

and

Winfried Zillig Winfried Zillig (1 April 1905 – 18 December 1963) was a German composer, music theorist, and conductor. Zillig was born in Würzburg. After leaving school, Zillig studied law and music. One of his teachers there was Hermann Zilcher. In Vienna ...

committed themselves to rebuilding the orchestra and a broad musical repertoire.

Dean Dixon Charles Dean Dixon (January 10, 1915November 3, 1976) was an American conductor. Career Dixon was born in the upper-Manhattan neighborhood of Harlem in New York City to parents who had earlier migrated from the Caribbean. He studied conducting ...

and

Eliahu Inbal Eliahu Inbal (born 16 February 1936, Jerusalem) is an Israeli conductor. Inbal studied violin at the Israeli Academy of Music and took composition lessons with Paul Ben-Haim. Upon hearing him there, Leonard Bernstein endorsed a scholarship fo ...

turned the ensemble into an internationally acclaimed orchestra in the three decades from 1961 to 1990. The status of the orchestra has been repeatedly confirmed, especially during the "Inbal Era", with guest appearances around the world and major editions of recorded music, such as the very first recordings of the original versions of

Anton Bruckner Josef Anton Bruckner (; 4 September 182411 October 1896) was an Austrian composer, organist, and music theorist best known for his symphonies, masses, Te Deum and motets. The first are considered emblematic of the final stage of Austro-Germ ...

Third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * Second#Sexagesimal divisions of calendar time and day, 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (d ...

, Fourth and Eighth Symphonies, awarded the

Grand Prix du Disque Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor * Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist * Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper Places * Grand, Oklahoma * Grand, Vosges, village and commu ...

, and the first digital recording of all of

Gustav Mahler Gustav Mahler (; 7 July 1860 – 18 May 1911) was an Austro-Bohemian Romantic composer, and one of the leading conductors of his generation. As a composer he acted as a bridge between the 19th-century Austro-German tradition and the modernism ...

's symphonies, which won the ''

Deutscher Schallplattenpreis The Deutscher Schallplattenpreis was a prize that the awarded from 1963 through 1992. Its successor is the Echo Music Prize Echo Music Prize (stylised as ECHO, ) was an accolade by the , an association of recording companies of Germany to recog ...

'' (German Record Award) in 1988. Inbal, who was chief conductor from 1974 to 1990, has been elected its conductor laureate since 1996. From 1990 to 1996,

Dmitri Kitajenko Dmitri Georgievich Kitayenko (also spelled Dmitrij Kitajenko) (born 18 August 1940) is a Soviet and Russian conductor. He was bestowed the title People's Artist of the USSR (1984). He was born in Leningrad, Soviet Union and studied at the Glinka ...

was chief conductor of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra. His work focused on the German and Russian traditions, as well as modern styles. The piano concertos of

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''., group=n (27 April .S. 15 April1891 – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, p ...

, with

Vladimir Krainev Vladimir Krainev (russian: Влади́мир Все́володович Кра́йнев; 1 April 1944 – 29 April 2011) was a Russian pianist and professor of piano, People's Artist of the USSR. Biography Krainev was born in Krasnoyarsk, the ...

, and a series of works by

Alexander Scriabin Alexander Nikolayevich Scriabin (; russian: Александр Николаевич Скрябин ; – ) was a Russian composer and virtuoso pianist. Before 1903, Scriabin was greatly influenced by the music of Frédéric Chopin and composed ...

are but two of his projects documented on CD. Under Kitajenko, the Frankfurt Radio Symphony took extensive tours to such places as

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

, and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Under the baton of

Cristóbal Halffter Cristóbal Halffter Jiménez-Encina (24 March 1930 – 23 May 2021) was a Spanish classical composer. He was the nephew of two other composers, Rodolfo and Ernesto Halffter and is regarded as the most important Spanish composer of the gene ...

, a CD project of his complete orchestral works was begun, as was a series of the orchestral works of the Second Viennese School in conjunction with the symphonies of

Robert Schumann Robert Schumann (; 8 June 181029 July 1856) was a German composer, pianist, and influential music critic. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest composers of the Romantic era. Schumann left the study of law, intending to pursue a career a ...

and

Brahms Johannes Brahms (; 7 May 1833 – 3 April 1897) was a German composer, pianist, and conductor of the mid-Romantic period. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with ...

with Inbal.

Arnold Schoenberg Arnold Schoenberg or Schönberg (, ; ; 13 September 187413 July 1951) was an Austrian-American composer, music theorist, teacher, writer, and painter. He is widely considered one of the most influential composers of the 20th century. He was as ...

's one-act opera, ''

Von heute auf morgen ' (''From Today to Tomorrow'' or ''From One Day to the Next'') is a one act opera composed by Arnold Schoenberg, to a German libretto by "Max Blonda", the pseudonym of Gertrud Schoenberg, the composer's wife. It is the composer's opus 32. The ope ...

'' (''From one day to the next''), with

Michael Gielen Michael Andreas Gielen (20 July 19278 March 2019) was an Austrian conductor and composer known for promoting contemporary music in opera and concert. Principally active in Europe, his performances are characterized by precision and vivacity, aid ...

, was released as a film by

Jean-Marie Straub Jean-Marie is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: * Jean-Marie Abgrall (born 1950), a French psychiatrist, criminologist, specialist in forensic medicine, cult expert, and graduate in criminal law * Jean-Marie C ...

and Danièle Huillet and on CD. The American conductor

Hugh Wolff Hugh MacPherson Wolff (born October 21, 1953, Neuilly-sur-Seine, France) is an American conductor. Biography Born in France while his father was serving in the U.S. Foreign Service, Wolff spent his primary-school years in London. He received his ...

was chief conductor of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra from 1997 to 2006. "Flexibility" and "variety" were two important themes in his work with the orchestra. Wolff applied the experience of historical performance practices to the modern symphony orchestra, thereby regaining repertoire from the vast worlds of classical, early classical and baroque periods, as well as enriching the ensemble's literature in more contemporary aspects. The success of exciting interpretations and an unusually versatile programming were the trade marks of the collaboration of the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra and Hugh Wolff. This success was reflected in the documentation of concert projects which reach far beyond the Hessian state and are resulting in guest appearances throughout Europe, Asia and North America. Frankfurter_Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester1

Frankfurter_Rundfunk-Symphonie-Orchester1

The Estonian

Paavo Järvi Paavo Järvi (; born 30 December 1962) is an Estonian-American conductor. Early life Järvi was born in Tallinn, Estonia, to Liilia Järvi and the Estonian conductor Neeme Järvi. His siblings, Kristjan Järvi and Maarika Järvi, are also mu ...

held the position of music director for the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra from 2006 to 2013 and assumed the position of conductor laureate at the beginning of the 2013–2014 season. Paavo Järvi enriched the orchestra with new musical aspects: for example through his commitment to Nordic repertoire and great Romantic and post-Romantic literature. Paavo Järvi has enjoyed continued success with the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra on an international level and together they have worked intensively to produce an extensive catalog of critically acclaimed recordings, which include Brahms' Ein deutsches Requiem, Piano Concertos No. 1 and No. 2 (with

Nicholas Angelich Nicholas Michael Angelich (December 14, 1970 – April 18, 2022) was an American pianist. He was noted for performing internationally with ensembles from Europe and North America. Early life Angelich was born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on December 14 ...

), the Cello Concertos by Dvořák and Herbert (with

Gautier Capuçon With Jean-Claude Casadesus Gautier Capuçon (born 3 September 1981) is a French cellist. Biography Gautier Capuçon was born in Chambéry, Savoie, the youngest of three siblings. His brother is the violinist Renaud Capuçon. He started learni ...

), which was awarded the ECHO Klassik, as well as Hindemith's Trauermusik and Der Schwanendreher (with

Antoine Tamestit Antoine Tamestit (born 1979) is a French violist. Tamestit studied at the Conservatoire de Paris, and further with Jesse Levine at Yale University, and with Tabea Zimmermann. He won the 2001 Primrose International Viola Competition, the 2003 Yo ...

) and the Violin Concerto (with

Frank Peter Zimmermann Frank Peter Zimmermann (born 27 February 1965) is a German violinist. Childhood He was born in Duisburg, West Germany, and started playing the violin when he was five years old, giving his first concert with orchestra at the age of 10. Since he ...

), which was awarded the ''Preis der deutschen Schallplattenkritik'', the quarterly critics choice award. The same prize was also received for their recordings of the Mendelssohn and Schumann Violin Concertos (with

Christian Tetzlaff Christian Tetzlaff (born 29 April 1966) is a German violinist. Biography Tetzlaff was born in Hamburg. His parents were amateur musicians and met in a church choir. He began playing the violin and piano at the age of 6, and made his concert debu ...

). Additional recordings include the symphony No. 2 and selected symphonic movements by Mahler, Mozart's Piano Concertos K. 467 and K. 595 (with Lars Vogt),

Hans Rott Johann Nepomuk Karl Maria Rott (1 August 1858 – 25 June 1884) was an Austrian composer and organist. His music is little-known today, though he received high praise in his time from Gustav Mahler and Anton Bruckner. He left a symphony and ''Li ...

's Symphony No. 1, the Shostakovich Piano Concertos (with

Alexander Toradze Alexander Davidovich "Lexo" Toradze ( ka, ალექსანდრე თორაძე ''Aleksandre Toradze''; May 30, 1952 – May 11, 2022) was a Georgian-born American pianist, best known for his classical Russian repertoire, with a car ...

) and

Erkki-Sven Tüür Erkki-Sven Tüür (born 16 October 1959) is an Estonian composer. Life and career Tüür () was born in Kärdla on the Estonian island of Hiiumaa. He studied flute and percussion at the Tallinn Music School from 1976 to 1980 and composition w ...

's Symphony No. 7 and Piano Concerto (with Laura Mikkola), as well as a CD with pieces by Kagel, Furrer, Widmann and Ruzicka. Paavo Järvi and the Frankfurt Radio Symphony Orchestra have also recorded complete Bruckner and Nielsen cycles for CD and a complete Mahler cycle for DVD. Colombian conductor

Andrés Orozco-Estrada Andrés Orozco-Estrada (born 14 December 1977) is a Colombian violinist and conductor, with dual nationality in Colombia and Austria. Early life Born in Medellín, Orozco-Estrada studied music at the Instituto Musical Diego Echavarría and lea ...

became the orchestra's music director in 2014. In December 2019, the orchestra announced the appointment of

Alain Altinoglu Alain Altinoglu (born 9 October 1975) is a French conductor of Armenian descent. Biography Born in Paris, into an Armenian family who were originally from Istanbul, Altinoglu studied music at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et ...

as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2021–2022 season, with an initial contract of three years.

Principal conductors

HR-Sinfonieorchester_(Frankfurt_Radio_Symphony)_2013

*1929–1937

*1937–1945 Otto Frickhoeffer *1946–1953

*1955–1961 *1961–1974

*1974–1990

*1990–1997

*1997–2006

*2006–2013

*2014–2021

*2021–

Recent discography

Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer, conductor, pianist, and violinist. Considered a leading composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras, he has been described as a successor of Richard Wag ...

– Salome.

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony. PENTATONE PTC 5186602. (2017) *

– Ein Heldenleben / Macbeth.

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony. PENTATONE PTC 5186582 (2016) *

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky (6 April 1971) was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor, later of French (from 1934) and American (from 1945) citizenship. He is widely considered one of the most important and influential composers of the ...

– The Rite of Spring & The Firebird (Suite 1919).

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony. PENTATONE PTC 5186556 (2016) * Saint-Saëns – Symphonies No. 1 & 2.

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony. PENTATONE PTC 5186157 (2005) *

Vincenzo Bellini Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini (; 3 November 1801 – 23 September 1835) was a Sicilian opera composer, who was known for his long-flowing melodic lines for which he was named "the Swan of Catania". Many years later, in 1898, Giu ...

Ignaz Moscheles Isaac Ignaz Moscheles (; 23 May 179410 March 1870) was a Bohemian piano virtuoso and composer. He was based initially in London and later at Leipzig, where he joined his friend and sometime pupil Felix Mendelssohn as professor of piano at the ...

, Bernard Molique,

Julius Rietz August Wilhelm Julius Rietz (28 December 1812 – 12 September 1877) was a German composer, conductor, cellist, and teacher. His students included Woldemar Bargiel, Salomon Jadassohn, Arthur O'Leary, and (by far the most celebrated) Sir Arthur ...

Antonio Vivaldi Antonio Lucio Vivaldi (4 March 1678 – 28 July 1741) was an Italian composer, virtuoso violinist and impresario of Baroque music. Regarded as one of the greatest Baroque composers, Vivaldi's influence during his lifetime was widespread a ...

. Works for Oboe and Flute.

Heinz Holliger Heinz Robert Holliger (born 21 May 1939) is a Swiss virtuoso oboist, composer and conductor. Celebrated for his versatility and technique, Holliger is among the most prominent oboists of his generation. His repertoire includes Baroque and Classic ...

Aurèle Nicolet Aurèle Nicolet (22 January 1926 – 29 January 2016) was a Swiss flautist. He was considered one of the world's best flute players of the late twentieth century. He performed in various international concerts. A number of composers wrote music ...

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony. PENTATONE PTC 5186129 (2004) *

Rachmaninov Sergei Vasilyevich Rachmaninoff; in Russian pre-revolutionary script. (28 March 1943) was a Russian composer, virtuoso pianist, and conductor. Rachmaninoff is widely considered one of the finest pianists of his day and, as a composer, one of ...

– Piano Concerto No. 2 & Rhapsody on a theme by Paganini.

Werner Haas Werner Haas (; 30 May 1927 – 13 November 1956) was a Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from Germany. He became Germany's first motorcycle world champion when he won the 1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist ...

, Frankfurt Radio Symphony PENTATONE PTC 5186114 (2003)

References

External links

hr-Sinfonieorchester official website

hr-Sinfonieorchester YouTube Channel
{{Authority control German symphony orchestras Hessischer Rundfunk Musical groups established in 1929 1929 establishments in Germany Radio and television orchestras