The Munich Philharmonic (german: Münchner Philharmoniker, links=no) is a German symphony orchestra located in the city of
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
. It is one of Munich's four principal orchestras, along with the
Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra
The Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (german: Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks, BRSO) is a German radio orchestra. Based in Munich, Germany, it is one of the city's four orchestras. The BRSO is one of two full-size symphony orchestr ...
, the
Munich Radio Orchestra
The Munich Radio Orchestra (German: ''Münchner Rundfunkorchester'') is a German symphony broadcast orchestra based in Munich. It is one of the two orchestras affiliated with the Bavarian Radio (Bayerischer Rundfunk), the other being the Bavaria ...
and the
Bavarian State Orchestra
The Bavarian State Orchestra (german: Bayerisches Staatsorchester, italic=no) is the orchestra of the Bavarian State Opera in Munich, Germany. It has given its own series of concerts, the , since 1811.
Profile
On 9 December 2011, this ensemble c ...
. Since 1985, the orchestra has been housed in the
Gasteig
Gasteig is a cultural center in Munich, opened in 1985, which hosts the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra. The Richard Strauss Conservatory, the Volkshochschule, and the municipal library are all located in the Gasteig. Most of the events of the Fi ...
culture centre.
History
Foundation
The orchestra was founded in
Munich
Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the States of Germany, German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the List of cities in Germany by popu ...
in 1893 by Franz Kaim, son of a piano manufacturer, as the Kaim Orchestra. In 1895, it took up residence in the city's ''Tonhalle'' (concert hall). It soon attracted distinguished conductors:
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 ...
first directed the group in 1897 and premiered his ''
Symphony No. 4'' and ''
Symphony No. 8'' with the orchestra, while
Bruno Walter
Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a German-born conductor, pianist and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French citizen in 1938, and settled in the Un ...
directed the orchestra for the posthumous premiere of Mahler's ''
Das Lied von der Erde
''Das Lied von der Erde'' ("The Song of the Earth") is an orchestral song cycle for two voices and orchestra written by Gustav Mahler between 1908 and 1909. Described as a symphony when published, it comprises six songs for two singers who alte ...
''.
Felix Weingartner
Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist.
Life and career
Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. ...
was music director from 1898 to 1905, and the young
Wilhelm Furtwängler
Gustav Heinrich Ernst Martin Wilhelm Furtwängler ( , , ; 25 January 188630 November 1954) was a German conductor and composer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest symphonic and operatic conductors of the 20th century. He was a major ...
made his auspicious conducting debut there in 1906. Meanwhile,
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 ...
pupil
Ferdinand Löwe
Ferdinand Löwe (19 February 1865 – 6 January 1925) was an Austrian conductor.
Biography
Löwe was born in Vienna, Austria where along with Munich, Germany his career was primarily centered. From 1896 Löwe conducted the Kaim Orchestra, tod ...
established an enduring tradition of Bruckner performance which continues to this day.
The World Wars
Up until this time the orchestra, which by 1910 was known as the Munich Konzertverein Orchestra, was privately funded, but during
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
finances became tight and players were called for military service, forcing the orchestra to cease operation. After the war, the orchestra was taken over by the
City of Munich and restarted under the leadership of composer
Hans Pfitzner
Hans Erich Pfitzner (5 May 1869 – 22 May 1949) was a German composer, conductor and polemicist who was a self-described anti-modernist. His best known work is the post-Romantic opera ''Palestrina'' (1917), loosely based on the life of the s ...
, soon replaced by Bruckner pioneer
Siegmund von Hausegger
Siegmund von Hausegger (16 August 1872 – 10 October 1948) was an Austrian composer and conductor.
Early life
Siegmund was born in Graz, the son of Friedrich von Hausegger (1837-1899), a lawyer and writer on music. According to Siegmund's ow ...
. In 1928, the orchestra acquired its current name.
After the rise of the
Nazi
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...
party in 1933, the orchestra stamped its scores with
swastika
The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. It ...
s and the words "The Orchestra of the Fascist Movement". (The swastikas weren’t removed until the early 1990s.)
In 1938, the pro-Nazi conductor
Oswald Kabasta
Oswald Kabasta (December 29, 1896 – February 6, 1946) was an Austrian conductor.
Life and career
Kabasta was born in Mistelbach, Austria and later studied with composer Franz Schmidt. In 1931 he became head of conducting at the Vienna ...
became chief conductor, raising its musical standards even as
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 ...
began.
During the war, the Tonhalle was destroyed and the orchestra, homeless, was again shut-down for a period. After the war, fortunes recovered under the music directors
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 ...
and
Rudolf Kempe
Rudolf Kempe (14 June 1910 – 12 May 1976) was a German conductor.
Biography
Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra of Dortmund and ...
and in 1979,
Sergiu Celibidache
Sergiu Celibidache (; 14 August 1996) was a Romanian conductor, composer, musical theorist, and teacher. Educated in his native Romania, and later in Paris and Berlin, Celibidache's career in music spanned over five decades, including tenures ...
took over, raising the orchestra to the highest world-class standards. Notoriously demanding of his players, Celibidache created a unique sound for the orchestra.
Munich vs. Conant
In a well-publicised case, Celibidache tried to remove principal trombonist
Abbie Conant
Abbie Conant is an American trombonist and professor at the Staatliche Hochschule für Musik, Trossingen. She was selected in a blind audition as the overwhelming first choice for Principal Trombonist of the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra in 198 ...
from her position because of her gender, and paid her less than her male colleagues without her knowledge. The City of Munich, the Philharmonic's owner, complained
The plaintiff does not possess the necessary physical strength to be a leader of the trombone section; she is not in the position to clearly lead the trombone group. Apart from that, she lacks the required empathy to translate the artistic wishes of the General Music Director
Conant successfully sued the City of Munich, after a lengthy legal procedure, in 1983. Only thereafter was she paid the same male colleagues along with being reinstated as full first soloist status. The court found that
“The suit is permissible because the change in work assignments, due to the lack of a substantiated argument, is unjustified.”
“The accused has not justified their demotion with facts, but rather generalized value judgments.”
“Above and beyond that, they do not say when (date) the alleged mistakes happened. They also do not mention when the plaintiff was given a warning.”
“It is therefore not possible for the court to determine what the plaintiff did wrong, or determinable whether she took the alleged warnings to heart, or in other words, whether the mistakes were made again after the warning.”
Reportedly, Conant's audition was the last to be held using
blind audition In a blind audition the identity of the performer is concealed from the judges so as to prevent bias. The performance takes place behind a curtain so that the judges cannot see the performer. Blind auditions have become standard in symphony orchestr ...
.
Post Celibidache
After Celibidache's sudden death in 1996,
James Levine
James Lawrence Levine (; June 23, 1943 – March 9, 2021) was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March 1 ...
took over as chief conductor of the orchestra. Levine was terminated in 2004, following sexual misconduct allegations, which he denied.
Christian Thielemann
Christian Thielemann (born 1 April 1959) is a German conductor. He is currently chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden. He was artistic director of the Salzburg Easter Festival from 2013 to 2022, and a regular conductor at the Bayreuth F ...
became the orchestra's music director in September 2004, joined by Wouter Hoekstra as ''Intendant''. However, in 2007, Hoekstra was dismissed from his post after reported disputes with Thielemann. In 2009, the orchestra announced the scheduled conclusion of Thielemann's tenure in 2011. Thielemann's demand to have a say over the choice of guest conductors was not approved.
In March 2010,
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...
was named the orchestra's next chief conductor, effective with the 2012–2013 season. Early in 2014, Maazel cancelled concert engagements as a result of ill health. Subsequently, in June 2014, he announced his resignation as music director of the Munich Philharmonic, with immediate effect.
In January 2013, the orchestra announced the appointment of
Valery Gergiev
Valery Abisalovich Gergiev (russian: Вале́рий Абиса́лович Ге́ргиев, ; os, Гергиты Абисалы фырт Валери, Gergity Abisaly fyrt Valeri; born 2 May 1953) is a Russian conductor and opera company d ...
as its next principal conductor as of 2015, with an initial contract through 2020. Gergiev was dismissed in 2022 after Gergiev declined to repudiate Putin's
2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine
On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...
.
Over the course of its history, the Munich Philharmonic has performed premieres of
Günter Bialas
Günter Bialas (19 July 1907 – 8 July 1995) was a German composer.
Life
Bialas was born in Bielschowitz (today Bielszowice, a subdivision of Ruda Śląska) in Prussian Silesia. His father was the business manager of a German theatre, and hi ...
,
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 ...
,
Harald Genzmer
Harald or Haraldr is the Old Norse form of the given name Harold. It may refer to:
Medieval Kings of Denmark
* Harald Bluetooth (935–985/986)
Kings of Norway
* Harald Fairhair (c. 850–c. 933)
* Harald Greycloak (died 970)
* Harald Hardrada ...
,
Luigi Nono
Luigi Nono (; 29 January 1924 – 8 May 1990) was an Italian avant-garde composer of classical music.
Biography
Early years
Nono, born in Venice, was a member of a wealthy artistic family; his grandfather was a notable painter. Nono beg ...
,
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 ...
and others.
Music directors
*1893–1895
Hans Winderstein
*1895–1897
Hermann Zumpe
Hermann Zumpe (9 April 1850 – 4 September 1903) was a German conductor and composer.
Born in Oppach, Saxony, Zumpe grew up in Taubenheim in Sohland an der Spree. He was educated at the teachers' seminary at Bautzen, was a schoolmaster a ...
*1897–1898
Ferdinand Löwe
Ferdinand Löwe (19 February 1865 – 6 January 1925) was an Austrian conductor.
Biography
Löwe was born in Vienna, Austria where along with Munich, Germany his career was primarily centered. From 1896 Löwe conducted the Kaim Orchestra, tod ...
*1898–1905
Felix Weingartner
Paul Felix Weingartner, Edler von Münzberg (2 June 1863 – 7 May 1942) was an Austrian conductor, composer and pianist.
Life and career
Weingartner was born in Zara, Dalmatia, Austria-Hungary (now Zadar, Croatia), to Austrian parents. ...
*1905–1908
Georg Schnéevoigt
Georg Lennart Schnéevoigt (8 November 1872 – 28 November 1947) was a Finnish conductor and cellist, born in Vyborg, Grand Duchy of Finland, which is now in Russia, to Ernst Schnéevoigt and Rosa Willandt.
Career
Schnéevoigt began his c ...
*1908–1914
Ferdinand Löwe
Ferdinand Löwe (19 February 1865 – 6 January 1925) was an Austrian conductor.
Biography
Löwe was born in Vienna, Austria where along with Munich, Germany his career was primarily centered. From 1896 Löwe conducted the Kaim Orchestra, tod ...
*1919–1920
Hans Pfitzner
Hans Erich Pfitzner (5 May 1869 – 22 May 1949) was a German composer, conductor and polemicist who was a self-described anti-modernist. His best known work is the post-Romantic opera ''Palestrina'' (1917), loosely based on the life of the s ...
*1920–1938
Siegmund von Hausegger
Siegmund von Hausegger (16 August 1872 – 10 October 1948) was an Austrian composer and conductor.
Early life
Siegmund was born in Graz, the son of Friedrich von Hausegger (1837-1899), a lawyer and writer on music. According to Siegmund's ow ...
*1938–1944
Oswald Kabasta
Oswald Kabasta (December 29, 1896 – February 6, 1946) was an Austrian conductor.
Life and career
Kabasta was born in Mistelbach, Austria and later studied with composer Franz Schmidt. In 1931 he became head of conducting at the Vienna ...
*1945–1948
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 ...
*1949–1966
Fritz Rieger
*1967–1976
Rudolf Kempe
Rudolf Kempe (14 June 1910 – 12 May 1976) was a German conductor.
Biography
Kempe was born in Dresden, where from the age of fourteen he studied at the Dresden State Opera School. He played oboe in the opera orchestra of Dortmund and ...
*1979–1996
Sergiu Celibidache
Sergiu Celibidache (; 14 August 1996) was a Romanian conductor, composer, musical theorist, and teacher. Educated in his native Romania, and later in Paris and Berlin, Celibidache's career in music spanned over five decades, including tenures ...
*1999–2004
James Levine
James Lawrence Levine (; June 23, 1943 – March 9, 2021) was an American conductor and pianist. He was music director of the Metropolitan Opera from 1976 to 2016. He was terminated from all his positions and affiliations with the Met on March 1 ...
*2004–2011
Christian Thielemann
Christian Thielemann (born 1 April 1959) is a German conductor. He is currently chief conductor of the Staatskapelle Dresden. He was artistic director of the Salzburg Easter Festival from 2013 to 2022, and a regular conductor at the Bayreuth F ...
*2012–2014
Lorin Maazel
Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...
*2015–2022
Valery Gergiev
Valery Abisalovich Gergiev (russian: Вале́рий Абиса́лович Ге́ргиев, ; os, Гергиты Абисалы фырт Валери, Gergity Abisaly fyrt Valeri; born 2 May 1953) is a Russian conductor and opera company d ...
References
External links
Münchner Philharmoniker official website*
Article at oehmsclassics.com in German*
{{Authority control
1893 establishments in Germany
German symphony orchestras
Decca Records artists
Olufsen Records artists
Philharmonic
An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families.
There are typically four main sections of instruments:
* bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola ...
Musical groups established in 1893
RCA Records artists