Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra (full German name: Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim; full English name: South-west German Chamber Orchestra Pforzheim) is an internationally known German chamber orchestra based in

Pforzheim Pforzheim () is a city of over 125,000 inhabitants in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg, in the southwest of Germany. It is known for its jewelry and watch-making industry, and as such has gained the nickname "Goldstadt" ("Golden City") ...

History

The orchestra was founded in 1950 by Friedrich Tilegant, a student of

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 ...

. It was directed by

Paul Angerer Paul Angerer (16 May 1927 – 26 July 2017) was an Austrian violist, conductor, composer and radio presenter. Life Angerer studied music theory and composition with Friedrich Reidinger and Alfred Uhl, and conducting with Hans Swarowsky. He ...

from 1971 to 1981, by Vladislav Czarnecki since 1986, and by Sebastian Tewinkel from 2002 to 2012.Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra
on ''bach cantatas'' (2001) Since 2013, Timo Handschuh has served as the orchestra's chief conductor and artistic director. In 1970 the orchestra conducted a composition competition for its twentieth anniversary; the first prize was awarded to

Ulrich Stranz Ulrich Stranz (10 May 1946 – 27 April 2004) was a German teacher and composer. Life Born in Neumarkt-Sankt Veit, Upper Bavaria, Stranz grew up in Munich, obtaining the Abitur at the Musisches Gymnasium in 1966. He studied composition wi ...

Repertoire and recordings

The orchestra has recorded numerous works of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the '' Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard w ...

with the

Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn Fritz Werner (15 December 1898 – 22 December 1977) was a German choral conductor, church music director, conductor, organist and composer. He founded the Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn in 1947 and conducted it until 1973. Career Born in Berli ...

and conductor

Fritz Werner Fritz Werner (15 December 1898 – 22 December 1977) was a German choral conductor, church music director, conductor, organist and composer. He founded the Heinrich-Schütz-Chor Heilbronn in 1947 and conducted it until 1973. Career Born in Berli ...

, including several

cantatas A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir. The meaning of t ...

, the ''

Mass in B minor The Mass in B minor (), BWV 232, is an extended setting of the Mass ordinary by Johann Sebastian Bach. The composition was completed in 1749, the year before the composer's death, and was to a large extent based on earlier work, such as a Sanctu ...

'' (in 1957), the ''

St Matthew Passion The ''St Matthew Passion'' (german: Matthäus-Passion, links=-no), BWV 244, is a '' Passion'', a sacred oratorio written by Johann Sebastian Bach in 1727 for solo voices, double choir and double orchestra, with libretto by Picander. It sets ...

'' (1958), the ''

St John Passion The ''Passio secundum Joannem'' or ''St John Passion'' (german: Johannes-Passion, link=no), BWV 245, is a Passion or oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, the older of the surviving Passions by Bach. It was written during his first year as direc ...

'' (1960), the ''

Christmas Oratorio The ''Christmas Oratorio'' (German: ''Weihnachtsoratorium''), , is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach intended for performance in church during the Christmas season. It is in six parts, each part a cantata intended for performance on one of t ...

'' (1963), and the ''

Easter Oratorio The ''Easter Oratorio'' (), 249, is an oratorio by Johann Sebastian Bach, beginning with ("Come, hasten and run"). Bach composed it in Leipzig and first performed it on 1 April 1725. History The first version of the work was completed as a ca ...

'' (1964). It has been instrumental in premieres of works by

Boris Blacher Boris Blacher (30 January 1975) was a German composer and librettist. Life Blacher was born when his parents (of German-Estonian and Russian backgrounds) were living within a Russian-speaking community in the Manchurian town of Niuzhuang () (he ...

Jean Françaix Jean René Désiré Françaix (; 23 May 1912, in Le Mans – 25 September 1997, in Paris) was a French neoclassicism (music), neoclassical composer, piano, pianist, and orchestration, orchestrator, known for his prolific output and vibrant style. ...

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 ...

, and

Enjott Schneider Enjott Schneider (born Norbert Jürgen Schneider 25 May 1950 in Weil am Rhein) is a German businessman, composer, musicologist, and music educator. He is best known as the chairman of the board of the German collecting society GEMA. As a compo ...

. The orchestra has also recorded the twelve cello concertos of

Luigi Boccherini Ridolfo Luigi Boccherini (, also , ; 19 February 1743 – 28 May 1805) was an Italian composer and cellist of the Classical era whose music retained a courtly and ''galante'' style even while he matured somewhat apart from the major European ...

with cellist Julius Berger, a professor at the

University of Mainz The Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (german: Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz) is a public research university in Mainz, Rhineland Palatinate, Germany, named after the printer Johannes Gutenberg since 1946. With approximately 32,000 stu ...

. A review stated: "Berger is ably assisted in this concerto with sensitive and polished accompaniments from the Southwest German Chamber Orchestra using modern instruments under Maestro Vladislav Czarnecki."Classical Cello Concertos
review of Michael Cookson, 2004

References

External links

*

on the

Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...

website
Südwestdeutsches Kammerorchester Pforzheim
on the website of the Eckelshausener Musiktage (in German)
Entries for recordings of the Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra
on

WorldCat WorldCat is a union catalog that itemizes the collections of tens of thousands of institutions (mostly libraries), in many countries, that are current or past members of the OCLC global cooperative. It is operated by OCLC, Inc. Many of the OCL ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pforzheim Chamber Orchestra German orchestras Chamber orchestras 1950 establishments in West Germany Arts organizations established in 1950

Chamber Orchestra Chamber music is a form of classical music that is composed for a small group of instruments—traditionally a group that could fit in a palace chamber or a large room. Most broadly, it includes any art music that is performed by a small numbe ...