HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

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 German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
. 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. 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 ...
culture centre.


History


Foundation

The orchestra was founded in
Munich Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
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 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 U ...
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 alt ...
''.
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 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, ...
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 List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...
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 Munich ( ; german: München ; bar, Minga ) is the capital and most populous city of the German state of Bavaria. With a population of 1,558,395 inhabitants as of 31 July 2020, it is the third-largest city in Germany, after Berlin and Ha ...
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 ...
, 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 politics, far-right Totalitarianism, totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hit ...
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. I ...
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 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
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 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 t ...
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 a ...
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 1 ...
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 orchest ...
.


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 ...
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 Fe ...
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 di ...
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. 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 his ...
, Anton Bruckner,
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 b ...
, Gustav Mahler and others.


Music directors

*1893–1895 Hans Winderstein *1895–1897 Hermann Zumpe *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, ...
*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 ...
*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, ...
*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 ...
*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 *1945–1948 Hans Rosbaud *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 t ...
*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 a ...
*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 ...
*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 Fe ...
*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 di ...


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 Musical groups established in 1893 RCA Records artists