Leningrad Philharmonic

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

The Leningrad Philharmonic Orchestra is the symphony orchestra of Saint Petersburg, which since 1991 has been called the Saint Petersburg Philharmonic Orchestra. Its roots go back to 1802, when the Philharmonic Society of Saint Petersburg was founded. The orchestra was first called the Imperial Music Choir and played for the tsar's court. Around 1900 the orchestra began giving public concerts in the Philharmonia and elsewhere in Russia. After the revolution the musicians took over the orchestra and it was called the State Philharmonic Orchestra of Petrograd. In the 1920s it received state support and became internationally known. Guest conductors included Bruno Walter, Ernest Ansermet and Hans Knappertsbusch. When Petrograd became Leningrad, the orchestra received the name that later made it famous.

Music and breakthrough

It gained its greatest fame under chief conductor Yevgeny Mravinsky, who led it from 1938 to 1988. The orchestra toured little in the West, and its first trip went to Finland in 1946. Mravinsky made studio recordings with the orchestra, and many live recordings from the archive have since been released. Under his direction the orchestra gave the premieres of seven symphonies by Shostakovich.

Influence

After Mravinsky's death Yuri Temirkanov became artistic director and chief conductor in 1988, until 2022, when Nikolai Alexeev took over that position. The orchestra shows how a Russian orchestra under strict leadership could develop a powerful sound of its own, and its connection with Shostakovich makes it an important archive of his work.

Listening