The Dresdner Philharmonie (Dresden Philharmonic) is a German

symphony orchestra 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: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...

based in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

. Its principal concert venue is the '' Kulturpalast''. The orchestra also performs at the

Kreuzkirche The Dresden Kreuzkirche (Church of the Holy Cross) is a Protestant Church in Germany (EKD), Lutheran church in Dresden, Germany. It is the main church and seat of the ''Landesbischof'' of the Evangelical-Lutheran Church of Saxony, and the larges ...

and the Frauenkirche Dresden. It receives financial support from the city of Dresden. The choral ensembles affiliated with the orchestra are the Dresden Philharmonic Choir and Dresden Philharmonic Chamber Choir. The current ''Intendantin'' of the orchestra is Frauke Roth, in the post since 2015, and currently under contract to the orchestra through 2026.

History

The orchestra was founded in 1870 and gave its first concert in the ''Gewerbehaussaal'' on 29 November 1870, under the name ''Gewerbehausorchester''. The orchestra acquired its current name in 1915. During the existence of the DDR, the orchestra took up its primary residence in the ''Kulturpalast''. After

German reunification German reunification () was the process of re-establishing Germany as a single sovereign state, which began on 9 November 1989 and culminated on 3 October 1990 with the dissolution of the East Germany, German Democratic Republic and the int ...

, plans had been proposed for a new concert hall. These had not come to fruition by the time of the principal conductorship of

Marek Janowski Marek Janowski (born 18 February 1939 in Warsaw) is a Polish-born German conductor. Biography Janowski grew up in Wuppertal, near Cologne, after his mother traveled there at the start of World War II to be with her parents. His father disappear ...

, who cited this lack of development of a new hall for the orchestra as the reason for his resignation from the post in 2003. Michael Sanderling became principal conductor in 2011, with an initial contract of three years. In October 2013, the orchestra announced the extension of Sanderling's contract as principal conductor through the 2018–2019 season. In November 2016, Sanderling announced, via a letter to the mayor of Dresden, his intention to stand down as chief conductor of the orchestra in 2019, in protest at learning of proposed culture budget reductions via media reports instead of being informed directly from the civic authorities. In September 2018, the orchestra announced the re-appointment of Janowski as its chief conductor, effective with the 2019–2020 season, with an initial contract of three seasons. In November 2020, the orchestra announced the extension of Janowski's contract as chief conductor by one season, through the summer of 2023, when Janowski concluded his second tenure with the orchestra. In December 2022, Sir

Donald Runnicles Sir Donald Cameron Runnicles (born 16 November 1954) is a Scottish conductor, known for his Romantic symphonic and operatic repertoire, especially Richard Wagner, Gustav Mahler, Richard Strauss and Anton Bruckner. With a career that has spanned ...

first guest-conducted the orchestra. In December 2023, the Dresden Philharmonic announced the appointment of Runnicles as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2025-2026 season. He is scheduled to serve as chief conductor-designate for the 2024-2025 season. Past principal guest conductors of the orchestra have included

Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (born Rafael Frühbeck; 15 September 1933 – 11 June 2014) was a Spanish conductor and composer. Frühbeck was born in Burgos, Spain to a family of German ancestry. He first took up conducting while on military serv ...

(later chief conductor of the orchestra from 2004 to 2011),

Yuri Temirkanov Yuri Khatuevich Temirkanov (; ; 10 December 1938 – 2 November 2023) was a Soviet and Russian conductor, named a People's Artist of the USSR. Early life Born in 1938 in the North Caucasus city of Nalchik, Temirkanov attended the Saint Petersburg ...

Bertrand de Billy Bertrand de Billy (born Paris, 11 January 1965) is a French and Swiss conductor. He attended a Jesuit school, but only started serious musical studies when he was around 14–15; he studied piano and violin. CD Opéra https://debilly.com/cd-op ...

, and

Markus Poschner Markus Poschner (born 1 February 1971) is a German conductor and pianist. Biography Born in Munich, Poschner studied at the University of Music and Performing Arts Munich with Hermann Michael. His mentors and supporters included Sir Roger Norri ...

. The orchestra's current principal guest conductor is

Kahchun Wong Wong Kah Chun (; born 24 June 1986), also known as Kahchun Wong, is a Singaporean conductor. Biography Wong was born in 1986 to Victor Wong, a Singapore Armed Forces (SAF) warrant officer, and Yeo Huay Lan, a childcare teacher. His family lived ...

, as of the 2023-2024 season. Wong is scheduled to conclude in the post at the close of the 2024-2025 season. In November 2023, Tabita Berglund first guest-conducted the orchestra. In May 2024, on the basis of this appearance, the Dresden Philharmonic announced the appointment of Berglund as its next principal guest conductor, the first female conductor to be named to the post, for a minimum initial period of two seasons. In popular culture, the Dresden Philharmonic was the featured orchestra in the film ''

Tár ''Tár'' is a 2022 psychological drama film written and directed by Todd Field. Cate Blanchett stars as Lydia Tár, a world-renowned conductor, whose life unravels after she is accused of misconduct. The supporting cast includes Nina Hoss, No� ...

'' (2022).

Principal conductors

* Hermann Mannsfeldt (1870–1885) * Michael Zimmermann (1885–1886) * Ernst Stahl (1886–1890) * August Trenkler (1890–1903) * Willy Olsen (1903–1915) * Edwin Lindner (1915–1923) * Joseph Gustav Mraczek (1923–1924) * Eduard Mörike (1924–1929) *

Paul Scheinpflug Paul Scheinpflug (10 September 1875 near Dresden – 11 March 1937) was a German conductor and composer. Born in Loschwitz, Scheinpflug studied at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber Dresden from 1890 to 1894, among others with Feli ...

(1929–1932) * Werner Ladwig (1932–1934) * Paul van Kempen (1934–1942) *

Carl Schuricht Carl Adolph Schuricht (; 3 July 18807 January 1967) was a German conductor. Life and career Schuricht was born in Danzig (Gdańsk), German Empire; his father's family had been respected organ-builders. His mother, Amanda Wusinowska, a widow soo ...

(1942–1944) * Gerhart Wiesenhütter (1945–1946) * Heinz Bongartz (1947–1964) * Horst Förster (1964–1967) *

Kurt Masur Kurt Masur (; 18 July 192719 December 2015) was a German Conducting, conductor. Called "one of the last old-style maestros", he directed many of the principal orchestras of his era. He had a long career as the Kapellmeister of the Leipzig Gewand ...

(1967–1972) *

Günther Herbig Günther Herbig (born 30 November 1931) is a German conductor. Born in Ústí nad Labem, Czechoslovakia, Herbig studied conducting at the Franz Liszt Academy in Weimar in 1951 (then in East Germany) with Hermann Abendroth. He later was a stude ...

(1972–1976) *

Herbert Kegel Herbert Kegel (29 July 1920 – 20 November 1990) was a German conductor. Kegel was born in Dresden. He studied conducting with Karl Böhm and composition with Boris Blacher at the Dresden Conservatory from 1935 to 1940. In 1946 he began con ...

(1977–1985) * Jörg-Peter Weigle (1986–1994) *

Michel Plasson Michel Plasson (born 2 October 1933, Paris, France) is a French conductor. Plasson was a student of Lazare Lévy at the Conservatoire de Paris. In 1962, he was a prize-winner at the International Besançon Competition for Young Conductors. ...

(1994–2001) *

(2001–2003) *

(2004–2011) * Michael Sanderling (2011–2019) * Marek Janowski (2019–2023) *

(designate, effective 2025)

References

External links

Dresdner Philharmonie and Philharmoniker official website

CDs of Dresdner Philharmonie
released by GENUIN
Bach Cantatas page profile of the orchestra
{{Authority control German symphony orchestras Orchestras in Dresden Musical groups established in 1870 1870 establishments in the Kingdom of Saxony