The Orchester Musikkollegium Winterthur is a Swiss

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

Winterthur Winterthur (; ) is a city in the canton of Zurich in northern Switzerland. With over 120,000 residents, it is the country's List of cities in Switzerland, sixth-largest city by population, as well as its ninth-largest agglomeration with about 14 ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

at its namesake venue, the Musikkollegium Winterthur. The orchestra performs around 60 concerts a year, and in addition to orchestra concerts, performs in the pit at the

Zurich Opera Zurich Opera (Opernhaus Zürich) is a Swiss opera company based in Zurich. The company gives performances in the Zurich Opera House. History The first performance at the current theatre occurred on 30 September 1891, with a production of Wagner's ...

History

The oldest orchestra in Switzerland, the orchestra was founded in 1875 as the ''Stadtorchester Winterthur''. The Musikkollegium itself, as an organisation based out of religious roots to that time, was founded in 1629. From 2002 to 2008,

Jac van Steen Jac van Steen (born 1956 in Eindhoven) is a Dutch conductor. He studied music theory, as well as orchestral and choral conducting, at the . In the Netherlands, van Steen was conductor and music director of the Nijmegen Bach Choir from 1986 to 199 ...

was principal conductor of the orchestra. The orchestra and van Steen made several commercial recordings for the MDG label, including music of the composers of the

Second Viennese School The Second Viennese School () was the group of composers that comprised Arnold Schoenberg and his pupils, particularly Alban Berg and Anton Webern, and close associates in early 20th-century Vienna. Their music was initially characterized by late ...

and of Frank Martin. In April 2008, the orchestra announced the appointment of

Douglas Boyd Douglas Boyd (born 1959, Glasgow, Scotland) is a British oboist and conductor. Biography Boyd studied oboe at the Royal Academy of Music, London, as a pupil of Janet Craxton. He later was a student with Maurice Bourgue in Paris. In 1984 he w ...

as its next principal conductor, effective with the 2009–2010 season. Boyd concluded his tenure as principal conductor after the 2015–2016 season. In June 2015, the orchestra announced the appointment of

Thomas Zehetmair Thomas Zehetmair (born 23 November 1961) is an Austrian violinist and conductor. Biography Zehetmair was born in Salzburg, and studied at the Salzburg Mozarteum, where both of his parents taught. His festival debut was at age 16. He was in ...

as its next principal conductor, effective September 2016, with an initial contract of three seasons. Zehetmair is scheduled to conclude his Winterthur tenure at the close of the 2020–2021 season. In July 2020, the orchestra announced the appointment of Roberto González-Monjas, first concertmaster (leader) of the orchestra since the 2013–2014 season, as its next principal conductor, effective with the 2021–2022 season, with an initial contract of 4 years. In May 2020, the orchestra announced the appointment of Dominik Deuber as its next managing director, effective August 2020. In the modern repertoire, the orchestra has often worked with

Heinz Holliger Heinz Robert Holliger (born 21 May 1939) is a Swiss composer, virtuoso oboist, and conductor. Celebrated for his versatility and technique, Holliger is among the most prominent oboists of his generation. His repertoire includes Baroque and Clas ...

, and in the Baroque repertoire with

Maurice Steger Maurice Steger (born 1971 in Winterthur, Switzerland) is a Swiss recorder player and conductor, mostly in Baroque music. Career Maurice Steger is a frequent guest soloist with leading Baroque ensembles such as the Akademie für Alte Musik Berli ...

and

Nicholas Kraemer Nicholas Kraemer (born 7 March 1945, in Edinburgh, Scotland) is a British harpsichordist and conductor. Career Kraemer began his career as a harpsichordist. From playing continuo (on a harpsichord) at the back of an orchestra he proceeded to ...

. With Boyd as conductor, the orchestra has made commercial recordings of music of

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic music, Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions inc ...

Josef Rheinberger Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (17 March 1839 – 25 November 1901) was an organist and composer from Liechtenstein, residing in Kingdom of Bavaria, Bavaria for most of his life. As court conductor in Munich, he was responsible for the music in the ...

and

Ralph Vaughan Williams Ralph Vaughan Williams ( ; 12 October 1872– 26 August 1958) was an English composer. His works include operas, ballets, chamber music, secular and religious vocal pieces and orchestral compositions including nine symphonies, written over ...

. The orchestra has made other commercial recordings with Holliger, and other conductors such as Werner Andreas Albert.

Principal conductors

Franz Welser-Möst Franz Leopold Maria Möst (born 16 August 1960), known professionally as Franz Welser-Möst, is an Austrian conductor. He is currently music director of the Cleveland Orchestra. Biography Franz Leopold Maria Möst was born in Linz, Austria, ...

(1987–1990) *

János Fürst János Fürst (8 August 1935 – 3 January 2007) was a Hungary, Hungarian-born Conducting, conductor and violinist. Biography Fürst was born in Budapest to a Jewish-Hungarian family. He originally studied the violin at the Franz Liszt Academ ...

(1990–1994) *

Heinrich Schiff Heinrich Schiff (; 18 November 1951 – 23 December 2016) was an Austrian cellist and conductor. Early life Heinrich Schiff was born on 18 November 1951 in Gmunden, Austria. His parents, Helga (née Riemann) and Helmut Schiff, were composers. H ...

(1995–2001) *

(2002–2008) *

(2009–2016) *

(2016–2021) *

Roberto González-Monjas Roberto González-Monjas (born February 23, 1988, in Valladolid, Spain) is a Spanish classical violinist and conductor. Education He studied at the Mozarteum University of Salzburg with Igor Ozim and at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama i ...

(2021–present)

References

External links

*
Official German-language page on the history of the orchestra

Thomas Trappmann, "Ferne Geliebte...", German-language trade article from ''Classaktuell'', 2007 (1st quarter)
Musical groups established in 1875 Swiss orchestras Winterthur 1875 establishments in Switzerland Music in Zurich {{Orchestra-stub