The Oslo Philharmonic () is a Norwegian

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

Oslo Oslo ( or ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Norway. It constitutes both a county and a municipality. The municipality of Oslo had a population of in 2022, while the city's greater urban area had a population of 1,064,235 in 2022 ...

, Norway. The orchestra traces its roots to the Philharmonic Society founded in 1847 and the Christiania Musical Association co-founded by

Edvard Grieg Edvard Hagerup Grieg ( , ; 15 June 18434 September 1907) was a Norwegian composer and pianist. He is widely considered one of the leading Romantic music, Romantic era composers, and his music is part of the standard classical repertoire worldwid ...

in 1871, and was established in its current form in 1919. Since 1977, it has had its home in the

Oslo Concert Hall Oslo Concert Hall () is a concert hall located in Vika, a part of Oslo city centre in Norway. It is the base of the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (''Oslo-Filharmonien''), but it also aims to be one of the premier music venues for the general musi ...

. The orchestra gives an average of sixty to seventy symphonic concerts annually, the majority of which are broadcast nationally on the radio. The Oslo Philharmonic entered into a close collaboration with the newly established national broadcasting company, the

NRK The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...

, in 1934. Its chief conductor is

Klaus Mäkelä Klaus Mäkelä (; born 17 January 1996) is a Finnish conductor and cellist. He is the chief conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic, and music director of the Orchestre de Paris. Mäkelä is also artistic partner and chief conductor-designate of th ...

History

The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra's roots go back to 1871, when

and

Johan Svendsen Johan Severin Svendsen (30 September 184014 June 1911) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Born in Christiania (now Oslo), Norway, he lived most of his life in Copenhagen, Denmark. Svendsen's output includes two symphonies, a vi ...

founded the ''Christiania Musikerforening'' (Christiania Musical Association), as a successor of The Philharmonic Society (Det Philharmoniske Selskab, 1847). The orchestra was later conducted by Ole Olsen, Johan Selmer,

Iver Holter Iver Paul Fredrik Holter (13 December 1850 – 27 January 1941) was a Norwegian composer. He was conductor and music director of the Oslo Philharmonic for a quarter century. Biography Iver Paul Fredrik Holter was born in Gausdal, Oppland, N ...

and

Otto Winter-Hjelm Otto Winter-Hjelm (8 October 1837 – 3 May 1931) was a Norwegian musician, conductor, writer, composer and music critic. Life and career Otto Winther-Hjelm was born in Christiana (Oslo), and studied in Leipzig and Berlin. During his career, he ...

. Under Holter, the orchestra was merged with the

Christiania Theatre Christiania Theatre, or ''Kristiania Theatre'', was Norway's finest stage for spoken drama from 4 October 1836 (opening date) to 1 September 1899. It was located at Bankplassen by the Akershus Fortress, in central Christiania. It was the fir ...

Orchestra, which was on the verge of reductions. Holter suggested the founding of a city orchestra which could play at municipal festivities, concerts and in the theatre, and as a result of this, the orchestra gained municipal support from 1889. In 1899, the

Nationaltheatret The National Theatre in Oslo () is one of Norway's largest and most prominent venues for performance of dramatic arts. History The theatre had its first performance on 1 September 1899 but can trace its origins to Christiania Theatre, which was ...

, which was to present both theatre and opera, was opened. Here the orchestra expanded to 44 musicians, and it was conducted by

Johan Halvorsen Johan Halvorsen (15 March 1864 – 4 December 1935) was a Norwegian composer, conductor and violinist. Life Born in Drammen, he was an accomplished violinist from a very early age and became a prominent figure in Norwegian musical life. He r ...

. The orchestra served the Nationaltheatret in two roles: providing music for the new theatre, and symphony concerts for the Music Society. During the First World War, the desire for symphonic music grew, along with inflation, leading to a dispute between the orchestra and the Nationaltheatret and a temporary collapse of the Musikerforening's concerts. Thus, in 1919, the orchestra was reformed as the ''Filharmonisk Selskaps Orkester'' (Orchestra of the Philharmonic Company) by private shareholders and initiative. The first season was shared by three conductors;

Georg Schnéevoigt Georg Lennart Schnéevoigt (8 November 1872 – 28 November 1947) was a Finnish Conducting, conductor and cellist, born in Vyborg, Grand Duchy of Finland, which is now in Russia, to Ernst Schnéevoigt and Rosa Willandt. Career Schnéevoigt ...

and Ignaz Neumark. Filharmonisk Selskaps Orkester's first concert took place in Logen (Store Sal) on 27 September 1919, with 59 musicians on stage and with Georg Schnéevoigt as conductor. On the repertoire was

Rikard Nordraak Rikard Nordraak (12 June 1842 – 20 March 1866) was a Norway, Norwegian composer. He is best known as the composer of the Norwegian national anthem, "Ja, vi elsker dette landet". Biography Rikard Nordraak was born and grew up in Oslo, Norway. Hi ...

's ''

Ja, vi elsker dette landet "" (; ) is the national anthem of Norway. Originally a patriotic song, it became commonly regarded as the ''de facto'' national anthem of Norway in the early 20th century after being used alongside "" since the 1860s. It was officially adopted in ...

'',

's ''Fest polonaise'',

Christian Sinding Christian August Sinding (11 January 18563 December 1941) was a Norwegian composer. He is best known for his lyrical work for piano '' Frühlingsrauschen'' (Rustle of Spring, 1896). He was often compared to Edvard Grieg and regarded as his succ ...

's Symphony No. 1,

's Piano Concerto in A minor, and finally ''Landkjenning'', with the singer

Erik Ole Bye Erik Ole Bye (20 March 1883 – 17 May 1953) was a Norwegian operatic baritone. He studied singing with Morgenstierne in Oslo, zur Muhlen in London, and R. Willani in Paris. He also competed at the Olympics as a rower. Biography He competed in ...

as baritone soloist. Among the guest musicians of this first season were the conductor

Arthur Nikisch Arthur Nikisch (12 October 185523 January 1922) was a Hungary, Hungarian conducting, conductor who performed internationally, holding posts in Boston, London, Leipzig and—most importantly—Berlin. He was considered an outstanding interpreter ...

, the pianists

Eugen d'Albert Eugen (originally Eugène) Francis Charles d'Albert (10 April 1864 – 3 March 1932) was a Scottish-born pianist and composer who immigrated to Germany. Educated in Britain, d'Albert showed early musical talent and, at the age of seventeen, h ...

Edwin Fischer Edwin Fischer (6 October 1886 – 24 January 1960) was a Swiss classical pianist and conductor. He is regarded as one of the great interpreters of J.S. Bach and Mozart in the twentieth century. Biography Fischer was born in Basel and studied m ...

Wilhelm Kempff Wilhelm Walter Friedrich Kempff (25 November 1895 – 23 May 1991) was a German pianist, teacher and composer. Although his repertoire included Bach, Mozart, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt and Brahms, Kempff was particularly well known for his interp ...

Ignaz Friedman Ignaz Friedman (born Salomon Izaak Freudmann; ; ; February 13, 1882January 26, 1948) was a Polish pianist and composer. Critics (e.g. Harold Schonberg) and colleagues (e.g. Sergei Rachmaninoff) alike placed him among the supreme piano virtuosi ...

and

Artur Schnabel Artur Schnabel (17 April 1882 – 15 August 1951) was an Austrian-born classical pianist, composer and Pedagogy, pedagogue. Schnabel was known for his intellectual seriousness as a musician, avoiding pure technical bravura. Among the 20th ...

, and the violinists

Bronisław Huberman Bronisław Huberman (19 December 1882 – 16 June 1947) was a Polish violinist. He was known for his individualistic interpretations and was praised for his tone color, expressiveness, and flexibility. The '' Gibson ex-Huberman Stradivariu ...

and

Carl Flesch Carl Flesch (born Károly Flesch, 9 October 1873 – 14 November 1944) was a Hungarian classical violinist and teacher. Flesch’s compendium ''Scale System'' is a staple of violin pedagogy. Life and career Flesch was born in Moson (now part of ...

. Between September 1919 and May 1920, the orchestra gave 135 public concerts, most of them sold out. The next decades featured various economic problems, which led to the resignation of 15 musicians in one season. In spite of this, the orchestra continued to attract notable musicians and conductors, such as

Richard Burgin Richard Burgin (October 11, 1892 – April 29, 1981) was a Polish-American violinist, best known as associate conductor and the concertmaster of the Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO). Early life Burgin was born in Siedlce, Poland, and first p ...

, who later became concertmaster for

Serge Koussevitzky Serge Koussevitzky (born Sergey Aleksandrovich Kusevitsky;Koussevitzky's original Russian forename is usually transliterated into English as either "Sergei" or "Sergey"; however, he himself adopted the French spelling "Serge", using it in his sig ...

in Boston;

Max Rostal Max Rostal (7 July 1905 – 6 August 1991) was a violinist and a viola player. He was Austrian-born, but later took British citizenship. Biography Max Rostal was born in Cieszyn to a Jewish merchant family. As a child prodigy, he started studyin ...

;

Ernst Glaser Ernst Glaser (24 February 1904 – 3 April 1979) was a German / Norwegian violinist, orchestra conductor and music teacher, married to the pianist Kari Marie Aarvold Glaser. He was the father of the pianist Liv Glaser and the cellist Ernst S ...

;

Robert Soetens Robert Soetens (19 July 189722 October 1997) was a French violinist, remembered particularly for premiering the Violin Concerto No. 2 of Sergei Prokofiev in 1935. Biography Robert Soetens was born in Montluçon, France in 1897, into a musical ...

, for whom

Sergei Prokofiev Sergei Sergeyevich Prokofiev; alternative transliterations of his name include ''Sergey'' or ''Serge'', and ''Prokofief'', ''Prokofieff'', or ''Prokofyev''. , group=n ( – 5 March 1953) was a Russian composer, pianist, and conductor who l ...

's 2nd Violin Concerto was written; and others who were driven out of Germany by the Nazi regime –

Igor Stravinsky Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ( – 6 April 1971) was a Russian composer and conductor with French citizenship (from 1934) and American citizenship (from 1945). He is widely considered one of the most important and influential 20th-century c ...

Fritz Busch Fritz Busch (13 March 1890 – 14 September 1951) was a German conductor. Busch was born in Siegen to a musical family and studied at the Cologne Conservatory. After army service in the First World War, he was appointed to senior posts in two G ...

Erich Kleiber Erich Kleiber (5 August 1890 – 27 January 1956) was an Austrian, later Argentine, conductor, known for his interpretations of the classics and as an advocate of Neue Musik. Kleiber was born in Vienna, and after studying at the Prague Conser ...

, and

Bruno Walter Bruno Walter (born Bruno Schlesinger, September 15, 1876February 17, 1962) was a Germany, German-born Conducting, conductor, pianist, and composer. Born in Berlin, he escaped Nazi Germany in 1933, was naturalised as a French people, French cit ...

. The first Norwegian radio broadcast started in April 1923, and shortly after, the first radio concert with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. From 1925, there was a contract between the orchestra and the

Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation The Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (), commonly known by its initialism NRK, is a Norwegian state-run, government-influenced radio and television public broadcasting company. The NRK broadcasts three national TV channels and thirteen nat ...

(

), ensuring weekly live

broadcast Broadcasting is the data distribution, distribution of sound, audio audiovisual content to dispersed audiences via a electronic medium (communication), mass communications medium, typically one using the electromagnetic spectrum (radio waves), ...

concerts. This contract with NRK saved the orchestra from bankruptcy in the 1930s.

Issay Dobrowen Issay Alexandrovich Dobrowen (; 9 December 1953) Itschok Zorachovitch Barabeitchik, was a Russian/Soviet- Norwegian pianist, composer and conductor. He left the Soviet Union in 1922 and became a Norwegian citizen in 1929. Biography He was bo ...

joined the orchestra in 1927; when he left in 1931, the position of chief conductor was divided between two Norwegians: Odd Grüner Hegge and

Olav Kielland Olav Løchen Kielland (16 August 1901 – 5 August 1985) was a Norwegian composer and conductor. Early life and education Olav Løchen Kielland was born in Trondheim, the son of Gabriel Kielland (1871–1960) and Margit Løchen (1875–1951). ...

. After 1933, Kielland became sole chief conductor until 1945. In 1953, Oslo hosted the ISCM Festival, which brought further international contacts in the awareness of new repertoire, which many of the Scandinavian countries had been deprived of during the years of World War I and World War II. The first performance of the Oslo Philharmonic outside Scandinavia took place in 1962. Since then, the orchestra has much international acclaim. Oslo Konserthus 01

In 1979, the orchestra formally changed its name to Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1996, an act of the

Norwegian parliament The Storting ( ; ) is the supreme legislature of Norway, established in 1814 by the Constitution of Norway. It is located in Oslo. The unicameral parliament has 169 members and is elected every four years based on party-list proportional represe ...

made the orchestra an independent foundation. Although the orchestra has maintained high standards of quality since its inception and under various renowned musical directors, many consider that it saw its largest leap forward during the tenure of

Mariss Jansons Mariss Ivars Georgs Jansons (14 January 1943 – 1 December 2019) was a Latvian Conducting, conductor, best known for his interpretations of Gustav Mahler, Mahler, Richard Strauss, Strauss, and Russian composers such as Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, ...

from 1979 to 2002. During this time the orchestra recorded readings of

Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky ( ; 7 May 1840 – 6 November 1893) was a Russian composer during the Romantic period. He was the first Russian composer whose music made a lasting impression internationally. Tchaikovsky wrote some of the most popular ...

symphonies A symphony is an extended musical composition in Western classical music, most often for orchestra. Although the term has had many meanings from its origins in the ancient Greek era, by the late 18th century the word had taken on the meaning c ...

, and went on international tours. The Oslo Philharmonic and Jansons won international acclaim with its Tchaikovsky cycle and a very successful series of recordings for

EMI EMI Group Limited (formerly EMI Group plc until 2007; originally an initialism for Electric and Musical Industries, also referred to as EMI Records or simply EMI) was a British transnational conglomerate founded in March 1931 in London. At t ...

. Subsequent music directors have been

André Previn André George Previn (; born Andreas Ludwig Priwin; April 6, 1929 – February 28, 2019) was a German-American pianist, composer, and conductor. His career had three major genres: Hollywood films, jazz, and classical music. In each he achieved ...

(2002–2006) and

Jukka-Pekka Saraste Jukka-Pekka Saraste (born 22 April 1956) is a Finnish conductor and violinist. Biography Saraste was born in Heinola, the son of teachers Kauko Pekka Saraste and Ritva Leena-Marjatta (Ruoranen) Saraste. He was trained as a violinist at the Cons ...

(2006–2013). Saraste now has the title of ''æresdirigent'' (conductor laureate) with the orchestra. In February 2011, the orchestra announced the appointment of

Vasily Petrenko Vasily Eduardovich Petrenko (; born 7 July 1976) is a Russian-British conductor. He is currently music director of the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. Biography Of Russian and Ukrainian ancestry, Petrenko was born in Leningrad, USSR. He attend ...

as its next chief conductor, as of the 2013–2014 season, with an initial contract of 4 years. In November 2015, the orchestra announced the extension of Petrenko's contract through 2020. Petrenko concluded his chief conductorship of the orchestra at the close of the 2019–2020 season, with the season truncated by the COVID-19 pandemic. In May 2018,

first guest-conducted the orchestra. On the basis of this appearance, in October 2018, the orchestra announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2020–2021 season, with an initial contract of 3 seasons. In May 2020, the orchestra announced an extension of Mäkelä's initial contract with the orchestra for an additional 4 seasons, unusual in its timing before the official start of his tenure as chief conductor of the orchestra. In April 2024, Mäkelä stated his intention to conclude his Oslo Philharmonic tenure at the close of the 2026–2027 season. Other recordings by the orchestra include a series of Bartók recordings for Simax, completed in 2000. The orchestra has won various recording prizes, including the

Grand Prix du Disque Grand may refer to: People with the name * Grand (surname) * Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor Places * Grand, Oklahoma, USA * Grand, Vosges, village and commune in France with Gallo-Roman amphitheatre * Grand County (disambiguation), ...

Diapason d'Or The Diapason d'Or (French for "Golden Tuning Fork") is a recommendation of outstanding (mostly) classical music recordings given by reviewers of '' Diapason'' magazine in France, broadly equivalent to "Editor's Choice", "Disc of the Month" in the ...

, and the German Classical Music Award. The orchestra and Mäkelä have recorded a set of the complete Sibelius symphonies for Decca.

Music directors

(1919–1920) * Ignaz Neumark (1919–1921) *

(1919–1921) * José Eibenschütz (1921–1927) *

(1927–1931) *

Odd Grüner-Hegge Odd Ragnar Grüner-Hegge (September 23, 1899 – May 11, 1973) was a Norwegian conductor and composer. He was the longest-serving conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic, and he was the conductor at the Norwegian National Opera in the 1960s. Family ...

(1931–1933) *

(1931–1945) *

(1945–1962) *

Herbert Blomstedt Herbert Thorson Blomstedt (; born 11 July 1927) is a Swedish conductor of classical music. At the age of 97 he continues to conduct concerts in Europe and the United States. Biography Herbert Blomstedt was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, t ...

(1962–1968) *

Øivin Fjeldstad Øivin Fjeldstad (2 May 1903 – 16 October 1983) was a Norwegian conductor and violinist. Fjeldstad was artistic director and principal conductor of the Oslo Philharmonic from 1962 to 1969. Biography A native of Oslo, Øivin Fjeldstad debute ...

(1962–1969) *

Miltiades Caridis Miltiades Caridis (; 9 May 1923 – 1 March 1998) was a German-Greek conductor. Biography Caridis was born in the Free City of Danzig (Gdańsk). His mother was a Danziger of German ethnicity, his father was a Greek tobacco merchant from Smyrn ...

(1969–1975) *

Okko Kamu Okko Tapani Kamu (born 7 March 1946, Helsinki, Finland) is a Finnish orchestral conductor and violinist. Kamu was born in Helsinki, the son of Adam Kamu, a musician, and his wife Eine (Syrjänen) Kamu, a violin maker. His father played double ...

(1975–1979) *

(1979–2002) *

(2002–2006) *

(2006–2013) *

(2013–2020) *

(2020–present)

References

External links

* {{Authority control Orchestras in Oslo Symphony orchestras Musical groups established in 1919 1919 establishments in Norway