Tonkünstler Orchestra

Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich
Background information
Origin	Vienna, Austria
Genres	Classical
Occupations	Symphony orchestra
Years active	1933-present
Website	www.tonkunstler.at
Members
Principal conductor Andrés Orozco-Estrada Principal Guest Conductor Mikhail Jurowski

The Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich is an Austrian orchestra based in Vienna and St. Pölten, Lower Austria.

Origin of the name

The orchestra's name has its origins in the Tonkünstler-Sozietät, Wien, which was organizing concerts in the era of Haydn and Mozart. This name lived on in the Viennese "Tonkünstler Orchestra Association", which was founded at the beginning of the 20th century. The first concert was performed in 1907 at the Musikverein presenting works of Karl Goldmark, Edvard Grieg, Franz Liszt and Ludwig van Beethoven. In 1913 the Viennese Tonkünstler Orchestra were the first to perform Arnold Schönberg's "Gurrelieder". The Sunday afternoon performances of the orchestra were very popular with the Viennese audience. During World War I, the orchestra had to merge with the so called "Vienna Concertverein" due to financial hardships. The association continued to organise concerts until 1933.

History

In the mid-1930s, the National socialist conductor Leopold Reichwein founded a new orchestra, which took the name N.S. Wiener Tonkünstlerorchester after Austria was invaded by Germany in 1938. The orchestra then became the Gausymphonieorchester Niederdonau in 1939. It was doing concerts throughout World War II, mostly with the Kraft durch Freude and in supporting the Wehrmacht. The orchestra renamed itself in 1945 to Landessymphonieorchester Niederösterreich. In 1946 this ensemble tied to the Tonkünstler tradition and called itself Niederösterreichisches Tonkünstlerorchester (Lower Austrian Tonkünstler Orchestra). The tradition of Sunday afternoon concerts was also revived. In 2002 the orchestra underwent a re-structuring process and is now called Tonkünstler-Orchester Niederösterreich (Tonkünstler Orchestra of Lower Austria).

From 2004 to 2009, Kristjan Järvi was principal conductor of the orchestra,^[1] and his work with the orchestra included a commercial recording of Leonard Bernstein's Mass. In the 2009-2010 season, Andrés Orozco-Estrada, who was the orchestra's assistant conductor for two years, took up the post of principal conductor.

Residencies

Tonkünstler musicians in Grafenegg

Tonkünstler Orchestra has its residencies in Vienna and Lower Austria. In Vienna, they perform concerts in the Golden Hall of the Musikverein. The Musikverein "Glass Hall" serves as the orchestra's rehearsal room. As the state orchestra of Lower Austria, Tonkünstler have a second residency in Festspielhaus St. Pölten. From summer 2007, the orchestra is also "orchestra in residence" at the new international Grafenegg Music Festival.

Principal conductors

Leopold Reichwein (1933–1939) Bert Costa (1939–1943) Friedrich Jung (1944–1945) Kurt Wöss (1946–1951) Gustav Koslik (1951–1964) Heinz Wallberg (1964–1975)

Walter Weller (1975–1978) Miltiades Caridis (1978–1988) Isaac Karabtchevsky (1988–1994) Fabio Luisi (1994–2000) Carlos Kalmar (2000–2003) Kristjan Järvi (2004–2009)

Andrés Orozco-Estrada (2009–present)

Repertoire and Profile

The classical composers Joseph Haydn, Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Ludwig van Beethoven as well as the romantic epoch ranging from Franz Schubert, Johannes Brahms to Anton Bruckner and Gustav Mahler are an important basis of the orchestra's repertoire. Today, the orchestra is also known for its performances of 20th performance and contemporary composers.

The Tonkünstler was the first Austrian orchestra with a division focussed solely on music education.

References

1. ^ Ben Mattison (20 December 2005). "Kristjan Järvi Extends Contract With Austria's Tonkünstler Orchestra". Playbill Arts. http://www.playbillarts.com/news/article/3519.html. Retrieved 2008-04-22. 

External links

• Tonkünstler-Orchester official website