Gewandhausorchester Leipzig
Orchestras
It is the oldest civic concert orchestra in the world. The orchestra had its origins in the concert society called the "Grand Concert" founded by 16 merchants in 1743. Following its move into the meeting house of the cloth merchants (the "Gewandhaus") in 1781, the ensemble was named the "Gewandhaus Orchestra." In 1884, the orchestra moved into a new concert hall that had been built through the sale of endowment shares, which was destroyed during the air raids of 1944. In 1981, a new Gewandhaus was opened on Augustusplatz.
Few other orchestras have contributed as much to the development of the symphonic musical tradition as the Gewandhaus Orchestra. For example, it performed all of Beethoven's symphonies during the composer's lifetime. The orchestra also presented the world's first complete Bruckner cycle as well as the first Shostakovich cycle during the 1970s.
The orchestra boasts an exceptionally wide repertoire and an unusually large number of performances. This is due in part to its multiple functions as a concert orchestra, an opera orchestra at the Leipzig Opera, and a chamber orchestra which performs cantatas with the world-famous St. Thomas's Boys Choir at St. Thomas's Church. With more than 200 performances in these three venues and on tour, the Gewandhaus Orchestra is the musical heart of the City of Leipzig and its most important musical ambassador.
Felix Mendelssohn, Arthur Nikisch, Wilhelm Furtwängler and Bruno Walter number among the most distinguished Gewandhaus Music Directors. Herbert Blomstedt, who succeeded Kurt Masur in 1998, was the orchestra's 18th Music Director. Since September 2005, Riccardo Chailly has held the post of 19th Gewandhaus Music Director.
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In 2010 Chailly received the Alexander von Zemlinsky Award and the Orphée d´Or „Prix H. von Karajan".
The Sunday Times named the Gewandhaus Orchestra New Year´s Day concert 2009 in London one of fifteen “Best classical events of the decade”.
In 2009 the Gewandhaus Orchestra was named German “Brand of the Century” (see additional press release).
In autumn 2010 the CD “Mendelssohn Discoveries” won the “Choc du mois” (Classica Magazine) and the “Diapason d´Or du mois” (Diapason Magazine)
The Gewandhaus's "Grand Concert" series has been named "Best Concert Programme of the 2008/2009 Season." In the opinion of the Deutscher Musikverleger-Verband (Association of German Music Publishers) the Gewandhaus Orchestra presented the best programming during the 2008/2009 season.
Riccardo Chailly´s first CD/DVD with the Gewandhaus Ochestra was released in September 2005. The recording includes the inaugural concert of 2 September 2005 at the Leipzig Gewandhaus and received the ECHO Klassik award 2006. The CD including Schumann´s Symphonies 2 and 4 (arr. by Mahler) and the CD including Concertos for Violin from Mendelssohn and Bruch with the soloist Jannine Jansen received the ECHO Klassik awards 2007.
The double CD of Johannes Brahms´s Piano Concertos Nelson Freire as soloist, was released during the concert tour through Europe in March 2006 and received the Diapason d’Or de L’année. This recording was nominated for the 49th Annual Grammy Awards in the category 100: "Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance with Orchestra".
The DVD with the recording of the “Grand Concert” given on 1 - 2 June 2006 with pianist Martha Argerich was released in October 2006.
In 2006 the Gewandhaus Orchestra was named "Editor's Choice" by Gramophone Magazine for the innovative "Decca Concerts," which make live recordings of great concerts available for downloading from iTunes.
The double CD of Johannes Brahms´s Piano Concertos Nelson Freire as soloist received the Gramophone Award 2007 as “Best in category concert” and was named “Recording of the Year”.
SEASON 2011/2012