Kraków Philharmonic
Encyclopedia
The Kraków Philharmonic or the Cracow Philharmonic , is the primary concert hall in Kraków
, Poland
, named after the renown Polish composer and pianist Karol Szymanowski
. It is the home of the Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Kraków Philharmonic concert hall was designed by architect Józef Pokutynski and completed 1931. It is one of the largest concert halls in Kraków. It consists of a main hall of 693 seats for orchestral performances, and two smaller venues, the Golden Hall and the Blue Hall, for chamber music concerts. Since March 2009, conductor Paweł Przytocki
has been the Managing Director and Artistic Director
of both, the Kraków Philharmonic and the Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra. Principal conductors and music directors of Kraków Philharmonic in the past include Tadeusz Strugała, and Gilbert Levine
(1987–1993). In 1996, a new 50-pipe
pipe organ
was installed in the hall, designed and built by the Johannes Klais Orgelbau of Bonn
, a family run company specializing in large-scale projects across the globe.
, and throughout the interwar period, the Kraków Philharmonic was home to the Polish Professional Musicians Trade Union for performers working around the city, including in cafés and in the silent movie theatres. The Union's goal was to protect the welfare of its members as well as the artistic level of their performances, but its main contribution to the local music culture was the organising of symphony concerts.
Kraków
Kraków also Krakow, or Cracow , is the second largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in the Lesser Poland region, the city dates back to the 7th century. Kraków has traditionally been one of the leading centres of Polish academic, cultural, and artistic life...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, named after the renown Polish composer and pianist Karol Szymanowski
Karol Szymanowski
Karol Maciej Szymanowski was a Polish composer and pianist.-Life:Szymanowski was born into a wealthy land-owning Polish gentry family in Tymoszówka, then in the Russian Empire, now in Cherkasy Oblast, Ukraine. He studied music privately with his father before going to Gustav Neuhaus'...
. It is the home of the Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra.
The Kraków Philharmonic concert hall was designed by architect Józef Pokutynski and completed 1931. It is one of the largest concert halls in Kraków. It consists of a main hall of 693 seats for orchestral performances, and two smaller venues, the Golden Hall and the Blue Hall, for chamber music concerts. Since March 2009, conductor Paweł Przytocki
Paweł Przytocki
Paweł Przytocki , is a Polish conductor of classical music.-Education:Przytocki studied at the Academy of Music in Kraków, graduating with distinction from the Faculty of Conducting under Professor Jerzy Katlewicz in 1985...
has been the Managing Director and Artistic Director
Artistic director
An artistic director is the executive of an arts organization, particularly in a theatre company, that handles the organization's artistic direction. He or she is generally a producer and director, but not in the sense of a mogul, since the organization is generally a non-profit organization...
of both, the Kraków Philharmonic and the Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra. Principal conductors and music directors of Kraków Philharmonic in the past include Tadeusz Strugała, and Gilbert Levine
Gilbert Levine
Sir Gilbert Levine, KC*SG is an American conductor. He is considered an "outstanding personality in the world of international music television."-Education:...
(1987–1993). In 1996, a new 50-pipe
Organ pipe
An organ pipe is a sound-producing element of the pipe organ that resonates at a specific pitch when pressurized air is driven through it. Each pipe is tuned to a specific note of the musical scale...
pipe organ
Pipe organ
The pipe organ is a musical instrument that produces sound by driving pressurized air through pipes selected via a keyboard. Because each organ pipe produces a single pitch, the pipes are provided in sets called ranks, each of which has a common timbre and volume throughout the keyboard compass...
was installed in the hall, designed and built by the Johannes Klais Orgelbau of Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
, a family run company specializing in large-scale projects across the globe.
History
The first serious attempts to create a resident symphony orchestra in the city go back to the 18th century. The professional team was assembled only in 1909 under the management of Feliks Nowowiejski. The orchestra performed regularly until the Invasion of Poland in September 1939. Since its creation under the foreign Partitions of PolandPartitions of Poland
The Partitions of Poland or Partitions of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth took place in the second half of the 18th century and ended the existence of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, resulting in the elimination of sovereign Poland for 123 years...
, and throughout the interwar period, the Kraków Philharmonic was home to the Polish Professional Musicians Trade Union for performers working around the city, including in cafés and in the silent movie theatres. The Union's goal was to protect the welfare of its members as well as the artistic level of their performances, but its main contribution to the local music culture was the organising of symphony concerts.
External links
- Official website Kraków Philharmonic website in Polish and English
- Cracow Philharmonic information and photographs from Kraków-Poland.com