Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra is based, as its name indicates, in Sarajevo

Sarajevo

Sarajevo |Bosnia]], surrounded by the Dinaric Alps and situated along the Miljacka River in the heart of Southeastern Europe and the Balkans....

. Its first concert was performed on October 24, 1923, with the program being "Lisinski

Vatroslav Lisinski

Vatroslav Lisinski was a Croatian composer.Lisinski was born Ignaz Fuchs to a German Jewish family...

: Overture from the opera "Porin

Porin (opera)

Porin is a grand opera by Vatroslav Lisinski. The Croatian text was by Dimitrija Demeter. It was Lisinski's second opera, the second for Croatia.It was composed during 1848-51 but not performed until 2 October 1897, when it was staged in Zagreb....

"; Mendelssohn

Felix Mendelssohn

Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Barthóldy , use the form 'Mendelssohn' and not 'Mendelssohn Bartholdy'. The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians gives ' Felix Mendelssohn' as the entry, with 'Mendelssohn' used in the body text...

, Concert g-minor for piano and orchestra; Beethoven: Second Symphony

Symphony No. 2 (Beethoven)

Ludwig van Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 in D major was written between 1801 and 1802 and is dedicated to Prince Lichnowsky.-Background:...

." The conductors

Conducting

Conducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...

 were A. Lukinić and J. Rozdalovski.

The outbreak of World War II disrupted the activities of the Orchestra, which was reestablished in October 1948. During the Bosnian War

Bosnian War

The Bosnian War or the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina was an international armed conflict that took place in Bosnia and Herzegovina between April 1992 and December 1995. The war involved several sides...

, the Orchestra again suffered disruption. During the Siege of Sarajevo

Siege of Sarajevo

The Siege of Sarajevo is the longest siege of a capital city in the history of modern warfare. Serb forces of the Republika Srpska and the Yugoslav People's Army besieged Sarajevo, the capital city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 5 April 1992 to 29 February 1996 during the Bosnian War.After Bosnia...

, seven members of the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra were killed and twelve were wounded. The archive of musical scores was damaged and many instruments were destroyed, damaged or lost. During the war, however, the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra continued its work and performed 60 concerts, 20 of them abroad. The rehearsals were performed in hard winter conditions, in basements, and without heating and only by candlelight.

The Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra performed on June 19, 1994 amongst the ruins of Sarajevo City Hall. Mozart's Requiem

Requiem (Mozart)

The Requiem Mass in D minor by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart was composed in Vienna in 1791 and left unfinished at the composer's death. A completion by Franz Xaver Süssmayr was delivered to Count Franz von Walsegg, who had anonymously commissioned the piece for a requiem Mass to commemorate the...

was performed, and maestro Zubin Mehta

Zubin Mehta

Zubin Mehta is an Indian conductor of western classical music. He is the Music Director for Life of the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.-Biography:...

 conducted the concert with soloists José Carreras

José Carreras

Josep Maria Carreras i Coll , better known as José Carreras , is a Spanish Catalan tenor particularly known for his performances in the operas of Verdi and Puccini...

, Ruggero Raimondi

Ruggero Raimondi

Ruggero Raimondi is an Italian bass-baritone opera singer who has also appeared in motion pictures.-Early training and career:Ruggero Raimondi was born in Bologna, Italy, during World War II...

, Cecilia Gasdia

Cecilia Gasdia

-Biography:Cecilia Gasdia studied music and piano at the Conservatorio di Verona, graduating in 1980. That same year she won the first prize in the "New Voices for Opera" competition dedicated to Maria Callas...

 and Ildikó Komlósi

Ildikó Komlósi

-Biography:Originary of Hungary from Békés County, she studied and was graduated at "Franz Liszt Academy of Music" in Budapest; improving her aptitudes for song at the "Scala" of Milan and at he "Guildhall School of Music and Drama" in London.-Career:...

.

In September 1994, the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra toured in Italy

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

, and subsequently in Austria

Austria

Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...

 (1995, 1996), Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 (1995), the Czech Republic

Czech Republic

The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....

 (1995), France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 (1997), Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 (1997, 2000), and again in Italy (1995–1997).

The Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra visited and organized concerts in several cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina

Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...

.

In October 1996 Yehudi Menuhin

Yehudi Menuhin

Yehudi Menuhin, Baron Menuhin, OM, KBE was a Russian Jewish American violinist and conductor who spent most of his performing career in the United Kingdom. He was born to Russian Jewish parents in the United States, but became a citizen of Switzerland in 1970, and of the United Kingdom in 1985...

 came to Sarajevo and conducted the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1997, by the invitation of UNESCO

UNESCO

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...

's Director-General, Federico Mayor Zaragoza, the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra went to Paris and performed a concert there.

In 1998 the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra performed in Ravenna

Ravenna

Ravenna is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy and the second largest comune in Italy by land area, although, at , it is little more than half the size of the largest comune, Rome...

, and in 1999, in the United States and Netherlands. In March 1997, the Sarajevo Philharmonic Orchestra recorded its first CD.