The MDR-Sinfonieorchester (MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra) is a German radio orchestra based in Leipzig. It is the radio orchestra of Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk, the public broadcaster for the German states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. It is one of the oldest Radio orchestras in the world and the oldest in Germany. It was founded in Leipzig, Germany in 1923 (9 months earlier than the Berlin Radio Symphony Orchestra), with 115 musicians.[1] Apart from a short interruption during World War II, it has been the main orchestra of the Central German Broadcasting Company (MDR) since 1924. The orchestra performs concerts in Leipzig at the Gewandhaus.
The orchestra was founded as "Orchester des Konzertvereins" ("Orchestra of the Concert Society"). It became the "Rundfunk-Sinfonieorchester Leipzig" ("Radio Symphony Orchestra Leipzig") in 1924 and later adopted its present name. The Orchestra was dissolved during World War II and reunited in 1946 under the tenure of the conductor Hermann Abendroth, later conducted by Herbert Kegel. During the late 1970s through the 1980s, the principal conductors were Wolf-Dieter Hauschild and Max Pommer.
In 1992, the Rundfunk Symphony Orchestra merged with the Radio Philharmonic in Leipzig to form the MDR Leipzig Radio Symphony Orchestra. Daniel Nazareth was the first principal conductor of the newly formed MDR Symphony Orchestra after German reunification. Subsequent chief conductors have included Fabio Luisi, Jun Märkl, and Kristjan Järvi.[2]
In November 2019, the orchestra announced the appointment of Dennis Russell Davies as its next chief conductor, effective with the 2020–2021 season, with an initial contract of 4 years.[3] In April 2024, the orchestra announced an extension of Davies' contract through the 2026–2027 season.[4]
Ensembles
Chamber music ensembles of the MDR Symphony Orchestra
Paul Dessau: "Deutsches Miserere" for mixed choir, children's choir, soprano, alto, tenor and bass soloists, large orchestra, organ and trautonium (1966)
^"MDR-Sinfonieorchester". miz.org (in German). 25 October 2023. Retrieved 22 August 2024.
^"WSO Letzte Spielzeit für Kristjan Järvi" (Press release). MDR. 22 March 2017. Archived from the original on 3 April 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2017.
^"Dennis Russell Davies wird Chefdirigent des MDR-Sinfonieorchesters" (Press release). MDR. 13 November 2019. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 14 November 2019.
^"Dennis Russell Davies bleibt bis 2027 Chefdirigent" (Press release). MDR. 16 April 2024. Archived from the original on 19 August 2024. Retrieved 18 April 2024.
^Clemen, Jörg and Lieberwirth, Steffen (1999). Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk: Die Geschichte des Sinfonieorchesters [Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk: The History of the Symphony Orchestra] (in German). Altenburg: Klaus-Jürgen Kamprad Publishing House. ISBN 3-930550-09-1.
External links
Media related to MDR Sinfonieorchester at Wikimedia Commons
Media related to MDR Sinfonieorchester at Wikimedia Commons
