The Białystok Symphony Orchestra was established in 1954. After twenty years of an artistic activity it received a status of Philharmonic and moved to a new concert hall. A professional concert hall became a perfect ground for further development of the Orchestra and presenting rich repertoire – beginning from great symphonic compositions, recitals, oratorios and cantata concerts, ending with chamber concerts, various festivals and competitions.
The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic introduced online and offline transmissions of season-ticket concerts on www.oifp.pl
|
The Orchestra’s Directors in turn were:
|
In August 2011 Roberto Skolmowski became of director of The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic.
In 2005, in view of its dynamic development and preparations for the opening in 2011 of a new opera and concert hall, The Białystok Philharmonic changed its name into The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic. On 9 September 2005, during the inauguration of 2005/2006 artistic season, the Minister of Culture Waldemar Dąbrowski and the Marshal of the Podlasie Voivodenship Janusz Kazimierz Krzyżewski signed a declaration establishing The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic-the European Centre of Culture in Bialystok as an institution of national culture.
The Białystok Philharmonic has played host to many renowned conductors, soloists and composers, including P. Anderszewski, E. Auer, K. Danczowska, N. Dyadiura, N. Goerner, H.M. Górecki, L. Grychtołówna, K. Jakowicz, J. Kasprzyk, J. Katlewicz, K. Kenner, W. Kilar, K. Kord, J. Krenz, K. A. Kulka, W. Lutosławski, J. Maksymiuk, W. Michniewski, S. Mintz, G. Ohlsson, P. Paleczny, K. Penderecki, M.Pijarowski, S. Richter, R. Smendzianka, T. Strugała, W. Wiłkomirska, A. Wit,
T. Wojciechowski and M. Zilm.
Since 1994 The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic has run the Competition for Young Conductors named after W. Lutosławski. It is one of the most important competitions of its kind in Poland. Its fourth edition, in 2006, was international in scope.
The Orchestra of The Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic has recorded many CDs with the participation of prominent soloists. The first CD, recorded in 1998, has met with wide critical acclaim, winning a nomination for the “Fryderyk 1999” award of the Polish recording industry. The second CD, with the outstanding, young Polish violinist J. Jakowicz, was also a success. To mark the centenary of G. Verdi’s death in 2001 the Orchestra recorded a selection of overtures and arias from the composer’s most famous operas sung by the prominent tenor K. Kaludov. In the same year, the Orchestra of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic recorded a CD with music by French composers E. Chausson, H. Duparc and J. Cantelobue (with the soprano Teresa Żylis-Gara). The orchestra’s discography also includes a CD with works by J. Strauss and his son and F. Liszt, played by the excellent pianist Waldemar Malicki and the CD featuring compositions by Aleksander Tansman. The CD from 2008 contains Z. Stojowski’s compositions. This CD won many favourable reviews in Poland and abroad (The Editor’s Choice of GRAMOPHONE for the February edition). The next CD was recorded on the occasion of G. Bacewicz’s 100th birthday anniver¬sary and death of M. Karłowicz; the last one includes works for piano (Kevin Kenner) and orchestra by Ignacy J. Paderewski.
Foreign tours have taken the orchestra to Austria, Belgium, Belarus, China, Estonia, Finland, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Germany, Russia, Sweden, Italy and the United States. The concert at New York’s Carnegie Hall under M. J. Błaszczyk in 1995 was among the highlights in the history of the ensemble. In addition to regular concerts in its home town, the orchestra performs regularly in venues and at festivals throughout Poland.
The highlights in the history of the orchestra have included a gala concert in the European Parliament in Brussels (conducted by Marcin Nałęcz-Niesiołowski, with the up-and-coming pianist S. Drzewicki as soloist), inaugurating the European celebrations of the 25th anniversary of the Solidarity movement (2005). The audience in the Y. Menuhin auditorium included the President of European Parliament J. Borell, the Polish ambassador in Brussels I. Byczewski and many MEPs.
In recent year, the orchestra’s steadily improving artistic standards resulted in more invitations. In 2006 it gave a concert in St Petersburg, performing, together with Russian musicians, K. Penderecki’s Utrenya. The concert marked the 80th anniversary of the Polish consulate General in the city. A year later the Orchestra of the Podlasie Opera and Philharmonic scored a great success performing Mozart’s music with the Chamber Choir of the Smolny Sobor in ST Petersburg.
September 2007 the orchestra performed in the final concert of the M. K. Ogiński Festival at the Ogiński Palace in Plunge and in the congress Hall in Vilnius within the framework of events marking the 16th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Poland and Lithuania. In 2007 the orchestra also made a tour of France, with concerts in Paris (including La Madeleine Church) promoting a CD with works by A. Tansman.
In June 2008 the orchestra made a tour in Russia giv¬ing prestigious concerts at the Concert Hall of the Shostakovich Academic Philharmonic during the Yuri Temirkanov Summer Festival and at the Concert Hall of St Petersburg Academic Capella with the participation of Russian soloists. In 2008 the orchestra had its concerts also in Helsinki, Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius during the 90th anniver¬sary of Polish Independence Day. In October 2009 the orchestra went to Sweden and gave concerts at Berwald Halle in Stockholm and in the Goteborg Symphonic Orchestra’s resi¬dence, both conducted by Marcin Nałęcz- Niesiołowski. In December 2009 the orches¬tra performed three concerts in the United Kingdom where it appeared at London Cadogan Hall, Royal College of Music and Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford during the Polish Year “Polska! Year”. In January 2011 the orchestra performed in Norway, at Olavshallen concert hall in Trondheim together with Sveinung Bjelland as the soloist and Marcin Nałęcz-Niesiołowski as the con¬ductor.
The orchestra has introduced online and offline transmissions of its subscription concerts at:
 |
 |
|
|
|
 |
|
|
|
||
