Kraków Philharmonic
Kraków Artists: Music
The Karol Szymanowski Philharmonic in a building at Zwierzyniecka Street 1, at the corner of Straszewskiego Street. The inaugural concert took place on 3 February 1945. The first professional symphony orchestra in Kraków was formed in 1909 under Feliks Nowowiejski, and in 1937 the board of the Musical Society created an independent section called the Kraków Philharmonic. The last prewar performance took place on 21 May 1939 under Bronisław Wolfstal: Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Emil Młynarski's Violin Concerto were played.
History
The first professional symphony orchestra in Kraków was founded in 1909 by Feliks Nowowiejski. In 1937 the Board of the Music Society set up an independent section called the Kraków Philharmonic. The last pre-war concert was given on 21 May 1939 by the ensemble under Bronisław Wolfstal: Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Emil Młynarski's Violin Concerto were performed.
After the war the Kraków Philharmonic was the first in Poland to resume concerts - the symphony orchestra's first concert took place on 3 February 1945. It was soon joined by a mixed choir and later also a boys' choir, which is why oratorios became its speciality, often performed in the city's historic churches. Since 1962 the institution has been named after Karol Szymanowski. Guests at the Philharmonic have included Yehudi Menuhin, Arthur Rubinstein and Mstislav Rostropovich, as well as orchestras from Philadelphia and Cleveland.
The building at Zwierzyniecka Street 1, on the corner of Straszewskiego Street, was completed in 1931 to a design by Józef Pokutyński. It was originally the Catholic House, and its construction was initiated by Cardinal Adam Sapieha. The architect modelled it on the Maison du Peuple in Brussels, designed by Victor Horta in 1897. The concert hall has 693 seats and a neo-Baroque interior with gilded columns and coffered ceilings. The façade is crowned with a cartouche bearing the coat of arms of the Metropolitan Curia of Kraków. The most impressive instrument is the organ built in 1996 by the Johannes Klais firm of Bonn. The previous organ, built in 1982, was destroyed when the building caught fire on 11 December 1991.
Did you know?
Karol Wojtyła made his debut as a poet in the Philharmonic's Blue Hall on 15 October 1938.