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History

Orchestra

The orchestra of the State Opera Ruse is a symbol of the musical tradition in the city. Since its establishment in 1948, it has played a key role in the development of symphonic art in Bulgaria and has won awards for prestigious performances of classical and contemporary works.

History and heritage of the State Opera Ruse Orchestra

The orchestra of the State Opera Ruse is the heir of the traditions of concert work in the city of Ruse after the Liberation. Records of the first performances under the name "Ruse City Philharmonic" date back to 1914. In the first 30 years of its existence, the orchestra underwent many metamorphoses, according to its funding possibilities and its participation in various structures such as the Lira Society and the Opera Society. In 1947, the orchestra was nationalized and on January 4, 1948, it gave its first concert as the State Philharmonic Ruse under the baton of Konstantin Iliev.

In its artistic career the Ruse Philharmonic has accumulated a rich repertoire - classical and contemporary. Premieres of national importance are a tradition. A number of works by Shostakovich, Prokofiev, G. Kancheli, Hindemith, R. Strauss, P. Hadzhiev, K. Iliev, Kr. Kurkchinskiy, Jenkins, Charpentier are performed for the first time in our country. 

Famous soloists and international collaborations

Over the past 75 years the orchestra has worked with the best Bulgarian conductors as well as with a number of distinguished foreign conductors. Among them we see the names of Kurt Masur, Carlo Tseki, Dmitry Kitayenko, Kurt Sanderling, Evgeny Svetlanov, Valery Gergiev and others. The soloists of the concert programs of the Ruse Philharmonic have been Dmitry Shostakovich, Sviatoslav Richter, Rudolf Kerer, I. Oistrakh, Leonid Kogan, R. Ritchie, Vladimir Spivakov, Franco Petracchi, Yuri Bashmet, Robert Cohen and others.
One of the most memorable events in the orchestra's history was its collaboration with Dmitri Shostakovich and the premiere of his Second Piano Concerto in 1958.

The premiere of the Second Piano Concerto by D. Shostakovich, conductor - Dobrin Petkov, 1958.

Initiatives and organisation of music festivals

In creative unison with the Philharmonic Choir "Danube Sounds" the orchestra is the initiator and host of the international festival "March Musical Days" and the festival "Winter Music Evenings". The orchestra has participated in prestigious national and international festivals such as Sofia Music Weeks, New Bulgarian Music, Varna Summer, Siena Music Weeks - Italy, where it participate from 1984 to 1991. There the orchestra met with famous musicians such as Franco Ferrara, Carlo-Maria Giulini, Katia Ricciarelli, Boris Belkin, Yuri Bashmet and many others. Since the late 1990s, the Ruse Philharmonic has been an annual guest at one of the largest symphonic and choral music festivals in France, the Coréades.

International tours and recordings

The orchestra of the State Opera Ruse has a number of international tours, performed at a high artistic level in Germany, Poland, Austria, Switzerland, Italy and France, Belgium, Spain, Portugal, etc. It has recordings in the Golden Fund of the Bulgarian National Radio, Bulgarian National Television and Berlin Radio, as well as recordings on gramophone records and CDs for various companies in Europe and the USA.

Evolution after the 1999 unification

After its merger into the State Opera Ruse in 1999, the ensemble performs its new tasks of an opera-symphony orchestra with its inherent high artistic level. It now maintains a rich operatic repertoire, which includes over 50 titles of operatic works. The orchestra of the State Opera Ruse also regularly performs for the public as a symphony orchestra - the Ruse Philharmonic. It also continuously maintains and develops its symphonic and cantata-oratorio repertoire.

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