The Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra, founded in 1919, is Norway’s national orchestra and performs 60–70 symphonic concerts annually in the Oslo Concert Hall. Under Mariss Jansons, chief conductor from 1979 until 2002, the orchestra rose to international fame, touring the major concert venues in Europe, North and South America and East Asia. Between 2007 and 2013, under the leadership of Jukka-Pekka Saraste, currently conductor laureate, the orchestra continued to perform at prestigious venues in major European cities. Vasily Petrenko was appointed new chief conductor in 2013, and has taken the orchestra to the BBC Proms and the Edinburgh International Festival (twice), and other major European venues, as well as to Japan (the Toshiba Grand Concerts), Hong Kong and Taipei.
As a recording orchestra, the Oslo Philharmonic made a name for itself already in the 1980s and now has an extensive and critically acclaimed discography. Its subscription series in Oslo boasts appearances by some of the finest musicians in the world, and the orchestra regularly commissions new works, by composers such as Steve Reich, Kaija Saariaho and Bent Sørensen in addition to a number of young Norwegian composers.
For further information, please visit the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra's website.
