Wiener Symphoniker
The Wiener Symphoniker (Vienna Symphony Orchestra) is a mainstay in European orchestral music, having premiered works that have become standard repertoire in the orchestral world. While its older neighbor, the Wiener Philharmoniker, may get more attention, the Wiener Symphoniker has cemented its role as a world-class orchestra.
The Wiener Symphoniker was founded in 1900 as the Wiener Concertverein. The founder and first conductor of the orchestra was Ferdinand Löwe, who established the new orchestra to present more concerts to the citizenry and for the performance of new compositions. The orchestra's premiere concert took place at the Wiener Musikverein on October 30, 1900. Löwe, a student of Anton Bruckner's, led the Wiener Symphoniker in the premiere of Bruckner's ninth symphony in 1903. In 1913, the orchestra moved its performing venue to the newly opened Wiener Konzerthaus. Due to financial concerns following World War I, the orchestra merged with the Wiener Tonkünstlerorchester in 1919. Löwe served as chief conductor until 1925. He was followed by Otto Gottesmann and Wilhelm Furtwängler. In 1933, the orchestra was renamed the Wiener Symphoniker. Oswald Kabasta led the orchestra from 1934-1938. Under Kabasta, the orchestra embarked on its first international tour to England and Italy. In 1938, following the invasion of Austria, the orchestra was brought under municipal control and was used for propaganda during World War II. The orchestra was disbanded in September of 1944.
Following the war, the Wiener Symphoniker was re-established in 1945 and gave its first post-war concert in September under the leadership of Hans Swarowsky and Josef Krips. Since 1946, the orchestra has taken part in and been a major sponsor of the Bregenzer Festspiele. Herbert von Karajan (1950-1960) and Wolfgang Sawallisch (1960-1970) are credited most with the revival of the Viennese sound for which the Wiener Symphoniker is known. In 1962, the Theater an der Wien reopened, and the Wiener Symphoniker has since performed there for staged productions. Since Sawallisch, the chief conductors for the orchestra have included Carlo Maria Giulini (1973-1976), Gennady Rozhdestvensky (1981-1983), and Rafael Frühbeck de Burgos (1991-1996). Philippe Jordan became the chief conductor in 2014, with a contract running through 2021. In 2018, the Wiener Symphoniker announced Andrés Orozco-Estrada as its next chief conductor. Orozco-Estrada is set to take the baton in 2021. Among the illustrious names who have guest conducted the orchestra are Leonard Bernstein, Zubin Mehta, and Claudio Abbado.
The Wiener Symphoniker can be heard on hundreds of albums on major labels such as Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, EMI Classics, and Orfeo, among many others. Since 2012, the orchestra has also recorded for its own Wiener Symphoniker label, on which it has recorded works by composers such as Mahler, Bruckner, and Berlioz. Under Jordan, the orchestra has recorded a full cycle of Beethoven's symphonies. The first, Symphonies Nos. 1 & 3, was released in 2017. The final two individual albums of this cycle, Symphonies Nos. 6 & 8 and Symphony No. 9, as well as the complete cycle set, were released in 2019.
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Schumann: Piano Concerto in A Minor
Eliahu Inbal, Wiener Symphoniker
Classical - Released by Denon on May 1, 1994
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No.1; Violin Concerto
Victoria Postnikova, Wiener Symphoniker, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, Ruggiero Ricci, Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, Jean Fournet
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Jan. 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Vienna Symphonic Orchestra Project, Vol. 6 (Radio Version)
Pop - Released by Dino Music on Oct. 31, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Fanfare for the Common Man
Classical - Released by Hitstown on Jan. 19, 2018
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Symphony No. 6
Wiener Symphoniker, Fabio Luisi
Classical - Released by Wiener Symphoniker on Feb. 5, 2013
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich: Symphony No. 7 "Leningrad"
Eliahu Inbal, Wiener Symphoniker
Classical - Released by Denon on Aug. 31, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Symphony No. 1
Wiener Symphoniker, Fabio Luisi
Classical - Released by Wiener Symphoniker on Oct. 1, 2012
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven - Bruch - Paganini
Wiener Symphoniker, Brabant Philharmonic Orchestra, Hein Jordans, Willem van Otterloo, Herman Krebbers, Residentie Orkest
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on Sep. 8, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Symphonies VI
Ferenc Fricsay, Wiener Symphoniker
Classical - Released by Urania Records on Mar. 3, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Tristan et Isolde, Prélude de l'Acte I & Le vaisseau fantôme, Ouverture (Mono Version)
Wiener Symphoniker, Rudolf Moralt
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1955
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125 "Choral" (Live)
Classical - Released by Wiener Symphoniker on Sep. 13, 2019
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Requiem, K. 626 (Mono Version)
Wiener Symphoniker, Wiener Staatsopernchor, Karl Böhm
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1962
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Die Post im Walde (Mono Version)
Wiener Symphoniker, Helmut Froschauer
Germany - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1963
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Symphonies Nos. 39 & 40 (Stereo Version)
Wiener Symphoniker, Ferenc Fricsay
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1960
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Fantaisie chorale, Op. 80 - Schubert: Chant des esprits sur les eaux, D. 714 (Mono Version)
Friedrich Wuhrer, Wiener Symphoniker, Clemens Krauss
Classical - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1952
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Shostakovich: Symphony "1905 God" No.11
Eliahu Inbal, Wiener Symphoniker
Classical - Released by Denon on Mar. 1, 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Musique maçonnique (Mono Version)
Rudolf Christ, Wiener Symphoniker, Bernhard Paumgartner
Miscellaneous - Released by BNF Collection on Jan. 1, 1956
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Violin Concerto in D Major, Op. 61 (Cadenzas: Kreisler / Dueñas)
María Dueñas, Wiener Symphoniker, Manfred Honeck
Classical - Released by Deutsche Grammophon (DG) on Jun. 2, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
J.S. Bach: Musikalisches Opfer, BWV 1079 (Arr. for Chamber Ensemble by Roger Vuataz) (Remastered 2024)
Wiener Symphoniker, Hermann Scherchen
Chamber Music - Released by Archipel on Feb. 2, 2024
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Symphonies Nos. 31, 88, 93 & 94
Wiener Symphoniker, Symphonieorchester Des Bayerischen Rundfunks, Berliner Philharmoniker, Wiener Philharmonic Orchestra, Clemens Krauss
Classical - Released by Archipel on Apr. 22, 2022
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven, Schumann & Chopin: Piano Concertos
Guiomar Novaes, Wiener Symphoniker, Otto Klemperer
Classical - Released by Vox Legends on Jan. 1, 1992
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo