Vienna State Opera Orchestra
The Vienna State Opera Orchestra not only has ties to the Vienna State Opera, but to the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra, which draws its membership exclusively from its operatic cousin. The VSOO consists of 149 members and is regarded by many as the finest opera orchestra in the world. It has been an organization steeped in tradition, sometimes to its detriment: women were banned from playing in the orchestra until 1997. Yet its performances, both operatic and orchestral, have long been widely acclaimed by both critics and public alike. Because the Vienna State Opera has a very full schedule of operas -- more than 50 productions every year, and about 200 performances that run from September 1 to June 30 -- the VSOO's performances have been largely limited to operatic productions. Yet the ensemble has made more than 300 recordings over the years, many devoted strictly to orchestral music.
The Vienna State Opera Orchestra was established in 1869, though its roots, in the form of a forerunner ensemble, date back to the early 18th century. It was after the completion of the Vienna Court Opera building in 1869 that the new opera company and orchestra were officially founded.
The first music director of the ensemble (and of the opera company) was Franz von Dingelstedt, who served only until 1870. Over the years there would be 25 additional music directors, with Felix Weingartner (1908-1911; 1935-1936), Karl Böhm (1943-1945; 1954-1956), and Egon Seefehlner (1976-1982; 1984-1986) serving two terms each. Many of the music directors of the Vienna State Opera were not conductors of the orchestra, like Seefehlner and Claus Helmut Dreese (1986-1991), whose orchestral conductor was Claudio Abbado. Beside those mentioned above, other illustrious conductors of the VSOO were Gustav Mahler (1897-1907), Richard Strauss (1919-1924), Herbert von Karajan (1956-1964), Lorin Maazel (1982-1984), Seiji Ozawa (2002-2010), and Franz Welser-Möst (2010-). When the opera house, partially destroyed by bombing during World War II, was being reconstructed during the period 1947-1955, the VSOO remained quite active, not least in the recording studio. In the early '50s, for example, Hermann Scherchen made a dozen or so recordings with the VSOO of orchestral works by Beethoven, Bartók, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, and others. Conductors Mário Rossi and Jonathan Sternberg also made a number of recordings with the VSOO during that period. Among the VSOO's later recordings is the 2007 TDK DVD of Verdi's Don Carlo under conductor Bertrand de Billy.
© TiVo
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Mozart: Requiem in D minor, K.626
Hermann Scherchen, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Vienna State Opera Chorus
Klassik - Erschienen bei Alexandre Bak - Classical Music Reference Recording am 22.07.2021
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Beethoven: Piano Concerto N°3 & 4
Alfred Brendel, Vienna Pro Music Orchestra, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Heinz Wallberg
Klassik - Erschienen bei Tuxedo am 01.09.1989
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Requiem in D minor, K. 626 by Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen, Vienna State Opera Chorus, Vienna State Opera Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Alexandre Bak - Classical Music Reference Recording am 23.03.2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Dvořák: Symphony No. 9 "From the New World" & Cello Concerto in B Minor (Remastered 2022)
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Pierre Fournier, Vladimir Golschmann, Orchestra della Radio Svizzera Italiana, Hermann Scherchen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 07.10.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Symphony No. 7 in E Minor
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 11.02.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Schubert: Symphony No. 9 in C Major, D. 944 "The Great"
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, René Leibowitz
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 11.02.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Scheherazade - The Flight of the Bumble Bee
Hermann Scherchen, Vienna State Opera Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Mangora Classical am 26.11.2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Wagner: Tristan und Isolde, WWV 90
Oper - Erschienen bei Orfeo am 06.05.2022
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade, Op. 35
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 11.02.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: The Seven Last Words of Christ (Oratorio) by Hermann Scherchen
Hermann Scherchen, Vienna State Opera Chorus, Vienna State Opera Orchestra
Klassik - Erschienen bei Alexandre Bak - Classical Music Reference Recording am 15.01.2022
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verdi: Un ballo in maschera (Live)
Oper - Erschienen bei Orfeo am 02.04.2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Haydn: Missa Sancti Nicolai / Harmonie Messe
THE TEARDROP EXPLODES, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, George Barati
Klassik - Erschienen bei Tuxedo am 07.09.1990
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Concerto in E-Flat Major, K. 482 & Piano Concerto in C Major, K. 503
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Vienna Chamber Orchestra, Paul Angerer, Alfred Brendel
Klassik - Erschienen bei HORTUS am 01.01.1990
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Clarinet Concerto in A Major, K. 622 & Bassoon Concerto in B-Flat Major, K. 191
Leopold Wlach, Karl Öhlberger, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Artur Rodzinski
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 11.02.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Handel: Water Music Suites Nos. 1-3 (Remastered 2022)
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Archipel am 01.07.2022
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Concerto for Two Pianos
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Paul Angerer, Alfred Brendel, Walter Klien
Klassik - Erschienen bei Tuxedo am 07.09.1990
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
BACH: The Orchestral Suites
Klassik - Erschienen bei Vanguard am 21.10.2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mahler: Works
London Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen, Lucretia West
Klassik - Erschienen bei Andromeda am 12.03.2021
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Piano Concerto in G Major, K. 453 & Piano Concerto in B-Flat Major, K. 595
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Paul Angerer, Alfred Brendel
Instrumentalmusik - Erschienen bei HORTUS am 01.01.1990
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Gottschalk: Symphony No. 1, Union & Other Works
Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Igor Buketoff
Klassik - Erschienen bei Vox am 22.12.2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Prokofiev: Scythian Suite; Lieutenant Kijé / Khachaturian: Gayaneh
Wiener Symphoniker, Vienna State Opera Orchestra, Hermann Scherchen
Klassik - Erschienen bei Westminster am 01.01.2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo