Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra
The Duisburg Philharmonic Orchestra, founded 1877 as “Brandtsche Kapelle” with only 30 musicians, is now one of the big orchestras in Germany, with 93 musicians from 15 nations. As musical director since 2013, Italian-Danish conductor Giordano Billincampi follows in the footsteps of Eugen and Georg Ludwig Jochum, Alexander Lazarew, Bruno Weil and Jonathan Darlington.
The orchestra’s repertoire includes classical and romantic oeuvres as well as contemporary music, but also musicals, jazz and rocksongs. As one of the orchestras of the Deutsche Oper am Rhein Düsseldorf/Duisburg, the Duisburger Philharmoniker regularly perform in opera productions.
In the 2009/10 season the Duisburger Philharmoniker were awarded for the best German concert programme by the German Musikverlegerverband. In 2001 their recording of Tschaikowskys Violin concerto with soloist Susanna Yoko Henkel received the Echo Klassik award.
As a regular guest at international renowned festivals, such as the Ruhrtriennale, the orchestra performes with artists like Vesselina Kasarova, Anna Netrebko and Neil Shicoff. At the Ruhrtriennale 2011 the Duisburger Philharmoniker, conducted by Kirill Petrenko, were the actual stars in Richard Wagners Tristan and Isolde.
In 2013/14 the orchestra continued their active involvement in favour of contemporary music. In June 2014 they will perform the world premiere of Stefan Heuckes musical drama Iokaste at the Ruhrfestspiele Recklinghausen. As part of the Ruhrtriennale 2014 the orchestra, conducted by Emilio Pomàrico, will perform the opera Neither by the American composer Morton Feldman, staged by Romeo Castellucci.