Here you can find almost anything about all the concerts Gothenburg Symphony has played over the years, both in the Concert Hall and on tour.
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9864 concerts
2015-05-21 19:30 Stora salen
Göteborgs Symfoniker
Programme
Denmark's national composer began work on his third symphony in 1910. He was in an explosive creative phase, possibly triggered by a marriage in crisis, with underlying frustration and guilt. The symphony is one of his most life-affirming works.
Around the same time, Nielsen developed close ties to Gothenburg. Here he conducted several times and found an artistic soulmate in the Symphony Orchestra's chief conductor Wilhelm Stenhammar. The two shared both aesthetics and ideals: music that speaks directly, organically and freely – unbound by the heavy veils of romanticism.
Sinfonia Espansiva begins forcefully with several unison orchestral thrusts, as if Nielsen wants to open the gates to a new room, where pent-up energy can swirl freely. The music with a driving motoric quality, especially in the strings – constantly in motion, constantly on the move – is reflected in the concluding fourth movement, but is then less heroic and more dance-like and playful. Drive and melody that constantly expands, that is what Nielsen might think of as the meaning of his invented word espansiva. The slow second movement is the heart of the work – a lyrical idyll where two voices, soprano and baritone, emerge in wordless dialogue. What do the voices want to convey to each other? Probably love and happiness.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Denmark's national composer began work on his third symphony in 1910. He was in an explosive creative phase, possibly triggered by a marriage in crisis, with underlying frustration and guilt. The symphony is one of his most life-affirming works.
Around the same time, Nielsen developed close ties to Gothenburg. Here he conducted several times and found an artistic soulmate in the Symphony Orchestra's chief conductor Wilhelm Stenhammar. The two shared both aesthetics and ideals: music that speaks directly, organically and freely – unbound by the heavy veils of romanticism.
Sinfonia Espansiva begins forcefully with several unison orchestral thrusts, as if Nielsen wants to open the gates to a new room, where pent-up energy can swirl freely. The music with a driving motoric quality, especially in the strings – constantly in motion, constantly on the move – is reflected in the concluding fourth movement, but is then less heroic and more dance-like and playful. Drive and melody that constantly expands, that is what Nielsen might think of as the meaning of his invented word espansiva. The slow second movement is the heart of the work – a lyrical idyll where two voices, soprano and baritone, emerge in wordless dialogue. What do the voices want to convey to each other? Probably love and happiness.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Carl Nielsen (1865-1931)
Flute Concerto
Nielsen tailored the music to the intended musician, and since the flutist Holger Gilbert-Jespersen was a tasteful and elegant man with a Gallic temperament, his concert was bright and chamber-musical, but with unexpected outbursts. The music is characterized by vitality and good mood. In a typical Nielsen way, the music eventually finds its way to the right key. Originally it was in D major, but immediately after the premiere on 21 October 1926 at the Salle Gaveau in Paris, the composer reworked the concerto and had it end in E major. The flute has then been out on many tonal excursions and now seems to have difficulty finding home; by chance, the boozy bass trombone enters the game and happens to be right - and therefore also takes credit from the soloist.
One readily agrees with the Swiss composer Arthur Honegger, who was present at the premiere of the concert: "It has small dimensions but is filled with beautiful combinations, such as the dialogues between flute and timpani or bassoon. It is piquant, flowing and not without humor."
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
2015-04-11 19:30 Beijing, NCPA National Centre for the Performing Arts
Göteborgs Symfoniker
Programme
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto E minor
Allegro molto appassionato
Andante
Allegretto non troppo. Allegro molto vivace
Felix Mendelssohn came from a German-Jewish family and as a composer strove to reconcile issues of spirituality and religious tolerance within society, and within himself. The Violin Concerto in E minor was written for the soloist Ferdinand David. However, the wait was six years before the premiere could take place in Leipzig on March 13, 1845 with David and the Gewandhaus Orchestra. New was the transition to the second movement without a break, as well as the fact that the soloist took up the opening theme, not the orchestra, and that a solo cadenza came already in the introduction - something that Sibelius and Tchaikovsky would also follow. The success was immediate. But in Nazi Germany, Mendelssohn's greatness was denied and his name was erased from public life.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto E minor
Allegro molto appassionato
Andante
Allegretto non troppo. Allegro molto vivace
Felix Mendelssohn came from a German-Jewish family and as a composer strove to reconcile issues of spirituality and religious tolerance within society, and within himself. The Violin Concerto in E minor was written for the soloist Ferdinand David. However, the wait was six years before the premiere could take place in Leipzig on March 13, 1845 with David and the Gewandhaus Orchestra. New was the transition to the second movement without a break, as well as the fact that the soloist took up the opening theme, not the orchestra, and that a solo cadenza came already in the introduction - something that Sibelius and Tchaikovsky would also follow. The success was immediate. But in Nazi Germany, Mendelssohn's greatness was denied and his name was erased from public life.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto E minor
Allegro molto appassionato
Andante
Allegretto non troppo. Allegro molto vivace
Felix Mendelssohn came from a German-Jewish family and as a composer strove to reconcile issues of spirituality and religious tolerance within society, and within himself. The Violin Concerto in E minor was written for the soloist Ferdinand David. However, the wait was six years before the premiere could take place in Leipzig on March 13, 1845 with David and the Gewandhaus Orchestra. New was the transition to the second movement without a break, as well as the fact that the soloist took up the opening theme, not the orchestra, and that a solo cadenza came already in the introduction - something that Sibelius and Tchaikovsky would also follow. The success was immediate. But in Nazi Germany, Mendelssohn's greatness was denied and his name was erased from public life.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Ingar Bergby is one of Norway's most prominent orchestra conductors with a large output in classical and contemporary music as well as cross-over projects. Ingar Bergby was born in 1964 in Sarpsborg and grew up in a musical family that was active in brass band music. He trained as a clarinetist with professor Richard Kjelstrup at the Norwegian Academy of Music and later studied conducting with professor Karsten Andersen at the same school and with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy. Ingar Bergby has worked with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for many years, at orchestral concerts, on tour, with film music concerts and school concerts.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Ingar Bergby is one of Norway's most prominent orchestra conductors with a large output in classical and contemporary music as well as cross-over projects. Ingar Bergby was born in 1964 in Sarpsborg and grew up in a musical family that was active in brass band music. He trained as a clarinetist with professor Richard Kjelstrup at the Norwegian Academy of Music and later studied conducting with professor Karsten Andersen at the same school and with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy. Ingar Bergby has worked with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for many years, at orchestral concerts, on tour, with film music concerts and school concerts.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Ingar Bergby is one of Norway's most prominent orchestra conductors with a large output in classical and contemporary music as well as cross-over projects. Ingar Bergby was born in 1964 in Sarpsborg and grew up in a musical family that was active in brass band music. He trained as a clarinetist with professor Richard Kjelstrup at the Norwegian Academy of Music and later studied conducting with professor Karsten Andersen at the same school and with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy. Ingar Bergby has worked with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for many years, at orchestral concerts, on tour, with film music concerts and school concerts.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Ingar Bergby is one of Norway's most prominent orchestra conductors with a large output in classical and contemporary music as well as cross-over projects. Ingar Bergby was born in 1964 in Sarpsborg and grew up in a musical family that was active in brass band music. He trained as a clarinetist with professor Richard Kjelstrup at the Norwegian Academy of Music and later studied conducting with professor Karsten Andersen at the same school and with Jorma Panula at the Sibelius Academy. Ingar Bergby has worked with the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for many years, at orchestral concerts, on tour, with film music concerts and school concerts.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The choir was founded in 1917 by cousins Elsa and Wilhelm Stenhammar. Elsa Stenhammar was one of the driving forces in turn-of-the-century choir life in Gothenburg and became the choir's first rehearser. On December 8, 1917, the choir debuted in Beethoven's Choir Fantasy with Wilhelm Stenhammar as soloist at the grand piano. As the country's oldest symphonic choir, they were able to celebrate their 100th anniversary in 2017 with a big celebratory concert where Mozart and Brahms as well as Stenhammar, Elfrida Andrée and Björn & Benny were on the program.
The Gothenburg Symphony Choir is a non-profit association that is linked to the Gothenburg Symphony. The choir participates in concerts and performances under both the orchestra's and its own auspices. The music is mixed and the repertoire extensive. The Gothenburg Symphony Choir has participated in concerts in, among other places, the Royal Albert Hall and Canterbury Cathedral in England, as well as participated with the Gothenburg Symphony in the annual music festival in the Canary Islands and on a tour to China.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The choir was founded in 1917 by cousins Elsa and Wilhelm Stenhammar. Elsa Stenhammar was one of the driving forces in turn-of-the-century choir life in Gothenburg and became the choir's first rehearser. On December 8, 1917, the choir debuted in Beethoven's Choir Fantasy with Wilhelm Stenhammar as soloist at the grand piano. As the country's oldest symphonic choir, they were able to celebrate their 100th anniversary in 2017 with a big celebratory concert where Mozart and Brahms as well as Stenhammar, Elfrida Andrée and Björn & Benny were on the program.
The Gothenburg Symphony Choir is a non-profit association that is linked to the Gothenburg Symphony. The choir participates in concerts and performances under both the orchestra's and its own auspices. The music is mixed and the repertoire extensive. The Gothenburg Symphony Choir has participated in concerts in, among other places, the Royal Albert Hall and Canterbury Cathedral in England, as well as participated with the Gothenburg Symphony in the annual music festival in the Canary Islands and on a tour to China.
Allegro con brio
Largo
Rondo: Allegro
The first sketches for the Third Piano Concerto can be dated to 1797, when Beethoven was greatly inspired by listening to a performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 24 in the same key. The handwritten manuscript is dated 1800, but he continued to refine the design until early 1803.
The first performance of the Third Piano Concerto took place on 5 April 1803 at the Theater an der Wien. A newspaper article states that Beethoven did not receive a particularly long applause, even though he had gathered all his most devoted admirers for the evening. The reason is that he was already beginning to be regarded as a strange scoundrel. Beethoven's pupil Ferdinand Ries reported that Beethoven played the solo part in the Piano Concerto in good spirits, but that many notes "fell under the table". When it came to the composition itself, however, Ries believed that no composer he knew even came close to the master - and we are still willing to agree today.
Despite its serious key, Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto is not a grand and tragic drama, unlike his other works in C minor (for example, Symphony No. 5, the Symphony of Fate). On the contrary, this concerto has a classically clear structure. The largo in particular is transparently simple and butterfly-like. The outward-looking final rondo, on the other hand, is more concerned with sharp shifts between both emotions and keys.
Participants
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Allegro con brio
Largo
Rondo: Allegro
The first sketches for the Third Piano Concerto can be dated to 1797, when Beethoven was greatly inspired by listening to a performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 24 in the same key. The handwritten manuscript is dated 1800, but he continued to refine the design until early 1803.
The first performance of the Third Piano Concerto took place on 5 April 1803 at the Theater an der Wien. A newspaper article states that Beethoven did not receive a particularly long applause, even though he had gathered all his most devoted admirers for the evening. The reason is that he was already beginning to be regarded as a strange scoundrel. Beethoven's pupil Ferdinand Ries reported that Beethoven played the solo part in the Piano Concerto in good spirits, but that many notes "fell under the table". When it came to the composition itself, however, Ries believed that no composer he knew even came close to the master - and we are still willing to agree today.
Despite its serious key, Beethoven's Third Piano Concerto is not a grand and tragic drama, unlike his other works in C minor (for example, Symphony No. 5, the Symphony of Fate). On the contrary, this concerto has a classically clear structure. The largo in particular is transparently simple and butterfly-like. The outward-looking final rondo, on the other hand, is more concerned with sharp shifts between both emotions and keys.
Participants
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto E minor
Allegro molto appassionato
Andante
Allegretto non troppo. Allegro molto vivace
Felix Mendelssohn came from a German-Jewish family and as a composer strove to reconcile issues of spirituality and religious tolerance within society, and within himself. The Violin Concerto in E minor was written for the soloist Ferdinand David. However, the wait was six years before the premiere could take place in Leipzig on March 13, 1845 with David and the Gewandhaus Orchestra. New was the transition to the second movement without a break, as well as the fact that the soloist took up the opening theme, not the orchestra, and that a solo cadenza came already in the introduction - something that Sibelius and Tchaikovsky would also follow. The success was immediate. But in Nazi Germany, Mendelssohn's greatness was denied and his name was erased from public life.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
Beast Sampler was commissioned by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra in Stockholm, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra and the NDR Sinfonieorchester in Hamburg, and received its premiere in 2014. The work is dedicated to the Royal Philharmonic’s Chief Conductor, Sakari Oramo.
A key starting point for Anders Hillborg was to focus more on sound objects than on harmonically based pitch structures. He often refers to the orchestra as a “sound beast”, in which the individual identities of the instruments merge into a single, unified sonority. Samplings from earlier pieces, together with newly created material, form the structural backbone of the work.
Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
Violin Concerto E minor
Allegro molto appassionato
Andante
Allegretto non troppo. Allegro molto vivace
Felix Mendelssohn came from a German-Jewish family and as a composer strove to reconcile issues of spirituality and religious tolerance within society, and within himself. The Violin Concerto in E minor was written for the soloist Ferdinand David. However, the wait was six years before the premiere could take place in Leipzig on March 13, 1845 with David and the Gewandhaus Orchestra. New was the transition to the second movement without a break, as well as the fact that the soloist took up the opening theme, not the orchestra, and that a solo cadenza came already in the introduction - something that Sibelius and Tchaikovsky would also follow. The success was immediate. But in Nazi Germany, Mendelssohn's greatness was denied and his name was erased from public life.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
Kent Nagano is considered one of today’s outstanding conductors for both operatic and orchestral repertoire. He will be the next Chief conductor and Artistic Director of the Orquesta y Coro Nacionales de España (OCNE) in Madrid starting in September 2026 and is the newly appointed Principal Artistic Partner of Filarmonica Toscanini. In addition, he is committed together with Jan Vogler as Artistic Director of the Ring project “The Wagner Cycles” of Dresdner Musikfestspiele with Dresdner Festspielorchester and Concerto Köln alongside Jan Vogler. He has been Honorary Conductor of the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin since 2006, Concerto Köln since 2019, the Orchestre symphonique de Montréal since 2021 and the Philharmonisches Staatsorchester Hamburg since 2023 and is as patron of the Herrenchiemsee Festival.
As a much sought-after guest conductor, Kent Nagano regularly works with leading international orchestras worldwide, 2025-2026 season highlights included several projects with the Deutsches Symphonie-Orchester Berlin, the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra, Maggio Musicale, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, Opera de Paris, and the Philharmonia Orchestra amongst others.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki has been on the world's biggest stages for almost two decades. This season he returns to the Boston Symphony, London Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony and Seattle Symphony. He leads the Academy of St Martin in the Fields on tour and is Artist in Residence at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. He performs his acclaimed solo program at La Scala in Milan, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, San Francisco's Herbst Theatre, BOZAR Brussels and Klavier-Festival Ruhr. A duo program WITH Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann together with Julia Fischer takes him to arenas all over Europe and the USA.
Jan Lisiecki got an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon at the age of 15. His nine albums have been awarded the JUNO Award, ECHO Klassik, Gramophone Critics' Choice, Diapason d'Or and Edison Klassiek. At the age of 18, he received both the Leonard Bernstein Award and Gramophone's Young Artist Award. He visited the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for the first time as a 16-year-old. This time he accompanies the orchestra on tour to Stockholm, Prague and Stuttgart.
The Gothenburg Symphony was formed in 1905 and today consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra's base is Gothenburg Concert Hall at Götaplatsen that has gathered music lovers since 1935. Since the 2019-2020 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal guest conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan's Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers. The title Principal Guest Conductor is shared by Pekka Kuusisto from 2025.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra's chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982-2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe's leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden's National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali, Mario Venzago and Gustavo Dudamel, following Kent Nagano as Principal Guest conductor. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO and artistic director, Gustavo Dudamel honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra's owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.
The Canadian pianist Jan Lisiecki has been on the world's biggest stages for almost two decades. This season he returns to the Boston Symphony, London Philharmonic, Munich Philharmonic, Pittsburgh Symphony and Seattle Symphony. He leads the Academy of St Martin in the Fields on tour and is Artist in Residence at the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. He performs his acclaimed solo program at La Scala in Milan, Théâtre des Champs-Élysées in Paris, San Francisco's Herbst Theatre, BOZAR Brussels and Klavier-Festival Ruhr. A duo program WITH Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann together with Julia Fischer takes him to arenas all over Europe and the USA.
Jan Lisiecki got an exclusive recording contract with Deutsche Grammophon at the age of 15. His nine albums have been awarded the JUNO Award, ECHO Klassik, Gramophone Critics' Choice, Diapason d'Or and Edison Klassiek. At the age of 18, he received both the Leonard Bernstein Award and Gramophone's Young Artist Award. He visited the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra for the first time as a 16-year-old. This time he accompanies the orchestra on tour to Stockholm, Prague and Stuttgart.