Göteborgs Konserthus Polstjärnepriset competition’s final

The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1905 and currently consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra is based in Gothenburg Concert Hall – a gem of functionalism on Götaplatsen square that has enchanted music lovers since 1935. Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra’s Chief Conductor from 1907 until 1922. He gave the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited his colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to collaborate with the orchestra. Under the leadership of Chief Conductor Neeme Järvi between 1982 and 2004, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra undertook a number of international tours and made a hundred or so album recordings while establishing itself as one of Europe’s foremost orchestras. In 1997 the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra received the title of the National Orchestra of Sweden. Since season 2017-2018 Santtu-Matias Rouvali is Chief Conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra. Since season 2019-2020 Barbara Hannigan is Principal Guest Conductor. Christoph Eschenbach was also Principal Guest Conductor of Gothenburg Symphony in the years 2019-2022 – together they formed a strong three-leaf clover consisting of three completely different types of artists. We are also extremely proud to be an official partner of soprano Barbara Hannigan’s mentor initiative Equilibrium, with focus on young singers and musicians who are just beginning their careers. Sten Cranner is the orchestra’s CEO and Artistic Director, while Gustavo Dudamel holds the title of Honorary Conductor and Neeme Järvi that of Principal Conductor Emeritus. Region Västra Götaland is owner of the orchestra. The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra works regularly with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Joana Carneiro, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Christian Zacharias and Anja Bihlmaier.

Swdish conductor Andreas Patrik Hansson, 2021 winner of the Neeme Järvi Prize, holds the position of Assistant Conductor with the Luzerner Sinfonieorchester in Switzerland. Andreas has a strong passion for the 20th century conducting tradition. His interpretations of the romantic symphonic repertoire are rich in both energy, passion and emotion. He also has a great interest in contemporary music and has premiered a number of new works such as Gàbor Barta's Jazz Concerto for Violin, Jazz trio and Chamber Orchestra together with the Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne. As an opera conductor, Andreas Patrik Hansson makes his debut in 2023 with 25 performances of the critically acclaimed production Die Zauberflöte: The Next Generation together with Opera2Day and TheaterAlliantie on tour throughout the Netherlands. Andreas Patrik Hansson has conducted a large number of international orchestras, including Luzerner Sinfonieorchester, Orchester de Chambre de Lausanne, Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra, Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Arctic Philharmonic Orchestra, Stavanger Symphony Orchestra, Het Residentieorkest and Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra. Hansson has been the principal conductor of Polstjärnepriset for several years and was appointed as the orchestra's Artistic Director in 2023.

The Polstjärnepriset Symphony Orchestra was formed after the Polstjärnepriset competition had been running for a few years. One of the founders of Polstjärnepriset, Ulrich Kaatz, explains how it all started. "I looked at the entry list, saw all the instruments represented and realised that we had a whole symphony orchestra. All we had to do was provide the sheet music to play together. And that's what we did." The Polstjärnepriset Symphony Orchestra plays in symphony orchestra format, but also divided into strings and winds. The orchestra has played music from Bruckner's 7th Symphony, Dvorák's 9th Symphony, Farrenc's 3rd Symphony, Holst's The Planets and Stravinsky's Rite of Spring. Works performed by the strings include Elgar's Introduction and Allegro and Vaughan-Williams' Tallis Fantasia. The winds have played De Haan's Banja Luka, Jacobsen's Circus Suite and Strauss' Serenade.