Spring season programme is here - TPO 225 years!

Turku Philharmonic Orchestra's spring season includes new kinds of concert formats combining sound and picture, multi-talented musicians performing both as soloists and as conductors, and large-scale concert productions.

The spring season opens on January 16th with a staged version of Arnold Schönberg's Erwartung, and later in April Turku Concert Hall will host a unique live screening concert with Charlie Chaplin's classic movie Modern Times. The incredibly talented Julian Rachlin, Klaus Mäkelä and Olli Mustonen will host concerts of their own, and among guest conductors perform Malko winners Rafael Payare and Kristiina Poska. Turku Philharmonics' Chief Conductor Leif Segerstam will stand on the conductor podium himself on Easter, when J.S. Bach's magnificent St. Matthew's Passion, featuring first-class Finnish and Swedish soloists, is performed in the atmospheric Turku Cathedral.

"Also in international comparison
the orchestral tradition in Turku is very notable

In 2015, 225 years will have passed since the Musical Society of Turku was founded. From the musicians of the Society's orchestra, founded in 1790, the City of Turku created Turku City Orchestra in 1927, and in the beginning of this millennia the name was changed to Turku Philharmonic Orchestra.

– Also in international comparison the orchestral tradition in Turku is very notable, says musicologist Kimmo Korhonen who has studied the history of Turku Philharmonic Orchestra and Musical Society of Turku. – 225 years of history encompasses a breathtaking amount of Western music.

Already at the first Society concert in January 1790 the orchestra performed music composed by the most celebrated composers of that time, such as Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who at the time still was living. – Performing modern music has always been a central part of the Turku orchestra, says Emilie Gardberg, Chief Executive of Turku Philharmonic Orchestra. – During the anniversary year we'll celebrate this continuum by honouring local and international composers of our time. Also Jean Sibelius' 150th anniversary affects the programme – after all, Sibelius conducted many of his pieces himself in Turku.