America Days

Slovenska filharmonija                                                                    
Academia Philharmonicorum

Slovenian Philharmonic

This year marks exactly 100 years since the establishment of the first Slovenian Philharmonic, thus the entire year will be devoted to celebrating this significant jubilee.
There are few musical institutions in Europe and throughout the world with a similar tradition. The beginnings of our history date back to 1701, when a group of enthusiasts gathered in the house of the Ljubljana patrician Janez Bertold von Höffer and founded the Academia Philharmonicorum. Thus, as many concertgoers no doubt recall, it is only seven years since we celebrated three centuries of the Philharmonic and its antecedents.
At the end of the 18th century, the Enlightenment movement in Slovenia left an important mark on music history in Ljubljana, with the establishment of the Philharmonic Society (Philharmonische Gesellschaft) in 1794. In addition to certain local honourable members, the Philharmonic Society of the time also boasted a number of foreign members, some of whom today count amongst the most celebrated personalities of the musical world: Haydn, Beethoven, Paganini, Brahms, etc. Also worthy of note is the fact that in the 1881/82 season Gustav Mahler was employed in the Ljubljana Regional Theatre, during which time he appeared as a pianist at concerts of the Philharmonic Society.

The year 1908 witnessed certain tensions between Slovenes and Germans, which led to preparations to transform the Philharmonic Society into a Slovenian orchestra. On agreement with the Music Society, the new orchestra was founded on 23 October 1908, and given the name that is bears to this day – THE SLOVENIAN PHILHARMONIC. Its first leader was the dedicated Czech conductor, Vaclav Talich, and performances at functions held at the Hotel Union in Ljubljana were one source of the orchestra’s funding.
After World War I, in a new state, the society was soon abandoned. Disregarding the unsuccessful attempts to re-establish it in the 1920s, and overlooking the Ljubljana Philharmonic with its two regular concerts per season until the outbreak of World War II, we quickly arrive at the year 1947. In that year, Edvard Kardelj supported an initiative by composer Marjan Kozina, conductor Samo Hubad and musicologist Valdo Golob and, at the suggestion of the Minister for Culture, Dr Potrč, on 30 December 1947, the Slovenian government issued a decree on the establishment of the Slovenian Philharmonic and the definition of its activities: the diffusion and nurturing of musical culture in the Republic of Slovenia with concerts and similar cultural-artistic events – a mission that is still being realised today. Marjan Kozina became the first administrator and the first concert of the new Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra was held on 13 January 1948 – exactly sixty years ago.

In addition to our subscription concerts, a significant part of the activities of the Slovenian Philharmonic in this jubilee year will comprise of guest appearances abroad. In January, within the framework of the Central European orchestral exchange, the orchestra will perform in Budapest and Bratislava. It will also appear at one the most important international music fairs, MIDEM, in Cannes. 

Undoubtedly one of the most resounding concerts of the year will take place on 12 March in the Henry Le Boeuf Hall of the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels. This will be the central cultural event of the Republic of Slovenia during the country’s presidency of the European Union in the first half of 2008. Soloists Marjana Lipovšek and Sabina Cvilak, conductor George Pehlivanian and the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra will perform Gustav Mahler’s Second Symphony.

In April, the orchestra will perform concerts in Austria in the celebrated Musikverein Hall in Vienna, as well as in St. Pöltn and in Graz. In May, on the occasion of the celebration of the city of Zagreb, the orchestra will appear in the Vatroslav Lisinski Concert Hall with the renowned Slovenian singer, Bernada Fink.

We are planning a range of additional events, but rather than revealing them all here let us retain a certain element of surprise.

In conclusion, let us once again reiterate our goal of transforming one of the oldest musical institutions in the world into one of the best.

Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra

Slovenian Philharmonic Conductor George Pehlivanian