Venues

The present building of the Gewandhaus Leipzig is of course not the one which hosted such conductors as Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy, Arthur Nikisch and Wilhelm Furtwängler. The city of Leipzig also doesn’t look like the old Leipzig of Johann Sebastian Bach, Richard Wagner, Gustav Mahler, Robert Schumann and Clara Schumann. The city suffered severe bombings during WW2 and the old building of the Gewandhaus was destroyed beyond reconstruction. Over thirty years passed until the city could reopen a new concert hall which was ment to continue the great musical tradition of the city – the New Gewandhaus was built on the south side of Karl-Marx-Platz, the present-day Augustusplatz. The New Gewandhaus though continue the amazing tradition of the past regularly hosting world's greatest musicians and conductors as well as being home of one of Europe's best orchestras.

Its Great Hall (Grosser Saal) accommodates an audience of over 1,900, the Mendelssohn Hall – chamber music hall – approximately 500. The Great Hall is crowned by its imposing organ, built by Schuke of Potsdam, with its four manuals, 92 stops and 6638 pipes.

Did you know? In its impressive and long history, the Gewandhaus hosted such composers as Mozart, Carl Maria von Weber and Franz Liszt. Berlioz, Brahms and Wagner conducted the Gewandhausorchester and the Leipzig music lovers could experience the world premieres of a set of masterpieces which have since established themselves amongst the most beloved in all music, among them Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 "Emperor", Schubert's Symphony in C-Major "The Great", Mendelssohn's cherished Violin Concerto and Schumann's Symphony No. 1 "Spring".

For more information about the Gewandhaus amazing legacy visit: gewandhausorchester.de/en/gewandhaus/history/

The Szczecin Philharmonic's symphony hall has been finished entirely in wood and wood-based materials. Rich geometry of golden walls and ceilings, covered with schlagmetal petals gives the interior a golden glow, enriched with stunning light reflections. Shimmering with a golden light the symphony hall was given the name of the sun hall. The form as well as the cubic capacity of the symphony hall were subordinated to high acoustic requirements. World’s best concert halls were used as models: Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Symphony Hall in Boston and Musikvereinssaal in Vienna. It is in this extraordinary concert hall that all tutti rehearsals take place.

The new building of the Szczecin Philharmonic was filled with music for the first time in September 2014. However, the Philharmonic itself has been operating in Szczecin continuously since 1953. For over seven decades, world-class artists such as Krystian Zimmerman and Maurizio Pollini have performed here. In the last ten years alone, the Szczecin Philharmonic has hosted such performers as: Mischa Maisky, Kaja Danczowska, Bruce Liu, Alena Baeva, Jan Lisiecki, Anastasia Kobekina, Jakub Józef Orliński, Aleksandra Kurzak, Gautier Capuçon, Guy Braunstein and Nemanja Radulović, to name only a few.

It has become a tradition for the International Lutosławski Youth Orchestra to play one of its annual concerts in the golden symphony hall of the Szczecin Philharmonic. And this will also be the case this year.

Learn more about the Szczecin Philharmonic HERE