Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra

Founded in 1949, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra is celebrating its 75th birthday this year. As its first Chief Conductor, Eugen Jochum laid the groundwork and built the orchestra’s international reputation, not least through his Bruckner interpretations. He was followed by Rafael Kubelík (1961-79), who expanded the repertoire to include works by Slavic composers and who conducted the first Mahler cycle. Sir Colin Davis, a renowned Berlioz expert, helmed the orchestra from 1983 to 1992 and also devoted himself intensively to the Mozart repertoire. Lorin Maazel held the chief position from 1993 to 2002 and presented cycles of symphonic works by Beethoven, Brahms, Bruckner, Schubert, and Mahler. From 2003 until his death in December 2019, Mariss Jansons served as Chief Conductor; during this time, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra was also the orchestra in residence at the Lucerne Easter Festival. Sir Simon Rattle succeeded Jansons in 2023 and has since developed a broad repertoire ranging from Bach to contempo­rary works. Guests who have conducted the orchestra include such great names as Otto Klemperer, Karl Böhm, Sir Georg Solti, Carlo Maria Giulini, and Leonard Bernstein. In the 2024-25 season, Herbert Blomstedt, Iván Fischer, Daniel Harding, Jakub Hrůša, Esa-Pekka Salonen, and Franz Welser-­Möst will be on the podium. The orchestra regularly premieres new works as part of its “musica viva” concert cycle. Tours take the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra around the world: next up is a tour of Asia in the late fall of 2024, with stops in South Korea, Japan, and Taiwan.

Lucerne Festival (IMF) debut on 28 August 1965 in a program of works by Bartók and Bruckner under Rafael Kubelík.

July 2024