Samara State Philharmonic in Samara

In 2020, the Samara State Philharmonic celebrated its 80th anniversary. The modern building of the Philharmonic was built on the site of the Olimp Circus-Theater, founded in 1907. In 1940, by order of the city department of arts, the city philharmonic was housed in Olimp. In 1974, it was decided to reconstruct the building, but in the end, the old circus premises were demolished and a new building was erected taking into account the traditional architecture of the city. Today, the auditorium of the Samara Philharmonic is designed for 975 visitors, 686 of which are located in the stalls and 289 on the balcony. Modern stage, sound and lighting equipment allows for concerts of the highest level to be held. The hall contains three Steinway&sons concert grand pianos and a two-manual concert harpsichord Eckehart Merzdorf, which is an analogue of the 1733 model in the style of Nicholas and Francois Blanchet. February 17, 2001 went down in the history of the Samara Philharmonic as one of the significant days of the institution, because on this day the organ sounded in the Concert Hall at a concert of the famous organist, People's Artist of Russia Harry Grodberg. The organ of the Rudolf von Beckerath company in Samara consists of 3,540 pipes and tubes of different lengths and diameters, due to which this instrument can sound 52 different timbres. The electromechanical Samara organ is controlled by three manual keyboards and one foot. People's Artist of the Russian Federation Lyudmila Kamelina became the organist of the Samara Philharmonic. Organ music is of interest to guests and residents of the city, so the Philharmonic offers everyone, adults and children, to purchase organ subscriptions. The appearance of the organ in Samara made it possible to hold the International Organ Music Festival "Royal Audiences" in the Philharmonic. Famous Russian and foreign organists have performed solo concerts in the Samara Philharmonic, including A. Parshin, V. Khomyakov, D. Zaretsky, R. Abdullin, D. Timm, L. Kremer, L. Gielmi, R. Scott and others.

The Academic Symphony Orchestra, which can rightfully be considered one of the leading musical groups in the country, performs in the Samara State Philharmonic. The artistic director and principal conductor of the orchestra is People's Artist of Russia Mikhail Shcherbakov. Currently, the orchestra has about 100 musicians, and creative young people are constantly joining the team. Over 80 years of work, the orchestra has won the love and respect of listeners, released several records and discs with recordings of works by great composers, toured cities in Russia, Germany, Italy, China, Belgium, Tunisia, and became a laureate of prestigious competitions and festivals. The Volga Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra was founded in 2011 on the initiative of Dmitry Kogan. In fact, Samara has long been in need of a mobile chamber orchestra, so this group appeared at the right time in the creative life of the city. Over the years, the Philharmonic Chamber Orchestra has conquered listeners in Samara and the region, Moscow and other cities of our country, and has also toured abroad.

The ensemble of Russian folk instruments under the direction of Honored Artist of Russia Ramil Batyrshin performs classical and folk songs, accompanying vocals with button accordion, balalaika and domra. Along with folk music, the ensemble performs works by V.A. Mozart, J.S. Bach, J. Strauss, V. Gavrilin and other great composers, arranged by the leader of the group. For more than 30 years, the Ensemble of Russian Folk Instruments has been delighting a wide audience with folk songs, and the professionalism and virtuosity of each member of the creative group always ensures success with listeners.

The VolgaFalk Band ensemble was created in 2013 and, thanks to its unique and original genre of work, has achieved significant heights at international and all-Russian competitions and festivals. The young and talented team of the Samara Philharmonic performs with many Russian vocalists and instrumentalists, and turns to Russian composers and arrangers to create its unique repertoire. The VolgaFalk Band ensemble is a regular participant in concerts held at venues in Samara and the region, musical and educational projects, festivals and master classes.

The musical and literary lecture hall "OLYMP" of the Samara Philharmonic has united artists, musicians, and readers, whose efforts create a literary theater. Basically, the "OLYMP" programs are aimed at children and teenagers. In the professional performance of school works, the heroes of outstanding writers and poets will come to life before you, and costumes and set elements are specially created for many programs.

The creative theater group "Poli-Ars" successfully carries out concert and theater activities within the walls of the Philharmonic. In the repertoire of the group, you will find musical entertainment programs for children of different ages, literary and musical, military-patriotic and historical-educational performances, which you will be happy to attend.