In the future, there will be a master on the podium of His Majesty the Dresden Philharmonic. In October 2020, conductor Donald Runnicles was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II (1926-2022) in recognition of his musical achievements. In the Dresden The 71-year-old is now giving his first concert – with two works by his compatriots. After the 4th Symphony by Sir James MacMillan – he holds the title of “Composer in Residence” at the Philharmonic this season – the suite “The Planets” by Gustav Holst follows. The Philharmonic Choir is also involved in the performance.
Runnicles has been a guest at leading orchestras and opera houses
Runnicles is from Edinburgh. He studied trumpet, piano, and conducting at Cambridge and London. His first engagement took him to Mannheim and also to Freiburg. He later served as music director of the San Francisco Opera and principal conductor of the St. Louis Orchestra. Luke. He then moved to the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in the same position. Runnicles can be heard regularly with leading orchestras and opera houses around the world. He will be general music director of Deutsche Oper Berlin until mid-2026.
Tchaikovsky and Dvořák conducted the Dresden Philharmonic Orchestra
The Dresden Philharmonic is one of the best orchestras in Germany and can look back on its rich history. Composers such as Peter Tchaikovsky, Antonín Dvořák and Richard Strauss take the podium here. In 1909, the Dresden band became the first German orchestra to tour the US, giving 56 concerts in 30 cities in 60 days. After the Second World War they initially played in temporary venues, and from 1969 onwards at the Kulturpalast am Altmarkt. The new hall in the palace was inaugurated in spring 2017.
© dpa-infocom, dpa:251122-930-325298/1
