Under Aziz Shokhakimov’s artistic and musical direction since September 2021, the Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg – Orchestre National is one of the main formations in France.

The Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg, one of the oldest in the country, was founded in 1855 with the Belgian conductor Joseph Hasselmans. It was then conducted by legendary conductors such as Johannes Brahms, Wilhelm Furtwängler, Otto Klemperer, Gustav Mahler and even Richard Strauss.

First named Orchestre du Théâtre and then Orchestre Municipal in 1875 thanks to Franz Stockhausen, it was labelled Orchestre National in 1994. Throughout its rich history, the Orchestre counted many well-known musical directors such as Hans Pfitzner, Guy Ropartz, Ernest Bour, Alceo Galliera, Alain Lombard, Theodor Guschlbauer, Jan Latham-Koenig, Marc Albrecht and Marko Letonja. Each of the 14 musical directors left a mark in its history and associated its name with the prestige of the Orchestre.

The Orchestre tackles a vast repertoire, from the 18^th century to nowadays, for which it invites conductors and international soloists but also a new generation of artists to promote. It regularly conducts composers and organises artists residencies. In addition to its big symphonic seasons, the Orchestre carries out a mission of lyrical diffusion. It is responsible for some of the Opéra national du Rhin‘s representations with which it develops many projects.

As part of a strong partnership approach, it works with a large number of other cultural actors in the region: Conservatoire and Haute École des Arts du Rhin, the Strasbourg Museums, Musica, the Espace Django, the Bibliothèques idéales and the media libraries. Aware of the major role that artists can play, the Orchestre is also active in the social and medico-social field and has forged close links with existing associations.

The Orchestre contributes to Strabourg’s radiation in France. It is regularly invited to the Philharmonie de Paris and many festivals: Festival des Nuits Romantiques, Rencontres Musicales d’Évian, Printemps des Arts de Monte-Carlo… In August 2022 it came back to Festival Berlioz.

It plays all over Europe in the most prestigious venues (Lucerne Culture and Congress Centre, Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg, Gasteig in Munich, Musikverein in Vienna, etc.). It also started touring internationally again. In the past, it went to Japan, Brazil, Argentina and South Korea in December 2022.

The Orchestre has made several records. Their rendition of two of Berlioz’s masterpieces Les Troyens (2017) and La Damnation de Faust (2019) was a success. It continues its cycle with Romeo and Juliet in 2023 and L’enfance du Christ in 2024. In September 2021, Baritenor, recorded with Michael Spyries, was praised by critics and received several awards. New recordings are regularly published: Janáček conducted by Marko Letonja (2022), an opus with Marc Coppey (2022), Prokofiev conducted by Aziz Shokhakimov (spring 2023)…

Its many media partnerships ensure local (Accent 4), national (France Musique, Radio Classique) and international (Arte, Medici.tv) radiation. This visibility gives the Orchestre a multiplied public, from the salle Érasme to worldwide streaming platforms.