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Philadelphia: Classical Music

Orchestras | Chamber Music and Choruses | Music Institutes

Philadelphia Classical Music: Classical Music Around Philadelphia

Below are our Philadelphia Classical Music recommendations, with information on location, admission, transportation/parking, ensemble/venue history and other points of interest in Philadelphia Art.
 

Camerata Philadelphia

With a repertoire that transcends classical mediums to include symphonic works, chamber pieces, and choral compositions, Camerata Philadelphia maintains a strong civic focus.  This local commitment includes the Philadelphia Youth Ensemble—a conglomeration of ensembles designed for all skill levels that includes an annual summer camp—and the Philadelphia Community Conservatory, which offers private music lessons, masterclasses, and seminars. The camerata’s featured composers have included Jan Pieterszoon Sweelinck, Beethoven, Mozart, Clara Wieck …more…

Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia

What in 1964 began as the Concerto Soloists 16 has grown into the 33-member ensemble and resident company of the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts, now called The Chamber Orchestra of Philadelphia.  The orchestra’s many high-profile collaborations have included performances with classical artists Isaac Stern, Plácido Domingo, The Eroica Trio, and Luciano Pavarotti, and pop artists Julie Andrews, Elvis Costello, Bernadette Peters, and Ben Folds.

In addition to a diverse …more…

Choral Arts Society

Founded in 1982, this substantial “chamber choir” of 60 predominantly non-professional singers presents thoughtfully conceived programs that cover familiar liturgical works by J.S. Bach as well as less-frequented works not yet canonized as masterworks. Directed by Matthew Glandorf, the ensemble is notable for the sheer diversity of its repertoire, having performed approximately 200 compositions by more than 100 composers. The Choral Arts Society performs about four programs per concert season.

Choral …more…

Curtis Institute of Music

A top-tier American music conservatory, Curtis was founded in 1924. It is distinctive for both its highly selective enrollment—roughly 165 students—and its tuition-free policy for all students.  Curtis boasts numerous illustrious alumni, including the composers Samuel Barber, Loenard Bernstein, Gian Carlo Menotti, and Ned Rorem, the instrumentalists Yefim Bronfman, Hilary Hahn, Leila Josefowicz, and Lang Lang, and the opera singers Juan Diego Flórez, Eric Owens, and john Relyea.

In addition to …more…

Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia

As of the oldest surviving chorus in the United States, the Mendelssohn Club has played an integral role in the furtherance of classical music’s choral tradition in America since its beginnings in 1874, when it was founded by William Wallace Gilchrist. Historic touchstones include the chorus’s involvement in the U.S. premiere of Mahler’s Symphony No. 8 in 1916 and the Philadelphia premiere of Brahms’s German Requiem. Under the direction of Alan Harler, …more…

Orchestra 2001

Sometimes the best way to succinctly explain an orchestra’s impact on the performance landscape—particularly the “new music” landscape—is with numbers. Since its beginnings in 1988, Philadelphia’s Orchestra 2001 has premiered more than 90 compositions and performed more than 250 works by 130 different American composers, with more than half of those compositions being written by Philadelphia-area artists.

The ensemble has also interpreted the works of such seminal 20th century composers as …more…

Philadelphia Chamber Music Society (PCMS)

If classical music in an intimate setting is your ideal, you won’t find a presenting organization with as many high-quality performances as the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society. Created by Anthony Checcia in 1986, the Society hosts more than 60 recitals and chamber music concerts per year, featuring Philadelphia-based musicians and internationally renown artists like violinist Midori, pianists Pierre-Laurent Aimard and Emanuel Ax, and the Juilliard Quartet, to name a few. …more…

Philadelphia Orchestra

Founded in 1900, the Philadelphia Orchestra is regarded as one of the leading orchestras in the world. Its newly appointed chief conductor and artistic adviser Charles Dutoit follows in a rich tradition of excellent musical advisors including Fritz Scheel, Carl Pohlig, Leopold Stokowski, Eugene Ormandy, Riccardo Muti, Wolfgang Sawallisch, and Christoph Eschenbach. In addition to the regular series, the Philadelphia Orchestra also offers chamber music and family concerts suitable for …more…

Philadelphia Singers

Founded by the late Michael Korn in 1972, The Philadelphia Singers is now under the musical direction of David Hayes. In addition to its performances each season (which have included Philly premieres of works by major composers like Poulenc, Britten, Gershwin, Steve Reich, and John Adams), the Singers are also involved with musical education programs and frequently commissions new work. The ensemble holds the belief that art can advance individuals …more…

Philadelphia Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra

The Philadelphia Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra is an exceptional ensemble of chamber musicians performing challenging classical pieces and new works in Philadelphia, the Northeast and beyond. The Orchestra was founded in 1991 by Music Director, Daniel Spalding, who sought bring the great European tradition of chamber music together with the exceptional talent in Philadelphia and its surrounding environs. Since its founding, the ensemble has performed in numerous venues and has toured …more…

Philly Pops

Led by conductor, pianist, and founding Music Director Peter Nero, the ensemble brings a populist approach to the orchestral medium, covering the genres of swing, Broadway, 50s rock, and more. The Philly POPS concerts are varied, and suitable for families, nostalgia seekers, and live music lovers alike. Since 2000, the orchestra has also been accompanied in concert by the vocal ensemble The Voices of the POPS. ...more...

Tempesta di Mare (Philadelphia Baroque Orchestra)

Tempesta di Mare is Philadelphia’s only full-time organization dedicated to the performance of Baroque music. Consisting of two ensembles—the Philadelphia Baroque Orchestra and the Chamber Players, the group plays on period instruments, presenting works by hallmark composers like Bach, Handel, and Telemann alongside modern-day world premieres of rare works by Johann Friedrich Fasch and Johann Gottlieb Janitch. In addition to touring outside the city, Tempesta di Mare performs 10 concerts …more…

Temple University

Begun in 1962, The Boyer College at Temple University offers advanced studies in both music and dance.  The myriad performing ensembles at Temple University are wide-ranging, and include Chorale, Chamber Singers, Early Music Ensemble, Fusion Ensemble, New Music Ensemble by Temple Jazz Composers, Thelonius Monk Ensemble, Jazz Brass Band, Composer’s Ensemble, Symphony Orchestra, and Chamber Orchestra, to name only some.  With so many working groups on campus, Temple University Concerts—most …more…

The Crossing

The Crossing is a newly established choir created by the Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Chorus Master Donald Nally in 2005. Rarely singing music written before 1995, this chamber group of 23 professional personnel is devoted to performing new additions to the choral repertoire by important contemporary composers such as Kamran Ince, Joby Talbot, Arvo Pärt, Thomas Adès. Winner of the 2009 Chorus America/ASCAP award for Adventuresome Programming, The Crossing recently …more…