German Philharmonic String Orchestra

Germany

Music schools throughout the whole of Germany are where this orchestra has its roots: the musicians (aged between 11 and 19) who make up the German Philharmonic String Orchestra – still known to many as the German Music School Orchestra – are among the best in their field.
Back in 1973, on the occasion of the “X World Games of Young People and Students” in what was at the time East Berlin a festival orchestra was required, leading to the creation of the central youth string orchestra of the music schools of the GDR – founded on the initiative of Helmut Koch (conductor, founder of the Berlin Radio Orchestra, and head of the Berliner Singakademie).
In 1991 the ensemble came under the aegis of the Federation of German Music Schools. The orchestra’s program is above all made up of outstanding works from the string orchestra repertoire of all the musical epochs as well as rarities, neglected cabinet pieces, and contemporary compositions.