| Turku Philharmonic Orchestra Turun filharmoninen orkesteri |
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|---|---|
| Origin | Turku, Finland |
| Genres | Classical music |
| Years active | 1790–present |
| Website | Turku Philharmonic Orchestra |
The Turku Philharmonic Orchestra is an orchestra based in Turku, Finland. It is the oldest orchestra in Finland and one of the oldest orchestras in the world that is still performing.
The orchestra was founded in 1790 under the name "Turun Soitannollinen Seura". The concerts featured Haydn and Beethoven as modern music, as the composers were still alive. Also Jean Sibelius has conducted his music in the orchestra, at a total of 18 concerts.
At 2007, the orchestra consisted of 74 musicians, which makes it the fourth largest symphony orchestra in Finland after Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra, Finnish Radio Symphony Orchestra and Tampere Philharmonic Orchestra. The orchestra mainly performs in Turku Concert Hall, the first purpose-built concert hall in Finland that was completed in 1952.
Since 1979 the orchestra has regularly recorded Finnish music. A christmas recording that the orchestra recorded with Karita Mattila sold platinum in 2003, as did their recording "Suomalaisia klassisia suosikkisävelmiä" (Finnish classical favorite songs).