Pskov Regional Philharmonic

Philharmonic Hall in Pskov is one of the main music scenes of the ancient city. Its Grand Concert Hall (BKZ) is located near the Pskov Kremlin, with the administration building next to it. The symphony orchestra of the Pskov Regional Philharmonic regularly performs in the BKZ, with which soloists of many famous theaters of Russia cooperate. Not only classical music can be heard in the concert hall. Shows of pop singers are held here, sometimes popular music TV programs are recorded.

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Video: Big Jazz. Pskov Symphony Orchestra

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Highlights

The Philharmonic in Pskov, which celebrated its 75th anniversary in 2019, boasts a professionally compiled repertoire and a wide audience. Concert programs are addressed both to intellectuals with developed musical taste, as well as to young people, children and all people who want to join the art. According to the Philharmonic’s statistics, the number of classical music listeners has almost tripled in recent years.

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The Pskov Regional Philharmonic has its own tradition of festivals. Music festivals are not disjointed events here, but form an organized and connected cycle. The year-round festival marathon starts in January and is marked by Christmas music evenings. The March and April festivals are dedicated to Modest Mussorgsky, Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov, and Boris Troyanovsky, a native of Pskov Province, a virtuoso balalaika player and creator of the Great Russian Folk Instruments Orchestra. The final stage of the festival cycle – “Day of psaltery” – is held in December. It is attended by musicians from different countries performing works on psaltery and other multi-stringed ethnic instruments. A competition is held as part of the event.

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History of the Philharmonic in Pskov

The Philharmonic Society in Pskov was formed in 1944, after the liberation of the city from German occupiers. The formation of the first professional concert organization of the Pskov region fell at a time when Pskov, which was on the list of 15 ancient cities of the USSR, subject to priority restoration, was being reborn from the ruins.

The Philharmonic did not immediately find its listener, as the townspeople favored pop music. And for some time it performed the function of a concert and variety bureau, turning into a purely rental institution. It is hard to believe, but the first performance of the Russian music ensemble “Guslyary”, formed at the Philharmonic in 1979, was attended by only 50 people. Today this ensemble, renamed “Pskov”, is called a living legend. Its concerts are full house.

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In 1991, the Philharmonic in Pskov was given the Great Concert Hall – a room in the building of the former House of Political Education. It became the largest concert venue in the region. The capacity of the hall is 800 people, while most regional philharmonic organizations can accommodate 400-600 listeners. In 2019, modern lighting and sound equipment was installed in the BKZ.

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In 1996, the Pskov Philharmonic had its own symphony orchestra. The Bolshoi Concert Hall became the permanent venue for this only professional ensemble in the Pskov region performing academic music. The orchestra quickly enough achieved recognition in the world of classical music. Soloists, conductors and musical ensembles of national and world fame successfully cooperate with it. The Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra in Pskov has the status of “governor’s orchestra”. Its performances traditionally accompany solemn ceremonies with the participation of the top leadership of the city and the Pskov region.

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Pskov Philharmonic today

The well-equipped Great Concert Hall of the Philharmonic Society in Pskov is one of the best in the North-West region of Russia. The latest stage equipment installed here makes it possible to turn artists’ performances into colorful shows with impressive sound and light effects. They are achieved, among other things, with the help of generators of soap bubbles, fog, confetti machine. At the back of the stage there is a stationary LED screen 10 meters wide and almost 6 meters high.

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The Governor’s Symphony Orchestra of the Pskov Region regularly performs on stage. Its repertoire includes works of classical and contemporary music. Solo parts are often performed by distinguished musicians of the Mariinsky, Bolshoi and other theaters of Moscow and St. Petersburg, opera houses of the Baltic States. The orchestra is involved in stage productions of the operas “Carmen”, “La Traviata”, “The Pskovite Girl”, “The Tsar’s Bride” and others, and more recently in ballet performances, which have become a new direction in the activities of the Philharmonic in Pskov.

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Musicians of the symphony orchestra give concerts outside the Philharmonic Hall, mastering the city space. Their open-air performances within the framework of the projects “Lavender Night” and “Gold of Vienna” dedicated to foreign and Russian music have already become traditional. The orchestra often tours at the invitation of theaters in Moscow, St. Petersburg, Tallinn, Riga, and takes part in the all-Russian project “Night of Museums.”

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The bright performances of the ensemble “Pskov” are also memorable for a long time. 16 members of the popular ensemble demonstrate virtuoso playing on the ringing psaltery. This main instrument sounds accompanied by keyboards, drums, domra, balalaika, bayan, bass guitar and bells. The musicians perform classical and modern works of domestic and foreign composers, Russian folk songs. The artists are not afraid to experiment with electronic arrangements, which gives their performances a special originality. “Pskov” regularly tours concert venues in Russian and Baltic cities, takes part in secular and charitable events, represents the ancient city at festivals dedicated to the history of Russia.

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Instrumental quartet “Classics”, accordion quartet, and a duet of psaltery players “Girl’s fun” regularly perform in the BKZ. The stage of the Philharmonic Society in Pskov also welcomes pop performers. Dima Bilan, Elena Vaenga, the group “Melnitsa” and groups from Latvia gave solo concerts here. The Kuban Cossack Choir, the Alexandrov Song and Dance Ensemble of the Russian Army, Alla Dukhova’s Todes ballet also presented their programs.

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Practical information

The Philharmonic’s Grand Concert Hall in Pskov is located in the city center, at 24 Nekrasova Street. About 600 meters away from it, on Lenina Street, 6A, the administration of this musical institution is located.

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Tickets can be purchased at the box office located in the Great Concert Hall. On weekdays tickets are sold from 11:00 to 20:00, on weekends the box office is open until 19:00.

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The cost of tickets for concerts with the Philharmonic varies between 300-800 rubles. To get to the performances of star gastronomers, you will have to pay a larger sum. Prices start from 1200 rubles and can reach up to 5000 rubles.

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The Philharmonic has developed a subscription system. Separately offered subscriptions to classical music concerts, family and children’s, as well as individual, which can be formed independently, familiarizing yourself with the repertoire.

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How to get there

You can walk from the Pskov Kremlin to the Philharmonic’s Grand Concert Hall in a quarter of an hour. It is necessary to move in the northern direction, along the streets Kremlin, Leon Pozemsky, Sovetskaya, Oktyabrsky Avenue. From it, after about 400 meters, turn to Nekrasova Street. Follow it to the low building number 24, marked with colorful posters.

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A dozen city buses run through Oktyabrsky Avenue. The nearest stop to the Pskov Philharmonic is “Children’s Park”. It can also be reached by shuttle buses No. 50, 51, 51A, 54.

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