Current News

May 2009: Christoph König has been appointed Principal Guest Conductor of the Solistes Européens, Luxembourg, starting in September 2009. The orchestra comprises guest players drawn from the top European orchestras and performs a number of concerts each season in Luxembourg and around Europe.

May 2009: Christoph König, approaching the end of his first season as Principal Conductor with the Orquestra Nacional do Porto, has had a successful first season with the orchestra, including two successful tours and stepping in at the last minute for an additional week’s concerts. The season has included notable performances of works by Bruckner, Dvorak and Schoenberg amongst others. A particular highlight was the impressive performance of Britten’s War Requiem in collaboration with the Huddersfield Choral Society, drawing fantastic reviews and even a photo-shoot in Coventry Cathedral (see ‘Press’ section).

Christoph König has been Principal Conductor with the Orquestra Nacional do Porto since September 2008

König is a deeply serious and thoughtful musician and an original thinker. He comes from the German Kapellmeister tradition and has a close affinity with the central classical repertoire of Beethoven, Brahms and Schumann as well as Bruckner and Richard Strauss. He also has an astounding ability and understanding of contemporary repertoire and a very personal and often surprising way of combining conventional repertoire with contemporary works. König is in demand as a guest conductor throughout Europe with both symphony orchestras and opera houses: together König and the orchestra are entering into an exciting new phase and have much to offer each other.

Having moved into the newly built Casa da Música building in Porto in 2005, the Orchestra has a remarkable base for its activities. The building itself was designed by the Pritzker-Prize-winning, Dutch architect, Rem Koolhaas and has been acclaimed both in the architectural and general press. Koolhaas was shortlisted for the 2007 Stirling Prize for his work on this building. Casa da Música is already established as a landmark in Porto, Portugal’s second city. The building is important both for its architectural and musical impact on the city and will provide König and the Orquestra Nacional do Porta with a significant partnership and a strong foundation from which to develop their activities and extend the musical boundaries of the city.