The Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Košice was established in 1968 as the second professional symphonic orchestra in Slovakia. It is based in Košice, the capital of Eastern Slovakia, a city with a population of over a quarter of a million. The city is also a seat of the Constitutional Court, and has four universities, numerous research institutes, theatres, galleries and museums.
The first concert of the newly founded orchestra was given in April 1969 under the then chief conductor Bystrík Režucha. In a short time the orchestra won wide recognition among both professional and general audiences and became one of the leading representatives of Slovak music in Slovakia and abroad. The nearly ninety-strong ensemble includes professional musicians who are graduates of conservatories and famous music academies.
Great success has been achieved with concerts in many European countries and also in leading cities in Asia. The orchestra has performed at international music festivals held in important cultural centres of the world, including Vienna, Salzburg, Berlin, Budapest, Prague, Antwerp, Lisbon, Barcelona, Athens, Rheims, Hong Kong, Luxemburg, and New York. In 1994 the orchestra undertook a month-long tour of the United States, marking the first appearance of the orchestra in America.
In addition to performance for radio and television, there have been more than 130 compact disc recordings, many of them for Naxos and Marco Polo, and often including rare repertoire, as well as participating in the Marco Polo recordings of the complete instrumental work of the younger Johann Strauss and of his brother Josef Strauss. There has been collaboration with leading soloists and conductors in a repertoire that ranges from the baroque to the contemporary.
Since 1991 the Slovak State Philharmonic Orchestra, Košice has been the only orchestra in the Slovak republic to hold two international festivals, the Košice Music Spring Festival and the International Organ Festival of Ivan Sokol. Since 2003 the orchestra has also organized the Festival of Contemporary Art. The music director of the orchestra is Jerzy Swoboda.
