Gürzenich‐Orchester Köln

The German symphony orchestra Gürzenich-Orchester Köln was founded in 1827 as "Concert-Gesellschaft" and is based in Cologne. It was named after Cologne's historic Gürzenich ballroom, where the orchestra began playing their concerts in 1857. Since 1986, the orchestra has been based in the Kölner Philharmonie, as one of the two principal orchestras of the city, together with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln. It is also the orchestra of the Cologne opera hous (Kölner Oper). Its musical directors have included Conradin Kreutzer, Ferdinand Hiller, Hermann Abendroth, Günter Wand, James Conlon, and Markus Stenz, among others. Since 2015, the principal conductor has been François‐Xavier Roth.