Krakow Philharmonic Orchestra

The Kraków Philharmonic Orchestra or the Symphony Orchestra of the Karol Szymanowski Philharmonic Society (Polish: Orkiestra Symfoniczna Filharmonii im. Karola Szymanowskiego) is a professional symphony orchestra based in Kraków, Poland. The national status of the orchestra is reflected in its program of events, including weekly symphonic concerts in the Wawel Royal Castle, or at the Jagiellonian University's Collegium Novum, and prominent Kraków churches. The company is more active professionally than any other philharmonic orchestra in the country. The Symphony Orchestra, presently residing in the Kraków Philharmonic Hall, came into being in 1945. It was the first professional symphony orchestra in postwar Poland, formed at the local concert hall during the Soviet offensive. The first postwar director as well as the conductor of the historic first performance held on February 3, 1945 (three months before the end of World War II in Europe), was Zygmunt Latoszewski, survivor of the Warsaw Uprising.