Kyiv Chamber Orchestra
Founded in 1963 by the distinguished musician Anton Sharoev, the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra holds a respected place among the world’s chamber orchestras. The orchestra’s musicians are virtuoso performers known for exceptional artistry and technical mastery.
Over the years, the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra has been led by distinguished conductors, including Anton Sharoev, Igor Blazhkov, and Arkadii Vinokurov. From 1990 to 2016, the internationally renowned Ukrainian conductor Roman Kofman served as Chief Conductor, followed by Mykola Diadiura from 2016 to 2020.
Many legendary musicians have performed with the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra, including Gidon Kremer, Liana Isakadze, Erik Kurmangaliev, Makvala Kasrashvili, Alexei Lyubimov, Naum Starkman, Boris Pergamenshchikov, Victoria Lukyanets, Oleksii Hryniuk, László Fenyö, Domenico Nordio, Marc Bouchkov, Cagatay Akyol, Lev Markiz, Valentyn Zhuk, Daniel Raiskin, Dmytro Sitkovetsky, Lucia Aliberti, Benjamin Schmid, Natalia Gutman, Volodymyr Krainev, Mischa Maisky, Steven Isserlis, Elżbieta Stefańska, and others.
The orchestra has toured extensively, performing in leading musical centers across Germany, France, the Netherlands, Austria, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Spain, Portugal, Poland, Switzerland, Turkey, the United States, Mexico, Japan, and South Korea.
Among the orchestra’s major concert series are All Schubert’s Symphonies, Roman Kofman and his Friends, The Great Names, and All Mozart’s Symphonies – the latter featuring many Mozart’s Symphonies performed in Ukraine for the first time.
The Kyiv Chamber Orchestra actively promotes the music of Ukrainian composers in Ukraine and abroad. Its repertoire includes works by Valentyn Bibik, Yevhen Stankovych, Myroslav Skoryk, Valentyn Sylvestrov, Levko Kolodub, Vitalii Hubarenko, Leonid Hrabovsky, Volodymyr Zahortsev, Victoria Poleva, Volodymyr Runchak, Yurii Laniuk, Oleksandr Shchetynsky, Alla Zahaikevytch, Sviatoslav Luniov, and others.
In 2009-2010, the orchestra presented Roman Kofman’s Ukrainian Avant-Garde project, which premiered works by famous Ukrainian composers as well as their younger successors.
Since 2019, the Kyiv Chamber Orchestra has been led by the internationally acclaimed conductor Natalia Ponomarchuk. As one of Ukraine’s most sought-after conductors, she enriches the orchestra’s repertoire with classical and contemporary works, supports experimental projects by young composers, and promotes the finest examples of musical heritage.