Founded in 2015, by internationally acclaimed conductor Fabio Mastrangelo under the auspices of the St. Petersburg Municipal Committee of Culture, the Northern Sinfonietta debuted on Victory Day giving its first official performance on the main stage of the Music Hall Theatre, where it has since taken residence. Since the very beginning, the orchestra has consistently demonstrated its purpose - bringing music to diverse audiences and making it a significant part of their everyday lives. In just a few months of activity, the Northern Sinfonietta rapidly gained popularity, appearing in a number of prestigious festivals such as the Imperial Palace of Russia Festival, run by the Russian State Museum, and the 4th St. Petersburg International Festival “All Together Opera”, inaugurating it with Rimsky-Korsakov’s The Golden Cockerel. Its first tour took place in September 2015, with an appearance at the 2nd “St. Petersburg - Montecatini Opera Festival”, in the renowned Italian thermal city bearing the same name. Back at home, the Northern Sinfonietta accompanied the finalists of the “Elena Obraztsova Competition for Young Opera Singers”, thus concluding with a gala performance at the Large Hall of the St. Petersburg Philharmonic. Shortly after, the orchestra debuted in one of Russia’s most legendary venues, the Large Hall of Moscow’s “Tchaikovsky” Conservatory. Thanks to the creation of the Northern Sinfonietta the theatre Music Hall was able to establish a number of subscription series, each consisting of five concerts, which became the main activity of the orchestra. Meanwhile, its success continued to grow with guest performances abroad such as in Helsinki’s “Finlandia Talo” and in Istanbul, where the orchestra had the honour of inaugurating the 2nd Festival of Russian Culture performing a program entirely dedicated to the music of Tchaikovsky. In December 2015, the Northern Sinfonietta was a guest at the 4th St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum offering its participants a unique concert entitled “Puccini. Scherzo”. Focusing on a recently rediscovered composition by Giacomo Puccini, namely his “Symphonic Scherzo”, which on that occasion received its premiere performance outside Italy. The refined program featured the complete symphonic works composed by the Italian Maestro. In the spring of 2016 an overwhelming number of talented musicians from all over Russia auditioned over the course of four days for a place in the elite orchestra and, eventually, the finest were selected thus founding the “Northern Sinfonia”. In keeping with the ongoing activities of its predecessor, the new orchestra was immediately involved in a significant number of key events in St. Petersburg, whilst continuing to present the concert series established within its own theatre’s season. Within a short period of time, the orchestra began collaborating with pre-eminent musicians, a partial list of which includes pianists Ekaterina Mechetina, Polina Osetinskaya, Giuseppe Albanese, and Miroslav Kultishev; violinists Shlomo Mintz, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Sergey Girshenko, and Sergey Dogadin; cellist Sebastian Braun, flutist Irina Stachinskaya, clarinetist Giampiero Sobrino, saxophonist Ola Asdahl-Rokkones, just to name a few. In addition to presenting standard symphonic programs, the Music Hall frequently hosts vocal evenings and, since September 2018, full opera productions. Each season, alongside its own team of soloists, it features leading vocalists from Russia’s most celebrated theaters. This includes singers from both the Mariinsky and Mikhailovsky theaters, from Moscow’s Bolshoy theatre, as well as the young talents from the “Elena Obraztsova” International Academy of Music.Music Director Fabio Mastrangelo’s charisma and professionalism contributes to strengthening the orchestra’s musical artistry resulting in harmonious excellence. Together, they chose to invest in youthful promising talent and create a significant link with contemporary composers, whose music can be often heard in their performances. Despite being Russia’s most recently established orchestra, the Northern Sinfonia can already boast a wide-ranging repertoire comprised of both Russian and foreign classics.Since its inception in 2013, the St. Petersburg International Cultural Forum and the Music Hall established a mutually rewarding collaboration. They have co-hosted annual cultural conventions attended by worldwide industry experts. For each edition, the forum focuses on a theme to which the Northern Sinfonia dedicates exclusive musical programs. In 2016, celebrating “The Year of Russian Cinema”, the Music Hall hosted a debate entitled “Music and Cinema: Together or Apart?” followed by a performance of its orchestra featuring fragments of legendary soundtracks spanning over 100 years of Russian and Soviet cinematography. The following year, which marked the anniversary of the Russian revolution, the theatre organized an open discussion named “Accord 1917 - the presentiment of revolution in music and culture”, rounded off with a program comprised of music by Muradeli, Mosolov and Tishchenko, alongside works by Beethoven and Shostakovich.During the latest edition of the Forum, dedicated to Italy, the Northern Sinfonia charmed listeners at the Hermitage Theatre performing excerpts from operas by 18th century Italian composers Domenico Cimarosa and Giovanni Paisiello. For the occasion, two historic instruments donated by the Russian Empress Catherine the Great to the two composers made their return to Russia and were used for the performances.The orchestra’s recent tour in Southern Italy presented the same unique program in two performances, respectively at the Court Theatre of Caserta’s Royal Palace, and at the celebrated “Scarlatti” Hall of the Neapolitan Conservatory of San Pietro a Majella. The initiative was part of the larger international project “Russian Seasons”, a government funded program modeled after Sergey Dyagilev’s identically entitledearly 20th Century’s groundbreaking creation. While the historical antecedent showcased Russian ballet and opera singers in Paris, its modern day equivalent portrays virtually every aspect of the Russian culture, each year addressing its activities towards a selected partner nation. In 2019, The St. Petersburg State “Music Hall” Theatre and the Northern Sinfonia will partake in the official program of the “Russian Seasons”, which will take place in Germany, presenting Tchaikovsky’s opera The Maiden of Orleans.