Strada Anton Pann 5Philharmonic "Paul Constantinescu" is one of the most prestigious cultural institutions in Romania and includes orchestra, folk music orchestra "Flame Prahova", Ploiesti Jazz Trio, String Quartet "Chronos" and mixed choir. Recognized nationally and internationally due to their professional qualities, the ensembles of the Ploieşti Philharmonic prove their value on the occasion of each performance.
It was founded in 1952 on the initiative of a group of symphonic music lovers, under the name of "Ciprian Porumbescu" Symphony Orchestra, and in 1960 it became "Ploiești State Philharmonic" by unifying the "Ciprian Porumbescu" Symphony Orchestra with the Folk Music Orchestra. The flame of Prahova ”.
Due to the tireless work of some people of culture such as Ion Baciu, NC Debie, Al. I. Bădulescu, who understood the importance that cult music was to have in the spiritual life of Prahova County, even at a time when cultural activity was in its infancy, the Ploiești Philharmonic evolved rapidly. Tours were organized abroad: Italy, Germany, France, Belgium, Spain, Greece, Czechoslovakia, etc., and made the first recordings at Electrecord, in 1967, under the baton of conductor George Petrescu. Between 1970-1977, the symphony orchestra of the Ploiești Philharmonic printed, from the Romanian musical creation, 28 pieces for the national radio station, and from the universal repertoire, five reference works from the creation of the composers PI Tchaikovsky, G. Mahler, and A. Honegger. The printing business for the national radio station continued until 1990 when it was one of the philharmonic's sources of self-financing.
The great personalities invited to the conducting desk, including Ion Baciu, Mircea Basarab, Ludovic Bacs, Horia Andreescu, Cristian Mandeal, Cristian Brâncuși, Emanuel Elenescu, Ovidiu Bălan, Petre Sbârcea, Paul Popescu, Pietro Argento, contributed to the fabulous evolution of the symphony orchestra. (Italy), Woss Kurt (Austria), Walter Horst (Germany) etc. and world-class Romanian soloists from Europe, Asia and the Americas such as: Ion Voicu, Ștefan Gheorghiu, Ștefan Ruha, Daniel Podlovski, Ludovic Spiess, Silvia Voinea, Arta Florescu, Pavel Kogan, Aldo Ciccolini, Nina Cogan, Li Min Cean etc.
On April 27, 1993, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of its establishment, the Ploiești State Philharmonic received, following the decision of the Ministry of Culture and Prahova County Council, the name of the illustrious composer, who contributed enormously to the city's cultural heritage by his creation, Paul Constantinescu.