Until the 19th century, European culture wasn't under any Russian influence, and Russia was regarded as a distant, unknown and perilous military force, not as a realm of culture. During the Romantic period, however, all of a sudden, greatly influential Russian composers, writers and artists appeared in the sky of culture, who gave a new image to their home-country, which is strongly linked to the legacy of Western Europe yet is profoundly and unmistakenly Russian: grandiose, capricious, passionate, over the top and romantic. We can listen to three innovative pieces growing out of this tradition. Mussorgsky's symphonic poem is simultaneously a musical adaptation of Russian mythology, Romantic programme music and a precursor of Impressionism. Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme places the Romantic cello concerto in a completely new perspective; so much so that the soloist ordering the piece was so astonished at the composition's strong lyrical tone that he thoroughly revised it, and despite Tchaikovsky's explicit objection, the soloist's version established itself initially. Stravinsky's Petrushka is through and through 20th-century music. Still, its subject matter and tale-like character tread in the footsteps of the Russian Romantic tradition.

The Song and Music Association of Győr – predecessor of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Győr – was founded by Antal Richter, father of the world famous conductor, János Richter.

The Ensemble became the Orchestra of the Municipality of Győr in 1894 The year 1968 is a milestone in the career of the orchestra–that is when the semi-professional art institution was transformed into a professional concert orchestra. The orchestra plays a major role int he cultural and musical life in the city and region of Győr. The Philharmonic Orchestra of Győr have produced more than 15 CD’s in the past few years in addition to numerous concerts in Hungary and abroad. They performed in almost all countries of Europe, as well as Morocco, China, South-Korea and Taiwan.

The Orchestra has been conducted by famous Hungarian and international maestros over the past decades including Angelo Epfrikian, Lamberto Gardelli, Arvid Jansons, Kobayashi Ken-Ichiro, Zoltán Kocsis, Ludovit Rajter, Yuri Simonov, Gilbert Varga, Carlo Zecchi.

The list of soloists who have worked with the Orchestra includes Alexandru Agache, Kristóf Baráti, Gergely Bogányi, Gábor Boldoczki, Jörg Demus, Annie Fischer, Endre Gertler, Ida Haendel, Jenő Jandó, Zoltán Kocsis, Aga Mikolai, Jevgenyij Nyesztyerenko, György Pauk, Miklós Perényi, Dezső Ránki, István Ruha, Vilmos Szabadi, Balázs Szokolay, István Várdai, Bernadett Wiedemann.
In addition to keeping the standard classical pieces on its repertoire, the Orchestra has been active in performing works of contemporary Hungarian composer, including several world premieres.
The Orchestra went on tour to the Far East and Europe with the legendary Italan film music composer and conductor, the Oscar winner Ennio Morriconein the spring of 2009.

The Director of the Győr Philharmonic Orchestra has been Mr. Géza Fűke since July 2008.

The Art Director of the Orchestra has been Mr. Kálmán Berkes, Liszt Award holder clarinet player and conductor.