Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is a music organisation based in Liverpool, England, that manages a professional symphony orchestra, a concert venue, and extensive programmes of learning through music. Its orchestra, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, is the UK's oldest continuing professional symphony orchestra. In addition to the orchestra, the organisation administers the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir, the Liverpool Philharmonic Youth Company and other choirs and ensembles. It is involved in educational and community projects in Liverpool and its surrounding region. It is based in the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, an Art Deco concert hall built in the late 1930s.
The Sydney Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Sydney. With roots going back to 1908, the orchestra was made a permanent professional orchestra on the formation of the Australian Broadcasting Commission in 1932. The orchestra has performed at the Sydney Opera House as its home concert hall, since the venue's opening in 1973. Simone Young is the orchestra's chief conductor and the first female conductor in the post.
Tanglewood is a music venue and festival in the towns of Lenox and Stockbridge in the Berkshire Hills of western Massachusetts. It has been the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra since 1937. Tanglewood is also home to three music schools: the Tanglewood Music Center, Tanglewood Learning Center, and the Boston University Tanglewood Institute. Besides classical music, Tanglewood hosts the Festival of Contemporary Music, jazz and popular artists, concerts, and frequent appearances by James Taylor, John Williams, and the Boston Pops.
The Boston Youth Symphony Orchestras (BYSO) is a youth orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts under the artistic leadership of music director, Federico Cortese. Since 1958, BYSO has served thousands of young musicians from throughout New England with three full symphonic orchestras, two young string training orchestras, six chamber orchestras, a preparatory wind ensemble, a chamber music program and a nationally recognized instrument training program for underrepresented youth from inner-city communities called the Intensive Community Program (ICP). The 2017-2018 season marks the celebration of BYSO's 60th Anniversary. Each year, BYSO auditions approximately 850 students from throughout New England, ages 5–18, and accepts nearly 500 young musicians.
Seattle Youth Symphony Orchestras (SYSO) is the largest youth symphony organization and youth orchestra training program in the United States, as well as the eighth oldest.
The Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is a symphony orchestra based in Singapore. It is Singapore's flagship orchestra. Its principal concert venue is the Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay. The orchestra also gives concerts at the Victoria Theatre and Concert Hall, and performs over 60 concerts per year. The orchestra was first established In 1978 with Choo Hoey its resident director. The orchestra's music director from 1997 to 2019 was Shui Lan, and Hans Graf its Chief Conductor from 2020 and Music Director from 2022. The SSO is part of the Singapore Symphony Group, which also manages the Singapore Symphony Choruses, the Singapore National Youth Orchestra (SNYO), the VCHpresents chamber music series, the Singapore International Piano Festival and the biennial National Piano and Violin Competition. It achieved third place in 2021 for Gramophone's Orchestra of the Year award, and made the list of the BBC Music Magazine's Top 21 Best Orchestras in the World in 2022 and 2023.
The Portland Youth Philharmonic (PYP) is the oldest youth orchestra in the United States, established in 1924 as the Portland Junior Symphony (PJS). Now based in Portland, Oregon, the orchestra's origin dates back to 1910, when music teacher Mary V. Dodge began playing music for local children in Burns, Oregon. Dodge purchased instruments for the children and organized the orchestra, which would become known as the Sagebrush Symphony Orchestra. After touring the state, including a performance at the Oregon State Fair in Salem, the orchestra disbanded in 1918 when Dodge moved to Portland. There, Dodge opened a violin school and became music director of the Irvington School Orchestra.
The Tucson Symphony Orchestra, or TSO, is the primary professional orchestra of Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1928, when the season consisted of just two concerts, the TSO is the oldest continuously running performing arts organization in the Southwest. The TSO's season now runs from September to May and consists of over 60 concerts, including a Classics Series of eight programs, a Pops Series of four programs, a Masterworks series of five chamber orchestra programs, a number of one-night only specials, and run-out concerts to surrounding areas, such as Oro Valley, Green Valley, Bisbee, Safford, Thatcher, and Nogales. The TSO also provides educational programming that reaches over 40,000 school children each season. Within the TSO are a number of standing chamber ensembles, including a string quartet, string quintet, piano trio, harp trio, brass quintet, and woodwind quintet. These ensembles help provide educational programming through school visits, perform recitals annually, and also perform at private and community events.
Ilan Volkov is an Israeli orchestral conductor.
The Shreveport Symphony Orchestra(SSO) is based in Shreveport, the seat of Caddo Parish and the largest city in north Louisiana. The SSO performs most of its concerts in the newly renovated RiverView Theater (formerly Shreveport Civic Theater). Founded in 1948, the symphony remains the longest continually performing professional orchestra in Louisiana.
The Syracuse Symphony Orchestra (SSO) was a 79-member orchestra located in Syracuse, New York. In its time it was the 43rd largest orchestra in the United States and performed a variety of programs including the Post-Standard Classics Series and M&T Bank Pops Series. The orchestra also operated two youth orchestras in the Syracuse area: the Syracuse Symphony Youth Orchestra and the Syracuse Symphony Youth String Orchestra.
The Grand Rapids Symphony is a professional orchestra located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA. Founded in 1930, the Symphony celebrated its 90th anniversary season in 2019-20. In 2006, its recording Invention and Alchemy was nominated for Best Classical Crossover Album at the Grammy Awards. The Grand Rapids Symphony presents more than 400 performances throughout Michigan each year, reaching over 200,000 people, and is heard in West Michigan on broadcasts by WBLU-FM (88.9) and WBLV-FM (90.3). The organization also implements 18 educational and access programs that benefit over 80,000 Michigan residents.
The Singapore National Youth Orchestra (SNYO) is the national youth orchestra of Singapore. It is recognised by the Ministry of Education as a National Project of Excellence and a key development programme for talented young musicians. Since 1 January 2016, the Singapore Symphony Orchestra (SSO) has assumed management and operational responsibility for the SNYO, taking over the reins from the Ministry of Education.
The Champaign-Urbana Symphony Orchestra (CUSO) is a professional orchestra located in the Champaign-Urbana metropolitan area in central Illinois, United States. The Orchestra is the Professional Orchestra in Residence at the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts on the campus of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The CUSO is led by Music Director and Conductor Stephen Alltop.
The Shanghai Symphony Orchestra is a symphony orchestra in Shanghai, China. Its music director is Long Yu.
The Saskatoon Symphony Orchestra (SSO) is a professional orchestra based in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, administered by the non-profit Saskatoon Symphony Society. The orchestra was founded in 1927 as an amateur orchestra, but today has 10 core members and up to 50 sessional musicians. Arthur Collingwood, who was Professor of Music at the University of Saskatchewan, presented the first SSO concert. The SSO received major funding from the Carnegie Institute in 1931. The Canada Council, the Saskatchewan Arts Board, and the City of Saskatoon have all provided sponsorship of the SSO through the years. In the spring, the symphony holds a Saskatoon Symphony Book & Music Sale to raise funds for the orchestra. The SSO itself offers students grants and hosted a national cello competition in 1990. Dwaine Nelson was responsible for the development of a full-time core of musicians, initially with a size of six, but later expanded to the present-day ten members. In the summer of 2014, the SSO announced that Maestro Victor Sawa would move into the position of Conductor Emeritus at the end of the 84th season. In March 2015, the SSO announced Eric Paetkau as the 16th Music Director of the orchestra.
Eugene-Springfield Youth Orchestras are the major youth orchestras serving Eugene, Oregon, United States and surrounding areas.
Black conductors are musicians of African, Caribbean, African-American ancestry and other members of the African diaspora who are musical ensemble leaders who direct classical music performances, such as an orchestral or choral concerts, or jazz ensemble big band concerts by way of visible gestures with the hands, arms, face and head. Conductors of African descent are rare, as the vast majority are male and Caucasian.
The Selangor Symphonic Orchestra (SSO) is a professional orchestra based in Selangor, Malaysia. SSO consists of around 50 contracted musicians and with majority of the musicians being Malaysians. The orchestra's founder and inaugural music director is conductor Eugene Pook. The SSO's youth orchestra, the Selangor Symphony Youth Orchestra (SSYO), offers weekly orchestra training programs for young musicians.
Dorothy Antoinette Handy-Miller was an American flautist, music scholar, arts administrator, and writer. She was one of the first black members of the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, where she was a flautist from 1966 to 1976, and also performed with the Paris Orchestre International, the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the New Orleans Philharmonic Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Symphony of the Air, and the Symphony of the New World. Handy was the Director of Music at the National Endowment of the Arts in Washington, D.C., establishing the National Jazz Service Organization and the National Jazz Network. She served on the faculty, as a professor of music, at the New York College of Music, Florida A&M University, Virginia State College, Virginia Union University, the Tuskegee Institute, and Jackson State University.
