| On Wikipedia | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Melbourne_Symphony_Orchestra |
| Alternative Spellings | MSO |
| Creation | 1906 |
| Participants |
Alberto Zelman
- Conductor
from 1906
to 1927
Fritz Hart - Conductor from 1927 to 1937 Bernard Heinze - Conductor from 1932 to 1950 Alceo Galliera - Conductor from 1950 to 1951 Juan José Castro - Conductor from 1952 to 1953 Walter Susskind - Conductor from 1953 to 1955 Kurt Wöss - Conductor from 1956 to 1959 Georges Tzipine - Conductor from 1960 to 1965 Willem van Otterloo - Conductor from 1967 to 1970 Fritz Rieger - Conductor from 1971 to 1972 Hiroyuki Iwaki - Conductor from 1974 to 1997 Markus Stenz - Conductor from 1998 to 2004 Oleg Caetani - Conductor from 2005 to 2009 Tadaaki Otaka - Conductor from 2009 to 2012 Andrew Davis - Conductor from 2013 to 2019 |
| City | Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Country | Australia |
The MSO's first concert took place on 11 December 1906 under the baton of Alberto Zelman, founder of the MSO, who later became the first Australian conductor to conduct the London and Berlin Philharmonic Orchestras. In 1934, the MSO became one of the Australian Broadcasting Commission's radio orchestras. In 1949, the orchestra took on the new name of the Victorian Symphony Orchestra. In 1965, the orchestra's name reverted to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
The MSO's longest serving chief conductor was Hiroyuki Iwaki (1974–1997), who was named Conductor Laureate of the orchestra in 1989 and held the title until his death in 2006. The orchestra's most recent Chief Conductor, Sir Andrew Davis, was appointed in June 2012.
1923, Bertha Jorgensen became the first female leader of a professional orchestra in Australia, and she went on to play with the orchestra for 50 years and became the longest-serving female leader of an orchestra on an international scale.
The MSO was the first Australian orchestra to perform overseas (New Zealand, 1965), and the first to play in Carnegie Hall, New York. Its overseas tours – the USA, Canada, Japan, Korea, Europe (2000, 2007, 2014), China (2002), St Petersburg, Russia (2003) and Japan (2005) – have gained it widespread international recognition. In January 2007 the Orchestra embarked on its second European tour, visiting five cities in Spain (Castellon, Barcelona, Zaragoza, Pamplona, Madrid), Paris, Berlin and Milan. In 2014, the orchestra, along with Chief Conductor Sir Andrew Davis made its debut at five of the world's most esteemed classical music festivals including the The Proms and Edinburgh International Festival.
The MSO has collaborated with a number of contemporary artists from pop and rock, to techno and electronic. Notable performances include collaborations with Elton John, resulting in Live in Australia with the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, Kiss (band), Ben Folds, Burt Bacharach, Nick Cave, Sting, Tim Minchin, DJ Jeff Mills and Flight Facilities.
The MSO's recent discs include Strauss' Four Last Songs, Don Juan and Also Sprach Zarathustra on ABC Classics. On the Chandos label the MSO has recently released Berlioz' Harold en Italie with James Ehnes and Ives' Symphonies No.1 & 2, both led by Sir Andrew Davis.
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