Cleveland Chamber Symphony

History

The Cleveland Chamber Symphony (CCS) was founded in 1980 by composer Edwin London as a professional ensemble in residence at Cleveland State University to perform new, primarily American music. Through the vision and expertise of Dr. London and the talent of a dedicated core of Cleveland musicians, the ensemble steadily grew in scope and stature throughout the following two decades, performing, recording and commissioning contemporary orchestral music.

At the peak of its activity, CCS presented a concert series of eight programs and numerous recording sessions in each season under the direction of Edwin London. Performances were offered at Cleveland State University and many other Cleveland venues, including the Cleveland Museum of Art, Trinity Cathedral, Public Hall, Karamu House, Liberty Hill Baptist Church, Old Stone Church and John Carroll University. In addition, the ensemble offered "encore" performances in communities adjacent to Cuyahoga County and throughout the Midwest.

Composers in Cleveland and around the world began to see the Cleveland Chamber Symphony as an important resource for their work and the work of their younger students. Composers of national and international stature whose works were being commissioned and performed by CCS were drawn to Cleveland as guest conductors and pedagogues. A hallmark of the ensemble was the close collaborative relationship it shared with many composers. In many ways, CCS set the standard for the performance of contemporary orchestral music. A critically acclaimed performance of Bernard Rands' Canti Trilogy led to a national tour culminating in a memorable performance in Paine Hall at Harvard University.

In 2007, the group won a Grammy Award in the Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Soloist(s) Performance (with orchestra) category, for its recording of Olivier Messiaen's Oiseaux exotiques conducted by John McLaughlin Williams with pianist Angelin Chang.

The current music director is Steven Smith, who has held the position since 2005

Young & Emerging Composers

Each Spring CCS holds their Young and Emerging Composers Concert, a unique performance featuring only music by student composers selected through a competitive process. This concert, a staple of the Chamber Symphony‘s programming since its founding in 1980, represents the best in a longstanding tradition of collegiality, apprenticeship and collaboration. Through rehearsals, the performance, and interaction with highly trained professional musicians, it offers student composers an interactive laboratory within which they can create, experiment with, and refine their music.

Select Recordings

Sound Encounters I (GM 2039 )

1. Libby Larsen: What the Monster Saw
2. Salvatore Martirano: LON/dons - Howie Smith, saxophone
3. Bernard Rands: London Serenade
4. Roger Reynolds: The Dream of the Infinite Rooms - Regina Mushabac, cello

The New American Scene (Albany Records, Troy 298)

1. Ronald Perera: Music for Flute and Orchestra - William Wittig, flute
2. Howie Smith: Songs for the Children - Howie Smith, wind controller/alto saxophone
3. Edwin London: una novella della sera primavera - Harry Sargous, oboe
4. John Eaton: Songs of Desperation & Comfort - Nelda Nelson, mezzo-soprano

Cleveland Chamber Symphony Vol 6 (TNC CD 1515)

1. Danceanu: Chinonic, Op. 67
2. Messiaen: Oiseaux Exotiques (Exotic Birds) - Angelin Chang - piano
3. Ligeti: Chamber Concerto for 13 Instrumentalists
4. Shostakovich: Concerto no. 1 for Piano and Orchestra, Op. 35 - Angelin Chang, piano

The recording of Oiseaux Exotiques by Olivier Messiaen has been awarded a 2007 Grammy Award in the category of Classical Music: Best Instrumental Solo with Orchestra

Locations

The orchestra was formerly based at Cleveland State University but is now based at the Cleveland Music School Settlement in partnership with Baldwin-Wallace Conservatory of Music.