Columbus Symphony Orchestra

History

The Columbus Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1951 as the Columbus Little Symphony, following the demise of the city's previous professional symphony, the Columbus Philharmonic Orchestra. The first music director of the orchestra was the flutist and conductor Claude Monteux. In its first year, the Columbus Little Symphony presented a series of 5 concerts with 28 musicians. Its first full season of concerts took place at Central High School (now COSI Columbus) in 1952. In 1955, the Columbus Little Symphony officially became the Columbus Symphony Orchestra. From its founding until 1961, the Symphony was unique in that it was governed exclusively by women, veterans of the Women's Association of the Columbus Philharmonic.

The longest-serving music director was Evan Whallon, who led the orchestra for 26 seasons, from 1956 to 1982. From 1956 to 1970 the orchestra performed concerts at the Franklin County Veterans Memorial Auditorium. The Ohio Theatre has been the orchestra's home since 1970. The former movie theater was saved from demolition and renovated largely to provide a new hall for the orchestra.

In the absence of a professional opera company in Columbus, the Columbus Symphony began presenting opera in the 1970s. At this time it was also able to hire its first full-time musicians, thus increasing the caliber of its performances. By 1980, the Columbus Symphony was presenting three fully staged operatic productions each year. By 1981, as the Symphony celebrated its 30th anniversary, it had grown from three concerts in its first season to a nine-concert symphonic series, three pops concerts, a chamber orchestra and ensemble series, more than 200 educational programs and three major outdoor pops concerts. 1983 began the inaugural season of the Columbus Symphony’s Picnic with the Pops summer concert series, now a central Ohio tradition.

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s the symphony expanded in size and activity becoming an orchestra of up to 53 full-time musicians and offering a full slate of classical and pops concerts with noted guest artists. In addition it began performing with Opera Columbus and Ballet Met and expanded its educational activities, both in the Columbus City Schools and with a Youth Orchestra program. In 2001 it celebrated its 50th anniversary with a debut concert at Carnegie Hall under music director Alessandro Siciliani. Gunther Herbig, the former conductor of the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, was the orchestra's music adviser during the search for a music director following the tenure of Siciliani.

After a two-year search, Junichi Hirokami was named the orchestra's sixth music director on June 1, 2006. In 2008, the orchestra experienced a severe financial crisis, resulting in an extended labor dispute centering around a proposal by the orchestra's board to reduce the number of full-time musicians from 53 to 31. The summer pops season was canceled and the orchestra's musicians staged a series of independent concerts during the orchestra's suspension of activities., conducted by Siciliani and Hirokami. The orchestra's troubles received national attention with articles appearing in The Cleveland Plain Dealer, The Cincinnati Enquirer, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and other publications. During the orchestra's 2008 financial crisis, Hirokami strongly supported the musicians, which caused strained relations between Hirokami and the orchestra's board and management. On November 13, 2008, in a letter to the orchestra's musicians, Hirokami announced that the board of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra had dismissed him from his post, effective immediately. Herbig returned as the orchestra's de facto principal guest conductor, though without that formal title, and musical adviser.

On September 22, 2008 it was announced that a new contract had been ratified by the board and the musicians of the CSO allowing a truncated 2008-2009 concert season to proceed following five months of silence. The new contract preserved the orchestra's 53 full-time positions but reduced salaries by about 27 percent. Further cuts in management expense reduced the annual budget by a total of $2.7 million (USD) for a new annual budget of $9.5 million (USD). The concessions were made, according to news reports, in the interest of preserving the orchestra. Following the dispute a new board chairman, Martin Inglis, was elected. Subsequently, executive director Tony Beadle left the organization. A new executive director, Roland Valliere, began his tenure with the orchestra on August 3, 2009. During the 2009–2010 season, the Columbus Symphony resumed performing a full season of classical and pops concerts, its first since the dispute.

Jean-Marie Zeitouni next served as music director from 2010 to 2014. The orchestra's seventh music director, appointed in 2014, is Rossen Milanov. The noted Bulgarian conductor will take on duties full-time beginning with the 2015-2016 season. In July 2016 rapper Nelly performed with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra.

Music directors

Youth Orchestra

The Columbus Symphony also sponsors a Youth Orchestra program, directed by Peter Stafford Wilson. The program is divided into four Orchestras, based on ability and age.

Notable events