Vision Pledge & RSO History
We, the Richmond Symphony, will be the organization to which our community will turn for outstanding and innovative concert experiences of symphonic music of all kinds. We will make every effort to educate, and be educated by, our constituents. We pledge to engage our community, to sustain and build the relationship among the musicians and our audiences, and to perform with an intensity and passion unlike that of any other orchestra.
History
The Richmond Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1957 by a small, dedicated group of music-lovers who desired to provide Central Virginia with a professional orchestra. The Symphony performed only three concerts in its inaugural season; today, the orchestra makes more than 200 public appearances each season. We employ 36 core (full-time) and more than 40 part-time musicians, perform for approximately 125,000 patrons each season, and reach thousands more area residents through educational outreach programs and weekly radio broadcasts on WCVE-FM. As a nonprofit corporation, the Richmond Symphony is partially supported by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts.
The Richmond Symphony is dedicated to achieving excellence in both contemporary and traditional symphonic repertoire. We incorporate classical, gospel, jazz, and contemporary and popular music into our repertoire, making good music interesting and accessible to everyone. Among our ticketed series are:
Northwestern Mutual Masterworks Series - Beloved masterpieces in the traditional European art music repertory.
Bach Festival - Four unique concerts celebrating the music of the master.
Genworth Financial Kicked Back Classics - Featuring selected Masterworks repertoire in a more casual and interactive format, these concerts serve as a great introduction to the world of classical music
Wachovia Securities Pops Series - Lighter popular and classical favorites, featuring celebrated stage and screen performers.
Family Concerts - These less formal, family-friendly events feature student performers and activities such as the Instrument Petting Zoo.
The roster of guest artists has included numerous internationally respected musicians such as Aretha Franklin, Marvin Hamlisch, Ani Kavafian, Joanne Kong, Elmar Olivera, Itzhak Perlman, Joseph Silverstein, Dmitry Sitkovetsky, Jubilant Sykes, and André Watts.
The Symphony’s educational programs seek to foster and develop diverse, informed audiences who value live symphonic performances and music education in our community; to help nurture and develop young musicians; and to advocate for music education and orchestral music. We serve more than 35,000 area school-aged children each year through in-school ensemble performances and masterclasses, academically themed Discovery concerts, and our four Young Performers Program (YPP) youth orchestra ensembles.
A growing body of evidence suggests that music education helps students perform better academically and develop self-discipline, confidence, the ability to solve problems creatively, and communication skills. A positive hobby such as music performance also offers an alternative to engaging in unhealthy or destructive behavior. In addition to helping children develop important life skills, music education is important in its own right as a component of a well-rounded education. Because of our long history of providing music education services, and through our relationships with area schools, we are uniquely positioned to provide important enhancements to area schools’ own music programs.
We at the Symphony are proud of our 50 years of service to the community, and of the critical and popular recognition that many of our past programs have garnered - including 7 awards for adventurous programming from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP).