Atlanta Symphony Orchestra

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

See also Atlanta Symphony Youth Orchestra and Atlanta Wind Symphony

The Atlanta Symphony Orchestra (ASO) is an American orchestra based in Atlanta, Georgia. Robert Spano has been their Music Director since 2001.

The orchestra was founded in 1945, and played its first concert as the Atlanta Youth Symphony under the direction of Henry Sopkin, a Chicago music educator who remained its Conductor until 1966.The organization changed to its current name in 1947, and soon began attracting well known soloists such as Isaac Stern and Glenn Gould. In 1967, with the departure of Sopkin, Robert Shaw (founder of the Robert Shaw Chorale) became the conductor, and a year later the orchestra turned full- time. In 1970, Shaw founded a choir specially for the orchestra, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus. In 1988, Yoel Levi became Music Director and principal conductor. Under him, the orchestra played at the opening and closing ceremonies of the Centennial 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta. Levi became Music Director Emeritus in 2000, and was succeeded as Music Director by Robert Spano.

In 1978, the ASO became the first American orchestra to make a digital recording intended for commercial release, when it played Igor Stravinsky's Firebird suite and excerpts from Alexander Borodin's opera, Prince Igor for the Telarc label. In 2004, the orchestra initiated an agreement with the Deutsche Grammophon label to record several works by composer Osvaldo Golijov, while continuing its ongoing relationship with Telarc which has resulted in numerous Grammy awards.

The orchestra toured Europe under Yoel Levi in 1991; and with its chorus, under Robert Shaw, in 1988. In 2003, the ASOC visited Berlin, where it gave three performances of Benjamin Britten's War Requiem with the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra under ASO Principal Guest Conductor Donald Runnicles.

The Woodruff Arts Center

The ASO's main venue is Atlanta Symphony Hall in the Woodruff Arts Center. It plays an extensive outdoor summer Pops concert series at city-owned Chastain Park, and at other parks in the area. In February 2005 the orchestra unveiled plans for the new Atlanta Symphony Center concert hall designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, to be built subject to raising construction funds of approximately $300 million. On January 25, 2007, the ASO also announced plans to construct and operate a new $35 million 12,000-seat outdoor amphitheatre at Encore Park in north Fulton County in the town of Alpharetta, some 25 miles north of Atlanta. Encore Park will be owned by the Woodruff Arts Center, the ASO's parent organization; it is expected to open in mid-2008. With a budget expected to increase to $50 million with the completion of its new amphitheater in Alpharetta, Georgia, the ASO's product costs approximately $250,000 per performance to produce, more than the annual budgets of most of the other performing arts companies in the state of Georgia.^[1]

[edit] Music directors

Robert Spano (Music Director, 2001- )
Yoel Levi (Music Director, 1988-2000; Music Director Emeritus, 2000-2005)
Robert Shaw (Music Director and Conductor, 1967-1988; Music Director Emeritus and Conductor Laureate, 1988-1999)
Henry Sopkin (Conductor, 1945-1966)