San Francisco Symphony

The San Francisco Symphony is a famous American orchestra that began in 1911. It is based in San Francisco, California and has performed at the Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall since 1980. This special music hall is located in the Hayes Valley neighborhood.

The San Francisco Symphony also includes two other groups: the San Francisco Symphony Youth Orchestra, which started in 1981, and the San Francisco Symphony Chorus, which began in 1972.

Michael Tilson Thomas was the music director for the orchestra from 1995 until 2020. After that, Esa-Pekka Salonen took over this important role.

The orchestra has received many awards for its work, including an Emmy Award and 15 Grammy Awards over the past 26 years. These awards show how much people enjoy the music made by the San Francisco Symphony.

History

The early years

In 1909, a group of people in San Francisco created the Musical Association to start a professional orchestra. Famous composer and lawyer Joseph Redding helped choose Henry Kimball Hadley as the first conductor and Eduard Tak as the first concertmaster. The orchestra gave its first concerts in 1911 with 60 musicians playing music by Wagner, Tchaikovsky, Haydn, and Liszt.

Alfred Hertz became conductor in 1915. He improved the orchestra and made recordings with a company called Victor Talking Machine Company in Oakland in 1925. Hertz also led the orchestra on the radio show The Standard Hour, sponsored by Standard Oil of California, starting in 1926.

Pierre Monteux

After Hertz left in 1930, the orchestra faced hard times during the Great Depression. People in San Francisco helped save it. Pierre Monteux became the new conductor and helped improve the orchestra. He brought in Arthur Fiedler to lead summer concerts. Many famous conductors visited and led the orchestra after Monteux left in 1952.

Enrique Jordá

In 1954, Enrique Jordá became the music director. He was full of energy but later had trouble keeping the orchestra well-prepared. Because of this, he was replaced.

Josef Krips

Josef Krips took over in 1963. He made the musicians play better and started a special New Year’s Eve concert tradition. He also invited Seiji Ozawa to guest conduct, who impressed everyone.

Seiji Ozawa

Seiji Ozawa became director in 1970. He made the orchestra better and made many recordings. He started a chorus for the orchestra and tried new ideas like having dancers on stage.

Edo de Waart

Edo de Waart followed Ozawa in 1977. He kept the orchestra’s high quality and led its first concerts in the new Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall in 1980. He also added a big organ to the hall.

Herbert Blomstedt

Herbert Blomstedt became director in 1985. He helped the orchestra tour and improved the concert hall’s sound. He still returns to conduct with the orchestra.

Michael Tilson Thomas

Michael Tilson Thomas, known as “MTT,” became director in 1995. He focused on American and Russian music and helped the orchestra become stable and successful. He is the longest-serving director in the orchestra’s history.

Esa-Pekka Salonen

Esa-Pekka Salonen guest-conducted the orchestra several times before becoming its director in 2020. He announced in 2024 that he will leave when his contract ends in 2025.

Radio broadcasts and tours

The San Francisco Symphony was the first orchestra to have symphonic radio broadcasts in 1926. By 2003, its broadcasts could be heard on over 300 radio stations. For many years, there were live stereo broadcasts on KKHI in San Francisco with music directors Josef Krips and Seiji Ozawa. This included the first live broadcast across the ocean in 1973 from Paris.

The orchestra travels regularly to the United States, Europe, and Asia. Its first tour was in 1947, with Pierre Monteux leading concerts in 53 American cities. Later tours included visits to Japan, Europe, and the Soviet Union with leaders like Josef Krips and Seiji Ozawa. Recent tours with Michael Tilson Thomas have included performances in famous venues like Carnegie Hall and trips to Asia.

In 2006, the San Francisco Symphony began Keeping Score – MTT on Music, a series of audio-visual performances for DVD and broadcast on PBS’s Great Performances, along with websites and educational programs for schools.

Guests

The San Francisco Symphony has welcomed many famous musicians over the years. Great composers like Saint-Saëns and Maurice Ravel have led the orchestra. In 1937, George Gershwin even played and conducted some of his own music. Famous conductors such as Leonard Bernstein and Simon Rattle have also performed with the symphony.

Legendary musicians like violinists Jascha Heifetz and pianists Vladimir Horowitz have been special guests, sharing their talent with the audience.

Concert halls

The San Francisco Symphony gave its first performance on December 8, 1911, at the Cort Theater. Over the years, the orchestra performed at several venues, including the Curran Theatre, the Tivoli Theater, and the War Memorial Opera House. In June 1980, the Symphony played its last concert at the opera house. Since September 1980, the orchestra has mainly performed at Louise M. Davies Symphony Hall, which opened with a special concert. The hall was improved in the 1990s to make the sound better. It also has one of the largest concert hall organs in North America, made by Fratelli Ruffatti.

Recordings

The San Francisco Symphony has a long history of making recordings. Some famous recordings were made with Pierre Monteux for RCA Victor, Herbert Blomstedt for Decca, and Michael Tilson Thomas for RCA Victor and the orchestra’s own label, SFS Media.

The very first recording was made in 1925, featuring music by Auber and Richard Wagner. Over the years, many famous composers’ works have been recorded, including Ludwig van Beethoven, Johannes Brahms, and Richard Strauss. These early recordings were made on old-style records called 78 rpm discs, which are now prized by collectors.

In 1999, the orchestra made a very popular album called S&M with the heavy metal band Metallica. The album sold millions of copies and won awards. The orchestra continues to make new recordings today, featuring works by many different composers. These recordings are released on the orchestra’s own label, SFS Media, and have won several Grammy awards.

Music directors

The San Francisco Symphony has had many music directors who led the orchestra during different times. Some of the directors include Henry Hadley, Alfred Hertz, Pierre Monteux, Seiji Ozawa, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Esa-Pekka Salonen. Each of these directors helped shape the sound and style of the orchestra during their time with the group.

Conductors laureate

The San Francisco Symphony has had two special leaders called "conductors laureate." They are Herbert Blomstedt and Michael Tilson Thomas. These leaders have helped shape the orchestra’s music over the years.

Honors and awards

The San Francisco Symphony has received 19 awards from the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers for playing new music and supporting American music. In 2001, the orchestra first performed Henry Brant’s Ice Field, which later won the Pulitzer Prize for Music.

Pops Orchestra

When the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra started in 1911, its first music director, Henry Hadley, began holding special concerts called "pops." These concerts featured lighter classics and music from musicals and popular tunes. After the Civic Auditorium was built in 1915, most of these concerts were held there, and tickets were kept affordable with help from city taxes.

Later, Arthur Fiedler from the Boston Pops Orchestra led the Pops Orchestra from 1951 to 1978. He conducted concerts not only at the Civic Auditorium but also at Sigmund Stern Grove, Frost Amphitheater at Stanford University, and Oakland's Paramount Theatre. Today, the San Francisco Symphony still offers pops concerts, especially in the summer, mainly at Davies Symphony Hall. They also hold a special concert on July 4 at the Shoreline Amphitheatre.