National Symphony Orchestra (United States)

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National Symphony Orchestra
Kennedy Center Hall of Nations
Background information
Also known as	NSO
Origin	Washington DC, United States
Genre(s)	Classical
Occupation(s)	Symphony Orchestra
Years active	1931-present
Website	Official website
Members
Music Director Leonard Slatkin Principal Guest Conductor Iván Fischer Conductor Laureate Mstislav Rostropovich Pops Conductor Marvin Hamlisch Associate Conductor Emil de Cou

The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO), founded in 1931, is a major American symphony orchestra that performs at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, USA. Since 1996, the music director of the orchestra is the American conductor Leonard Slatkin.

For the first period of its history, the orchestra performed in Constitution Hall. During the tenure of the first music director, Hans Kindler, the musicians received a salary of US$40.00 per week, for three rehearsals and one concert, for five months of the year.^[1]

The National Symphony Orchestra regularly participates in events of national and international importance, including performances for ceremonial state affairs, presidential inaugurations and official holiday celebrations.

Throughout its history the Orchestra has been committed to both artistic excellence and a force for music education. In 1986 the National Symphony became the artistic affiliate of the Kennedy Center, the district's center for the performing arts, where it has presented a concert season annually since the Center opened in 1971. The Orchestra itself numbers 100 musicians, presenting a 52-week season of approximately 175 concerts each year. These include classical subscription series, pops concerts, and one of the country’s most extensive educational programs. In addition to these activities, small groups of NSO members develop education programs designed at age levels from pre-kindergarten through high school. Collectively these ensembles present as many as 100 additional performances a year during the American Residencies and at the Kennedy Center.

The National Symphony Orchestra has a strong commitment to the development of America’s artistic resources. Through the John and June Hechinger Commissioning Fund for New Orchestral Works, the NSO has commissioned more than 50 works, including cycles of fanfares and encores. To nurture new generations of conductors, Slatkin founded the National Conducting Institute in 2000. Also of note is the Kennedy Center Summer Music Institute. For more than a decade, scholarships provided by the National Trustees of the National Symphony Orchestra have enabled high school students from throughout the country to come to the nation’s capital for several weeks of study with NSO musicians.

Another important project is the National Symphony Orchestra American Residencies for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. This venture encompasses sharing all elements of classical symphonic music with a specific region of the United States, exploring the diversity of musical influences, and giving the region a musical voice in the nation’s center for the performing arts through exchanges, training programs, and commissions. Established in 1992, the project has taken the NSO to nearly of fifteen states.

In November 2004, the orchestra announced that Slatkin would conclude his tenure as the orchestra's music director in 2008. One report spoke of tensions between the conductor and the orchestra, and mentioned criticisms of Slatkin's programming and rehearsal styles.^[2] No successor has been named as of March 2007.^[3]

As of the 2006-2007 season, the principal guest conductor of the orchestra is Iván Fischer.^[4]^[5] The current concertmaster/leader of the orchestra is Nurit Bar-Josef.

[edit] Music directors

[edit] References

^ Tim Page. "The NSO: 75 and Counting Its Blessings", Washington Post, 4 Sep 2005. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Tim Page. "Slatkin, NSO to Part in 2008", Washington Post, 18 Nov 2004. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Tim Page. "A Leading Question For the NSO", Washington Post, 16 Apr 2006. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ "Q&A: Iván Fischer", Playbill Arts, 19 October 2006. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.
^ Tim Page. "Ivan Fischer: Plays Well With Children", Washington Post, 12 Feb 2007. Retrieved on 2007-03-18.