Dallas Symphony Orchestra -

The Dallas Symphony Orchestra’s beginnings can be traced to May 22, 1900, when a 40-member ensemble performed under the direction of German-born conductor Hans Kreissig. In the ensuing years, the Dallas Symphony began to grow into a major American orchestra under the leadership of such eminent conductors as Walter J. Fried and Jacques Singer. The Dallas Symphony took great strides in the 1940s under the direction of Antal Dorati, who transformed the ensemble into a fully professional, first-rate orchestra. It was in 1977, under the direction of Mexican-born Eduardo Mata, that the Dallas Symphony enjoyed many successes including recording contracts with RCA and Dorian, a European tour, three concerts in Mexico City and three concerts in Singapore. When the Morton H. Meyerson Symphony Center opened in 1989, the resulting international press gained Dallas a reputation as a “vital cultural center” and a “rewarding stop on any international orchestra’s tour schedule.”

In 1992, the Dallas Symphony Association named Andrew Litton to succeed Mata as music director, and he embarked on an ambitious program to significantly raise the orchestra’s international standing through touring, recording, performances at Carnegie Hall and a summer residency at the Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival. Following Litton’s retirement, the DSO named Jaap van Zweden as its new music director. The 2008-2009 season marked van Zweden’s first as music director of the DSO, a season which included two world premieres, a three-city tour of Florida in March of 2009 and rave reviews by critics all over the world. This coming season will see van Zweden leading the orchestra in works by Barber, Mahler, Rachmaninoff and Brahms, as well as a nine-city tour of Europe.