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Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra

The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO[1]) is an American orchestra based in the city of Rochester, New York. Its primary concert venue is the Eastman Theatre at the Eastman School of Music.

Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO)

1922 (1922)

Rochester, New York, U.S.

Eastman Theatre

Andreas Delfs

www.rpo.org

(1923–1925)

Albert Coates

(1923–1931)

Eugene Goossens

(1936–1944)

José Iturbi

(1947–1955)

Erich Leinsdorf

(1959–1963)

Theodore Bloomfield

(1964–1968)

László Somogyi

(1968–1970) Interim Conductor

Walter Hendl

(1970–1971) Interim Conductor

Samuel Jones

(1974–1985)

David Zinman

(1985–1988) Principal Conductor

Jerzy Semkow

(1989–1994)

Mark Elder

(1994–1998)

Robert Bernhardt

(1998–2011)

Christopher Seaman

[8] (2011–2013)

Arild Remmereit

(2014–2021)

Ward Stare

(2021-)

Andreas Delfs

1939 – William Grant Still’s "Afro-American Symphony": Howard Hanson, conductor. (RCA)

1939–40 – Hanson’s Symphony No. 2: Howard Hanson, conductor. (RCA)

1940–41 – Hanson’s Suite from "Merry Mount": Howard Hanson, conductor. (RCA)

1940 – Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 3 in A minor, \"Scotch\": José Iturbi, conductor. (RCA Victor)

1941 – Beethoven’s Concerto No. 3 in C minor, Op.37: José Iturbi, piano and conductor. (RCA Victor)

1941 – Dvorak's Symphony No. 9 in E minor, "From the New World," Op. 95: José Iturbi, conductor. (RCA Victor)

[9]

1941 – Mozart’s Concerto in E flat Major K.365: José Iturbi, piano and conductor; Amparo Iturbi, piano. (RCA Victor)

1952 – Beethoven’s Symphony No. 3 in E-flat major, "Eroica," Op. 55: Erich Leinsdorf, conductor. (Columbia Entré)

1953 – Rachmaninoff’s "Symphonic Dances", Op. 45: Erich Leinsdorf, conductor. (Columbia)

The RPO has recorded under at least three different names: Eastman Rochester Orchestra, Rochester Pops Orchestra, and the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra. Recordings have featured many prominent American composers, including George Gershwin, Samuel Barber, Morton Gould, and Howard Hanson). The orchestra's first recordings were from the late 1930s and early 1940s, conducted by Hanson and José Iturbi. Among these is a 1939 recording of William Grant Still's Afro-American Symphony, conducted by Hanson. The RPO presented the world premiere of this work in 1931.

Honors and awards[edit]

The RPO was one of the first American orchestras to use radio to help increase its outreach and education. The RPO first began national radio broadcasts, on the NBC Blue Network, in 1929. In 1939, 1941, and 1944, the orchestra won First Place at the Exhibition of Educational Programs for its elementary school programming.


In 1959, the Ford Foundation invited the RPO to participate in a program to promote new American composers and their works. The RPO has received the ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming four times, in 1982, 2005, 2006, and 2012, in recognition of its commitment to music written in the previous 25 years. In 2002, the RPO was awarded the New York State Governor's Arts Award for excellence and community service. The Rochester Arts and Cultural Council's Artist Award has been given to both Jeff Tyzik (2002) and Christopher Seaman (2003).


The Concert Companion radio broadcast with Christopher Seaman on WXXI 91.5 FM won both the Gabriel Award and the Silver Reel Award in 2002. In 2007, the RPO's web site received two of the Rochester Business Journal's "Best of the Web" awards; and that same year, the RPO's annual report received an award from the Rochester chapter of the Public Relations Society of America. In 2013, the RPO again was awarded the Rochester Business Journal's "Best of the Web" Award for Nonprofit (Cultural).[10]


In 2012, the RPO received the first-ever Amy Award for Excellence in Orchestral Programming from Women's Philharmonic Advocacy.


In 2018, the RPO and harpist Yolanda Kondonassis, conducted by Ward Stare, recorded the world premiere recording of Jennifer Higdon's Harp Concerto. This recording received a Grammy Award in 2020 for Best Contemporary Classical Composition and was nominated for Best Classical Instrumental Solo in the same year.

Sources[edit]

1. Rochester's Orchestra: A History of the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra and its Educational Programming, 1922 to 1989; by William L. Cahn, published 1989. 2. The Eastman Theatre: Fulfilling George Eastman's Dream; by Elizabeth Brayer, photos by Andy Olenick, design by Kathryn D'Amanda; to be published in December 2010.

Official website