RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra
A short tour of the percussion section . . .
Life with the orchestra - and some viola jokes . . .
How some cello players got started . . .
Relaxing, extra-musical interests . . .
The RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra was born in February 1948 as the Radio Éireann Symphony Orchestra, the first permanent Irish ensemble of its kind. From the beginning, the 62-member orchestra was multi-national, which ensured the presence of excellent musicians and conductors of quality such as Jean Martinon and Hans Schmidt-Isserstedt.
In 1953 Milan Horvat became the first Principal Conductor, directing the orchestra, its strength now 72, in Classical, Romantic and contemporary repertoire, with a special emphasis on new Irish works. The outstanding guest conductor of that era was Sir John Barbirolli. Tibor Paul became Principal Conductor in 1961. His tenure is memorable for the force of his personality, his Beethoven cycles, his work to achieve a wider public image for the orchestra, the visit of Igor Stravinsky, and, in 1966, the first concerts in England of the by then renamed Radio Telefís Éireann Symphony Orchestra.
Since then, a succession of distinguished Principal Conductors has led up to Gerhard Markson today. In 1990 'National' was assumed into the orchestra's title. Today's RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra, numbering 89 permanent full-time musicians, is firmly established as a force in Irish musical and cultural life, through live performance, broadcast and touring.
In addition to its annual September-May season at the National Concert Hall, Horizons contemporary music series, national tours and residencies and summer concerts series, the orchestra continues to make a name for itself internationally through its recordings with Naxos, Marco Polo and on the RTÉ label. In 2004, the RTÉ NSO won the Orchestra and Concerto: CD Première category of the Critics' Awards in the 2004 Cannes Classical Awards for its recording of Joly Braga Santos's Symphony No. 4 under conductor Alvaro Cassuto. And in 2005, Gerald Barry's opera The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant was released on the RTÉ label to considerable acclaim.
The upcoming 2007-2008 Season, the fourth season to take place in association with Anglo Irish Bank, presents monumental works such as the Requiems of Verdi and Berlioz, Górecki's 'Symphony of Sorrowful Songs' and Messiaen's Turangalîla-symphonie alongside all-time favourites such as Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique, Holst's The Planets and Orff's Carmina Burana, and has a number of exciting strands featuring works by Wagner and Strauss, and violin and piano concertos by Rachmaninov, Chopin, Sibelius and Bruch. In addition, the orchestra is proud to present the world premières of commissions from Irish composers John Kinsella and Ronan Guilfoyle, as well as the Irish première of Kevin Volans' Trio Concerto, co-commissioned by RTÉ.
Previous collaborations between the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and RTÉ Television have included Rhapsody in the Park, the first series of The Symphony Sessions and last year's The Mozart Sessions.
Find out more about the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra and its upcoming concert season at http://www.rte.ie/performinggroups/nationalsymphonyorchestra/
