About this artist
The Virginia Symphony Orchestra is an American orchestra administratively based in Norfolk. The VSO's current music director is JoAnn Falletta, since 1991. The VSO's current president and chief executive officer is Karen Philion.
The VSO performs concerts in various venues in Virginia, including:
Chrysler Hall, Norfolk
The Sandler Center for the Performing Arts, Virginia Beach
Ferguson Center for the Arts, Newport News
Phi Beta Kappa Memorial Hall at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg
Regent University in Virginia Beach
The VSO also works closely with Virginia Opera and the Virginia Arts Festival.
The orchestra was founded in 1920 as the Norfolk Civic Symphony Orchestra, and gave its first concert on 21 April 1921, conducted by Walter Edward Howe, who was the first music director of the orchestra. At the time, the Norfolk Civic Symphony Orchestra was the only American orchestra between Baltimore and Atlanta.
In 1949, during the music directorship of Edgar Schenkman, the Norfolk Civic Symphony Orchestra merged with the Civic Chorus to form the Norfolk Symphony and Choral Association.