Orchestra Profiles
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Chattanooga Symphony and Opera & CSO Youth Orchestras
ORP: October 2010
The first Chattanooga Symphony concert took place in 1933, organized by a group of young musicians whose talents grew to be so appreciated by the community that they were encouraged to form a professional orchestra in 1938. Around the same time, Dr. Werner and Mrs. Emmy Wolff, both opera singers, escaped from Nazi Germany to Tennessee; they founded the Chattanooga Opera Company in 1943. The Chattanooga Symphony and Opera merged in 1985, forming the first such symphony-opera association of its kind in the United States and enjoying engagements with internationally-renowned soloists over the years. In the first decade of the 21st century, the CSOA has emerged as a leading regional orchestra dedicated to community engagement.
The Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Youth Orchestras (CSOYO) began in 1949 as the Chattanooga Philharmonic. It originally targeted young orchestral players but accepted musicians of all ages until 1955, when it was reinstated as the Chattanooga Youth Training Orchestra. At this point, Chattanooga Symphony musicians took leadership roles in the youth orchestra program and, for some years, the two groups shared a music director. After a brief hiatus in the 1970's, the Chattanooga Youth Orchestra resurfaced in 1980 and came under the auspices of the CSO. In the past 15 years, the CSOYO has grown into four youth orchestras of varying age levels, enjoying healthy local sponsorship and enthusiasm.