The Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra (HRO) is a collegiate symphony orchestra comprising Harvard students and based in

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a College town, university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cam ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut Massachusett_writing_systems.html" ;"title="nowiki/> məhswatʃəwiːsət.html" ;"title="Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət">Massachusett writing systems">məhswatʃəwiːsət'' En ...

. Founded in March 1808 as the Pierian Sodality, the orchestra is considered by some the oldest symphony orchestra in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

. Others dispute this because of the organization's somewhat informal beginnings (the original charter states that the intent of the Pierian Sodality is to "perform music for the enjoyment of others as well as serenade young women in the square"), and because at one point in its history, the Pierian Sodality was reduced to only one member, a flutist named Henry Gassett. As a result, some consider the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

the oldest American orchestra. The HRO assumed its current form as a modern symphony orchestra during the first half of the 20th century and was briefly the nation's largest collegiate orchestra. The orchestra has over 100 members, and is the largest of Harvard's orchestras. In general, only

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate college of Harvard University, an Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636, Harvard College is the original school of Harvard University, the oldest institution of higher lea ...

students are eligible for membership, though this rule is not absolute and has occasionally been waived when necessary, allowing students from the other Harvard schools to participate. The orchestra plays four concerts every year in

Sanders Theatre Memorial Hall, immediately north of Harvard Yard in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is an imposing High Victorian Gothic building honoring Harvard men's sacrifices in defense of the Union during the American Civil War"a symbol of Boston's commitment ...

on Harvard's campus. It also sometimes gives children's concerts and regularly participates in Harvard's annual Arts First festival. Its alumni board is still known as the Pierian Sodality of 1808. From 1964 to 2009, the orchestra was led by James Yannatos, a composer and member of the music faculty. He retired after the 2008-09 school year, and Federico Cortese took over as music director on July 1, 2009. The HRO has toured various places throughout its history, including

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, and most recently,

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. It has also performed in Carnegie Hall, and in 1978 placed third in the International Festival of Student Orchestras.

References

External links

Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra Home Page
{{authority control 1808 establishments in Massachusetts Organizations established in 1808 Musical groups established in the 1800s Harvard University musical groups Radcliffe College and Institute University orchestras Orchestras based in Massachusetts Albany Records artists