Oakville Symphony Orchestra


The Oakville Symphony is a Canadian orchestra performing in Oakville, Ontario.

History

The Oakville Symphony was founded in 1967 by Kenneth Hollier, a local musician and educator with the original mission statement to "make music for the pleasure of its members and the enjoyment of its audience". The Oakville Symphony currently performs at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts.
In 1968, a small group met for the first rehearsal in a music room at T. A. Blakelock High School, among which a few members still perform with the orchestra today. The newly formed orchestra's first performance was held at the YMCA on June 24, 1968.
The Oakville Symphony has a long history of presenting collaborations with local groups including the Oakville Symphony Youth Orchestra, White Oaks Choral Society, the Clarkson Opera Society, the Oakville School of Ballet, the Oakville Children's Choir and the Oakville Suzuki Association.
From 1998 to 2020, the Oakville Symphony was under the direction of Roberto De Clara. Initiatives such as the Young Artist Awards, a Family Christmas Concert and a Young People's Concert plus a program of community outreach called Meet a Musician and the maestro's popular Not Just the Score talks have ensured that audiences of all ages are reached in the community.
The Oakville Symphony has a loyal base of subscribers for its main concert series which takes place on four weekends a season with two performances of each concert which are close to sold-out. The Orchestra attracts guest soloists of international renown who enjoy the warmth of the welcome from musicians and patrons alike. A review of pianist Christopher Goodpasture's performance of Grieg's Concerto for Piano in A minor with the OS stated, "The orchestra seemed to understand that this was a very special performance and rose to the challenge with its best work. The communication between soloist, orchestra and conductor was akin to that of a chamber ensemble."
Since July 2022, the current Music Director has been Lorenzo Guggenheim.
Over 80 musicians play regularly with the orchestra, eleven of them are paid professionals who lead sections and mentor the high school students in the Young Artist program.
For the 2025/2026 season, the orchestra performs the following repertoire:
ComposerRepertoire
Angélica NegrónMoriviví
Ludwig van BeethovenTriple Concerto
Modest Mussorgsky / Maurice RavelPictures at an Exhibition
Franz SchrekerSymphonic Interlude from Der Schatzgräber
Franz LisztPiano Concerto No. 1
Sergei RachmaninoffSymphony No. 2
Florence PriceSuite of Dances
Jean SibeliusViolin Concerto
Pyotr Ilyich TchaikovskySymphony No. 5
George GershwinAn American in Paris
Bohuslav MartinůRhapsody Concerto for Viola and Orchestra
Nino RotaBassoon Concerto
John WilliamsStar Wars Suite

For the 2024/2025 season, the orchestra performed the following repertoire:
ComposerRepertoire
Gabriela OrtizKauyumari
Johannes BrahmsViolin Concerto
Amy BeachGaelic Symphony
Johannes BrahmsIntermezzo op. 118 No. 2
Frédéric ChopinPiano Concerto No. 1
Sergei ProkofievSelections from Romeo and Juliet
John WilliamsMusic from Star Wars, Superman, Indiana Jones and E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Samuel BarberMutations from Bach
Wolfgang Amadeus MozartPiano Concerto No. 23
Henri TomasiTrumpet Concerto
Igor StravinskySuite from The Firebird
Ludwig van BeethovenSymphony No. 8
Giacomo Puccini"Quando me'n vo'" from La bohème
Giacomo Puccini"O mio babbino caro" from Gianni Schicchi
Charles Gounod"Je veux vivre" from Roméo et Juliette
Howard LevyDiatonic Harmonica Concerto
Astor PiazzollaOblivion
Dave BrubeckBlue Rondo à la Turk
Arturo MarquezDanzón No. 2

Premiere performances