Wheeling / West Virginia / United States
The Wheeling Symphony Society, Inc serves the residents of our communities by providing excellent orchestral programs which entertain, educate and enhance the quality of life. The Wheeling Symphony Society, Inc was established in 1929 by Mrs. Eleanor D. Caldwell and a group of local musicians as the foundation upon which a Wheeling Symphony Orchestra was born. As the Wheeling Symphony enters its 80th season, it continues to operate on the premise of its founders who were "...prompted by a love of music and because we believe a larger musical organization could undertake more comprehensive programs for the entertainment of more people." Mrs. Caldwell, an accomplished musician herself, and local string musicians would gather at her Woodsdale home to perform together. It was this small group of musicians who formed the nucleus that became Wheeling Symphony Over the past seven decades, the symphony has gained national prominence under eight music directors. In the 2007-08 season, Music Director Andr Raphel Smith led the orchestra and group Time for Three in a co-commission with the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Pittsburgh Symphony for Jennifer Higdons Concerto 4-3. During the 2005-06 season, the orchestra presented the World Premiere of Grammy-winning American composer Richard Danielpours "Triptych" from Margaret Garner. "Triptych" for mezzo-soprano and orchestra features a text written by Nobel and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Toni Morrison. During the 2004-05 season, Maestro Smith led the orchestra in a World Premiere work by Mr. Danielpour in honor of the 50th anniversary of the founding of Wheeling Jesuit University. And in 2004, the WSO and Mr. Smith performed at the National Performing Arts Convention, as part of the American Symphony Orchestra Leagues National Conference in Pittsburgh. Guest soloists with the orchestra have included major artists of our time: Yehudi Menuhin, Arthur Rubenstein, Roberta Peters, Marian Anderson, Pinchas Zukerman, Itzhak Perlman, Yo-Yo Ma, Richard Stolzman, Andre Watts, and the late Jean-Pierre Rampal, to name a few. Today, the orchestra performs five Masterworks and two Pops concerts at the historic Capitol Music Hall in Wheeling during its regular subscription season. The spectacular holiday concert, Symphony on Ice, will be performed for the tenth consecutive year at WesBanco Arena.
