Cape Town Symphony Orchestra
The Cape Town Symphony Orchestra (CTSO) (formerly the Cape Town Municipal Orchestra) was an orchestra in Cape Town (1969-1997).
Contents
History
In an effort to revitalize the orchestra, the Cape Town Municipal Orchestra (established 1914) changed its name to the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra (CTSO) in 1969.
During the 1970s under the dynamic management of Benito Moni, the Orchestra's role in the Cape Town community became very diverse. Not only did he increase the size of the Orchestra to approximately 80 members, he managed to enhance the Orchestra's reputation overseas as well. Despite international boycotts on South Africa, Moni managed to bring international artists to Cape Town at the time when international performers were under pressure not to perform in South Africa and the Orchestra played an important part in keeping musical culture alive in Cape Town. Prior to the desegregation of concerts in 1975, the Orchestra gave some concerts for Non-European audiences to try and redress the political imbalances in the Cape Town Community.
In 1986, the CTSO was privatized as a Section 21 Company.
Throughout the 1980s and the remainder of its existence in the 1990s, the Orchestra aimed to bring music to all communities in the Cape Town Area. In the eighty-three years that the Orchestra served the Cape Town community, it had largely succeeded in achieving this aim and, in so doing, had enhanced the prestige of the city of Cape Town.
The Cape Philharmonic Orchestra (formerly the CAPAB Orchestra) merged with the Cape Town Symphony Orchestra (CTSO) in 1997, becoming the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra (CTPO).
Performances
1988: The Orchestra performed at the Taipei Concert Hall during their visit to China.
Sources
Ingrid Gollom. 2000. The History of the Cape Town Orchestra, Unpublished Masters Dissertation, UNISA.
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