Reading Symphony Orchestra

Reading Symphony Orchestra is an amateur orchestra with over 60 players and is led by a professional conductor, Stefan Hofkes. RSO was formed in 1944 by musicians who had previously been members of the Berkshire Symphony Orchestra, disbanded at the start of the war in 1939. We generally perform four main concerts each year, at a variety of venues i... n the Reading area. The season is often supplemented by the orchestra being invited to take part in additional events, such as the recent collaboration with the Reading Festival Chorus to present Bruckner's "Te Deum". A recording of the orchestra's performance of Dvorak's Symphony No.8 was featured on BBC Radio 3 as part of their 'Listen Up!' festival in 2006. Annually, members form a chamber orchestra, the Reading Sinfonietta, to perform an extra concert of small-scale works not practicable for a large-scale symphony orchestra. Our wind section has also operated independently under the name RSO Winds. In recent years we have celebrated the link with Reading's twin town, Düsseldorf, by joining forces with the Orchester der Landesregierung Düsseldorf e.V. These events have allowed us to perform large scale works, such as Mahler's mighty 'Resurrection' Symphony and Verdi's Requiem. The most recent venture took place in November 2016, when we joined our German friends for a family concert featuring British music at the Düsseldorf Tonhalle.Read More