The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra counts among the six ensembles maintained by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and has issued dozens of recordings, placing it among the ABC orchestras with the largest discographies. The group enjoys international recognition despite having been directed chiefly by conductors who have not achieved wide renown. Although configured as a chamber ensemble, the TSO regularly undertakes full-scale orchestral scores by Dvorák, Smetana, Ravel, Shostakovich, and others, and it has produced complete symphony cycles of Beethoven, Mendelssohn, and Schumann. Its most prominent distinction lies in its sustained promotion of contemporary Australian composition, encompassing music by Brett Dean, Carl Vine, Don Kay, Graeme Koehne, and numerous additional figures. Recordings have appeared on Chandos, ABC Classics, Hyperion, and further leading labels.
The orchestra was established in 1948 and presented its inaugural concert on May 25 of that year under Joseph Post. While the opening program occurred at Hobart Town Hall, later performances took place at assorted Tasmanian venues. Kenneth Murison Bourn served as the first chief conductor until 1962; during his tenure the weekly radio series Journey into Melody began in 1956 and continued until 1969, after Thomas Matthews had already occupied the post from 1962 to 1968. In 1973 the TSO relocated to the ABC Odeon Building in Hobart. From the late 1960s through the 1980s a succession of chief conductors led the ensemble, the most prominent being the virtuoso French horn player Barry Tuckwell. Dobbs Franks held the position from 1989 to 1991 before David Procelijn assumed leadership; under Procelijn the TSO became the first Australian orchestra to record all the Beethoven symphonies in a widely praised project released on ABC Classics. In 1998 the ensemble moved again, this time to the Federation Concert Hall in Hobart. Beginning in 2001, when Ola Rudner was appointed chief conductor, the TSO recorded sixteen installments in Hyperion’s Romantic Piano Concerto series with Howard Shelley serving as both pianist and conductor. Starting in 2006 the orchestra undertook the Australian Composer Series for ABC Classics, resulting in more than twenty releases. Sebastian Lang-Lessing succeeded Rudner in 2004. Marko Letonja became chief conductor in 2012 and remained until the end of 2018. In December 2016 the TSO toured the Chinese provinces of Jiangsu, Fujian, and Shanghai, giving nine concerts across seven cities before returning to Tasmania in January 2017. Eivind Aadland was named chief conductor as of 2020.
