We celebrate 120 years
The Orchestra was founded in 1903 by most of the members of the Concert Society —the first stable symphony orchestra in Spain, created by Francisco Asenjo Barbieri in 1866—, and made its debut at the Teatro Real in Madrid on February 7, 1904, conducted by Alonso Cordelás. In 1905 a fruitful collaboration with Enrique Fernández Arbós began, which lasted for three decades, during which figures of the stature of Richard Strauss and Igor Stravinsky also took the podium. Under Arbós' direction, the basic objectives that the Orchestra should set for all its activities were defined: renewal of the repertoire, support for Spanish music and musicians, and creation of new audiences. One hundred years later, these three criteria remain fundamental for the Madrid Symphony Orchestra. After Arbós' death, the Orchestra was led by Spanish conductors such as Conrado del Campo, José María Franco, Enrique Jordá and Vicente Spiteri.
In 1981, following an agreement with the Ministry of Culture, it became the resident orchestra for all performances at the Teatro de la Zarzuela and also recovered its purely symphonic activity, a field in which the annual concert series at the National Auditorium of Music stands out. In addition to working with all the most important Spanish conductors, it has been conducted by maestros such as Peter Maag, Pinchas Steinberg, Kurt Sanderling, Krzysztof Penderecki and Mstislav Rostropovich
The book The Madrid Symphony Orchestra: ninety years of history by Carlos Gómez Amat and Joaquín Turina (Alianza Editorial, 1994) chronicles the life of the ensemble. Its discography includes Spanish zarzuelas and operas recorded for «Auvidis», the complete Mendelssohn Symphonies, under the direction of Peter Maag, for «Arts» and the world premiere recordings of Albéniz's Merlin and Henry Clifford, conducted by José de Eusebio, or Fernández Arbós' Journey to the Center of the Earth, by José Luis Temes. A significant part of its performances at the Teatro Real is being published on disc as well as dvd or blu-ray, and is available in the Palco Digital video library.