Regina Symphony Orchestra

<!--- COI edit: hiding temporarily until it can be properly sourced Long before Regina had gained its status as a city, the cultural arts were beginning to flourish. As good fortune would have it many of Regina's early settlers, including members of the North West Mounted Police, were talented musicians and vocalists. However, that talent needed the stimulation provided by Scottish immigrant Franklin L. Laubach. One can only wonder what would have happened had Laubach's original plans to be a farmer not fallen through.

Upon realizing that farming was not for him, Franklin Laubach moved with his family to Regina, where he turned his attention back to his original career in music. By 1904 he had organized the Regina Philharmonic Society and in 1906 conducted Haydn's Creation at Knox Church with a chorus of 67 voices and an orchestra of 13 musicians. By 1908 the Orchestral Society was formed with its inaugural concert presented in the City Hall Auditorium on December 3, 1908. Laubach continued to work tirelessly organizing many music events until in 1915, when at the age of 59, he joined the Canadian army. He returned to Regina after WWI and resumed his former role of conductor with the Philharmonic and Orchestral Society which, by 1919, had been reorganized into the Regina Choral and Orchestral Society.

The evolution of the orchestra continued when in 1923 the Regina Choral and Orchestral Society became the Regina Symphony Orchestra, the Regina Choral Society and the Regina Male Voice Choir. However, the orchestra's concert programs continued to read "Regina Orchestral Society" until 1970, then it read "Regina Symphony" and finally in 1976, 52 years after the motion was made to change the name, it became the "Regina Symphony Orchestra.

Darke Hall, on College Avenue, was formally opened in 1929, giving the orchestra its first home after years of playing in various buildings in the city. The orchestra continued to perform through the 1930s – the toughest years on the prairies – and WWII with musicians acting primarily as volunteers, receiving honorariums only when there was a financial surplus.

The period between 1959 and 1981 was that of steady growth for the orchestra. This was due to several significant changes during that time. The first was to the status of the Regina College to that of University. The University expanded its Music Department and hired first rate musicians as instructors. This allowed the orchestra to start building its professional group. As well, public funding increased during the late 1960s to the early 1980s and the orchestra's home moved to the Centre of the Arts (now Conexus Arts Centre) in 1970, which allowed the audience to grow from 750 people per concert to over 2,000.

Today the Regina Symphony Orchestra is a full scale, fully professional orchestra that, in a 39 week season, presents: 1 pre-season outdoor concert event, 8 to 9 classics concerts, 4 pops concerts, 1 Baroque concert, 1 children's concert, 2 to 3 special concerts including 1 holiday special, and 6 double chamber concerts. As well, the core members (RSO Chamber Players) perform at 4 culinary tour concerts in partnership with the Hotel Saskatchewan Radisson Plaza. Community outreach is important to the RSO which, with its chamber group performs 40 school concerts each season; 3 to 4 double 'run out' concerts in South Saskatchewan communities; and 15 free concerts in various venues throughout the city of Regina.

The Regina Symphony Orchestra plays an important role in the cultural fabric of Southern Saskatchewan. By continuing to strive for excellence in performance and by remaining relevant to its audiences, the orchestra will continue to grow and to enrich life in Southern Saskatchewan. The RSO organization will persist through the dedication, and determination provided by the RSO executive director, music directors, board of governors, and musicians. That combined with the support of the orchestra's audiences, sponsors, various levels of government and corporate partners will ensure the Regina Symphony Orchestra will perform long into the future. ---> The Regina Symphony Orchestra (RSO) was founded by Frank Laubach, in Regina, Saskatchewan, as the Regina Orchestral Society in 1908, giving its inaugural concert December 3 of that same year. Becoming the Regina Choral and Orchestral Society in 1919, and merging briefly with the Regina Male Voice Choir as the Regina Philharmonic Association in 1924, it returned to independent status as the Regina Symphony in 1926, presenting its first regular season (1927–1928) under W. Knight Wilson.

For many years an orchestra of 50 players, it grew to 70 in the 1960s. From 1929, its home was Darke Hall on College Avenue until it moved to the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts in 1970.

The orchestra performs over 30 concerts every season to over 30,000 people over a 37-week season.

King Charles III, as Prince of Wales, granted his patronage to the orchestra in September 2008, making the RSO the fourth orchestra in the world to be granted this honour by the heir to the Canadian throne. In 2023 members of the orchestra were selected to play at his coronation.

The orchestra has also performed with the South Saskatchewan Youth Orchestra (begun in 1977 under the RSO's sponsorship), the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, the National Ballet, the Regina Symphony Philharmonic Chorus (established in 1973) and Alberta Opera. The orchestra has also been broadcast regularly by CBC Radio.

Conductors
Regina Symphony conductors have been:


 * Frank Laubach 1908–1922
 * W(illiam) Knight Wilson 1923–1941 and 1945–1955
 * Arthur Collingwood 1941–1942 (Conservatory)
 * John Thornicroft 1942–1945 (Conservatory), 1955–1958
 * Paul McIntyre 1959–1960
 * Howard Leyton-Brown 1960–1971
 * Boris Brott 1971–1973
 * Ted Kardash 1973–1974
 * Timothy Vernon 1975–1976
 * Guest conductors 1976–1978
 * Gregory Millar 1978–1981
 * Simon Streatfeild 1981–1984
 * Derrick Inouye 1984–1989
 * Vladimir Conta 1989–1997
 * Victor Sawa 1997–2016
 * Gordon Gerrard 2016–

Concertmasters
Concertmasters have been:


 * Marion B. Kinnee 1926–1932, 1933–1935
 * Jean Eilers 1932–1933, 1935–1936
 * John Thornicroft 1936–1955
 * Lloyd Blackman 1955–1959 and 1960–1975
 * Elizabeth Boychuk 1959–1960
 * Malcolm Lowe 1975–1977
 * Brian Boychuk 1974–1975 (acting/assistant) 1977–1978
 * Howard Leyton-Brown 1978–1989
 * Brian Johnson 1989–1990
 * Guests 1990–1991
 * Carmen Constantinescu 1991–1992
 * Noel Laporte 1992–1998
 * Moshe Hammer 1998–1999
 * Eduard Minevich 1999–2012
 * Karen Constant 2012–2014 (acting)
 * Simon MacDonald 2014–2017
 * Christian Robinson 2017–2018 (acting)
 * Christian Robinson 2018–