About Us
The Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra is a community-driven, nonprofit organisation dedicated to sharing the transformative power of classical music through our orchestra. As the region’s premier orchestra, we bring exceptional performances to Albury-Wodonga and its surrounding areas, creating memorable experiences that we hope will captivate and inspire our audiences. Our mission is to make the beauty of orchestral music accessible to everyone, nurturing a profound appreciation for the arts in our vibrant border town and surrounding communities.
OUR VISION
The Albury-Wodonga Symphony Orchestra is committed to bringing the joy of music to our community through providing opportunities for local musicians to rehearse and perform to local audiences. We focus on offering engaging and accessible orchestral performances that entertain, educate and inspire our audience and musicians.
OUR MISSION
To engage and inspire our musicians and audiences through orchestral performances and collaborative events, making orchestral music accessible to our community. We nurture a shared passion for the arts and enhance the cultural fabric of our border town and surrounding communities.
OUR VALUES
The Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra embodies the following values:
Engagement
Dedication
Collaboration
Passion
The Committee
President
Jessie Swan
Vice President
Tara Chambers
Secretary
Katie Clarke
Treasurer
Graeme Stewart
General Committee
Catriona Byles
General Committee
Caoimhe McMillan
Our History
The Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra is not the first orchestra of its kind in this city. In 1857, there was a German String Band and in the following year, a German Harmonic Society was formed with 25 members. 1899 saw the formation of the Albury Grand Orchestra by Frederick Edward Quintrell, and their first performance with 30 performers was held at the Mechanics Institute on June 28, 1899. Jump ahead to the formation of the Albury Symphony Orchestra (1960-1970).
Even more recently there existed an Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra which initially rehearsed at Albury Public school and then the old Albury High School Boys’ Hostel on Guinea Street. Members of the orchestra carpeted and painted this space to make it usable, before it became the Riverena Music Centre in 1979 under the leadership of John Ross, who was also one of its conductors. Other conductors included Kevin Williams, Greg Lewis and Paul Tasker. This orchestra was made up of a number of professional players, amateur musicians, and school-aged students. We are honoured to have some of its members performing with us today, many of whom remember Elena Kats-Chernin coming to workshop one of her own pieces with them nearly 20 years ago.
In the words of local writer and historian Greg Ryan, “When Albury was growing from a small village to become a large regional centre, live music played a critical role in bringing people together…it is not unusual to read reports of many hundreds and sometimes a thousand or more turning up to listen to performances.”
The Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra hopes to nurture such enthusiasm by creating joy through orchestral music.
References
Albury & District Historical Society. 2016. “Murray Conservatorium | Albury & District Historical Society Inc.” alburyhistory.org.au.
Albury Library Museum. 1970. Albury Symphony Orchestra. Concert Program. Albury Library Museum Exhibition. https://www.alburycity.nsw.gov.au/leisure/museum-and-libraries/exhibitions.
Ryan, Greg. 2015. “Early Band Music in Albury, 1855 – 1925.” Albury History. Albury & District Historical Society. https://alburyhistory.org.au/.
Tasker, Paul, and Isbister, Helen. Email to Albury Wodonga Symphony Orchestra. 2025. “AWSO History.” Email, May 8, 2025.