West Australian Symphony Orchestra

West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO)
Orchestra
West Australian Symphony Orchestra logo
Founded	1921
Location	Perth
Concert hall	Perth Concert Hall
Principal conductor	Asher Fisch
Website	www.waso.com.au

The West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in Perth, Western Australia. Its principal concert venue is the Perth Concert Hall. WASO also gives concerts at the Mandurah Performing Arts Centre. As of March 2012, WASO has a roster of 79 full-time musicians. The orchestra has an affiliated WASO Chorus. WASO currently presents over 170 performances per annum throughout the state.

In the winter of 1921, weekly concerts by a Perth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Harold Betteridge and led by Lionel Hart, were advertised in the local newspaper, but the life of this group was brief. In 1928, many professional musicians who had supported the silent movies found themselves out of work, and under the direction of Harold Newton, formed the Perth Symphony Orchestra. The first performance by this group of professional players was given in the Queens Hall of the Regent Theatre. By 1930, the orchestra not only gave concerts in the Queens Hall but also presented ten subscription concerts in the Town Hall. Many of these concerts were broadcast over the radio station 6WF.

In 1932, the Australian Broadcasting Commission was formed, and part of its charter was to establish broadcast orchestras in each state. In Western Australia, it formed the Western Studio Orchestra of fifteen players, conducted by Nelson Burton. The Perth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by George Reid, was giving regular concerts in His Majesty's Theatre.

In 1936, the ABC introduced Celebrity Subscription Concerts, and artists and conductors – many from overseas – were engaged. The concerts were performed initially in His Majesty's Theatre and then later in the Capitol Theatre and Winthrop Hall at the University of Western Australia. The Western Studio Orchestra became the Perth Concert orchestra, and this orchestra was later augmented for the celebrity concerts and became known as the ABC (Perth) Symphony Orchestra. By 1937, the letters "ABC" had been dropped from the title and the orchestra once again became known as the Perth Symphony Orchestra.