Hawaii Symphony

The Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra, formerly known as Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, was founded in 1900. It is the second oldest orchestra in the USA west of the Rocky Mountains. The orchestra now plays mainly at the Hawaii Theatre Center and occasionally the Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall in Honolulu. Dane Lam is the current Music Director, having assumed the post in July 2023.

The orchestra was originally housed in a clubhouse on the slopes of Punchbowl. From 1996 to 2004, the orchestra was under the direction of conductor Samuel Wong. In August 2007, Andreas Delfs, became principal conductor of the orchestra. He led seven concerts per season in the orchestra's Halekulani Masterworks series.^[1] JoAnn Falletta, artistic advisor to the orchestra from 2010, now holds the title of Conductor Emerita. Ignace Jang is the current concertmaster.

Previous music directors included Fritz Hart, George Barati, Robert La Marchina, and Donald Johanos.

In 2014, the Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra debuted its popular series musicthatPOPS, featuring Broadway music, Disney in Concert, Cirque de la Symphonie and Zelda in Concert, among others.

The symphony has undergone a series of transformations over the course of its first century. It has endured two World Wars, the Great Depression, financial crises, and changing musical and cultural fashions.

On October 30, 2009, the Honolulu Symphony Society's board of directors voted to file for Chapter 11 protection. On November 6, 2009, the symphony announced the cancellation of concerts for the remainder of the 2009–2010 season. The organization said it was $1 million in debt and did not have enough money to support operations into November and beyond.^{[citation needed]}

In 2010, facing a multimillion-dollar deficit, the symphony disbanded under Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, but was revived the next year under the new name "Hawaiʻi Symphony Orchestra" by a group of Honolulu businessmen. JoAnn Falletta was appointed artistic director, and Steven Monder, former director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, was appointed president.

In May 2010, the symphony's leaders said their goal was to decrease annual expenses to $4 million, from $8 million previously. The symphony's 40-performance calendar would also be cut in half, with performances at smaller venues and different ticket prices, aiming to fill all seats with paying customers. The symphony was given an October 15 deadline to file its Chapter 11 plan of reorganization.^[2] In December 2010 it was announced that the symphony would be liquidated under Chapter 7 and end operations after 110 years.^[3]

In April 2011, a group of Hawaiʻi businesspeople called the Symphony Exploratory Committee announced efforts to revive the symphony. The committee bought out the symphony's assets, and negotiated a new three-year contract with the musicians, planning to open a new season in fall of 2011.^[4]

• 1932–1949 Fritz Hart
• 1950–1967 George Barati
• 1968?–1979 Robert La Marchina
• 1979–1994 Donald Johanos
• 1996–2004 Samuel Wong
• 2007–2010 Andreas Delfs (Principal Conductor)
• 2011–2023 JoAnn Falletta (Artistic Advisor)
• 2023–present Dane Lam

• 2023–present JoAnn Falletta

• Symphony website
• Archive of Hawaii Romance Festival 2008