The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1905 and currently consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra is based in Gothenburg Concert Hall – a gem of functionalism on Götaplatsen square that has enchanted music lovers since 1935.
Santtu-Matias Rouvali is Chief Conductor of the Gothenburg Symphony from 2017 to 2025. Since 2019, Barbara Hannigan has been Principal Guest Conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan’s Equilibrium mentoring program focusing on young singers at the start of their careers.
Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra’s chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius to the orchestra. Under the direction of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982 – 2004, the orchestra made a series of international tours as well as a hundred disc recordings and established themselves among Europe’s leading orchestras. In 1996, the Swedish Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony as Sweden’s National Orchestra.
In recent decades, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Mario Venzago, Kent Nagano and Gustavo Dudamel. Anna-Karin Larsson is CEO, Gustavo Dudamel is Honorary conductor and Neeme Järvi is Chief conductor emeritus. The orchestra’s owner is the Västra Götaland Region.
The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra regularly collaborates with renowned conductors such as Gustavo Dudamel, Joana Carneiro, Neeme Järvi, David Afkham, Christian Zacharias and Herbert Blomstedt.
