The Brazilian Symphony Orchestra (OSB) is the most traditional symphonic ensemble in Brazil and celebrates seven decades of continuous trajectory in 2010. This is a milestone in the development cycle which, in recent seasons, has rescued its artistic reputation, expanded its presence in the local cultural agenda and brought to Brazil musicians like Joshua Bell, Ivo Pogorelich, Menahem Pressler, Kathleen Battle and Dame Kiri Te Kanawa.
Recognized for its pioneering work, the OSB was the first Brazilian orchestra to perform tours, to give open-air performances and concerts for audience development, and to tour abroad. Its major commitments are the development of new audiences for symphonic music and the dissemination of a diverse repertoire, missions accomplished by having performed approximately four thousand concerts since its inception. In addition to revealing Brazilian talent such as Nelson Freire, Arnaldo Cohen and Antônio Meneses, the orchestra wrote its history with the participation of some of the greatest names in music in the twentieth century: Leonard Bernstein, Kurt Masur, Zubin Mehta, Kurt Sanderling, Arthur Rubinstein, Martha Argerich, Claudio Arrau, Salvatore Accardo, Mstislav Rostropovich, Jean-Pierre Rampal and José Carreras, among others.
The OSB is a private institution that has the support of the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro, the National Bank of Economic and Social Development (BNDES), the mining company Vale and a group of private investors, with the support of the Brazilian Federal Government and legal incentive mechanisms for culture. Its series of concerts take place in the most important concert hall in Brazil, the Rio de Janeiro Municipal Theater, which reopens to the public in 2010 after restoration works that celebrated the centennial of the space. With the Sapphire Series, performed at Sala São Paulo, the OSB is also present in the largest city of Brazil, in addition to travelling regularly to other capitals, giving free performances in parks and theaters.
Since 2006, the orchestra has the artistic direction of conductor Roberto Minczuk, a Grammy, Emmy and Martin Segal awards winner, who has already been associate conductor of the New York Philharmonic. Minczuk has performed with over 80 orchestras outside Brazil, such as the Philadelphia Orchestra, the San Francisco, Montreal, BBC, National de France symphony orchestras and the philharmonic orchestras of London and Israel. Under his baton, the OSB is preparing for the inauguration of its new headquarters, the Cidade da Música, a cultural complex in Rio de Janeiro signed by Christian de Portzamparc, the architect of the Cité de la Musique in Paris and the Philharmonie Luxembourg concert hall. The orchestra's projects include conducting tours in the coming years in Brazil, as well as in Latin America and Asia. By producing albums, the OSB also intends to record its reading of the traditional symphonic repertoire, with special emphasis on Brazilian music.
Embracing a broad spectrum of music – from the Baroque to the production of contemporary composers –, the Brazilian Symphony Orchestra continually seeks artistic excellence and, consequently, the materialization of its social and educational goals.