Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra programs

Collection — Multiple Containers

Identifier: SPEC-060

Staff Only

Scope and Contents

This collection includes bound programs from the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra located in Indianapolis, Indiana ranging from 1938 to 2005 regarding concert programs and events.

Dates

Creation: 1938 - 2005

Conditions Governing Access

This collection is open for research.

Conditions Governing Use

Legal title, copyright, and literary rights reside with Archives and Special Collections, Ball State University Libraries, Muncie, IN. All requests to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted to Archives and Special Collections.

Historical Note

The Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1930 by Ferdinand Schaefer, a German-born violin professor. Schaefer recruited volunteer musicians for the first orchestras, and would frequently split the profits that were collected. By 1937, the musicians became fully professional and were paid a weekly salary for a 20-week season. The orchestra quickly rose to national prominence, even releasing phonograph recordings on RCA Victor and Capitol Records in the 1940s and 1950s. Many prominent, world-reknown directors have lead the orchestra, including Fabien Sevitzky, Izler Solomon, John Nelson, Raymond Leppard, Mario Venzago, and Krzysztof Urbanski. Today the orchestra performs at the Hilbert Circle Theatre as well as the Conner Prairie Living History Museum.