mission & history

OUR MISSION To provide orchestral performances and music education experiences of the highest artistic quality to help shape and enrich the cultural life of Northeastern Wisconsin.

OUR HISTORY The Green Bay Symphony Orchestra, currently in its 95th season, is the third largest professional orchestra in the state of Wisconsin. The first ensemble to use the name Green Bay Symphony Orchestra gave its first concert in 1914 involving forty local musicians, with Alex Enna conducting. The concertmaster, Walter Larsen, took up the baton during the orchestra's second season. In 1966, Oleg Kovelenko became the ensemble's first full time conductor. When he left for a position in Indianapolis in 1972, Miroslav Pansky ascended the podium and served as as Music Director until his retirement in 1995. Shinik Hahm served as Music Director from 1995 to 2000. Bridget-Michaele Reischl took the podium in 2001 and in October 2008, she began her eighth season with the Orchestra.

The GBSO has grown to include a flourishing Youth Orchestra program. Over 200 young musicians from schools all around Northeastern Wisconsin receive excellent instruction in three separate ensembles: String Orchestra, Philharmonia, and Youth Symphony.

Click here to see more GBSO historical photos.