The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra was formed in 1905 and consists of 109 musicians. The orchestra’s base is the Gothenburg Concert Hall. Since 2019 season, Barbara Hannigan is Principal Guest Conductor. We are also a proud partner of Barbara Hannigan’s mentoring program Equilibrium, which focuses on young singers at the beginning of their careers. Since the 2025 – 2026 season, Pekka Kuusisto also holds the title of Principal Guest Conductor. In recent years, the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra has conducted successful tours to Lugano, Vienna, Salzburg, Stuttgart, Prague, Dresden, Elbphilarmonie Hamburg and Brussels under the leadership of, among others, Santtu-Matias Rouvali and Barbara Hannigan. 

Wilhelm Stenhammar was the orchestra’s chief conductor from 1907 to 1922. He gave the Symphony Orchestra a strong Nordic profile and invited his colleagues Carl Nielsen and Jean Sibelius. Under the leadership of conductor Neeme Järvi from 1982 to 2004, the Symphony Orchestra made several international tours and nearly a hundred recordings, establishing itself among Europe’s leading orchestras. In 1996, the Riksdag appointed the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra as the National Orchestra of Sweden. During the 2000s, the orchestra has had prominent chief conductors such as Santtu-Matias Rouvali (2017 – 2025), Gustavo Dudamel (2007 – 2012) and Mario Venzago (2004 – 2007). Gustavo Dudamel holds the title of Honorary Conductor. Neeme Järvi is Chief Conductor Emeritus. The Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra regularly collaborates with conductors such as Herbert Blomstedt, Marie Jacquot, Tabita Berglund, Jukka-Pekka Saraste and Christian Zacharias.