About the CSO

Celebrating its 90th anniversary in the 2021-22 season, the Charlotte Symphony (CSO) is committed to uplifting, entertaining, and educating the diverse communities of Charlotte-Mecklenburg and beyond through exceptional musical experiences. A cornerstone of Charlotte’s arts and cultural landscape, the CSO is the oldest continually operating symphony orchestra in the Carolinas and performs around 150 concerts annually in addition to robust community engagement and education efforts.

Founded in 1932 and led by internationally renowned Music Director Christopher Warren-Green, the Symphony upholds the highest artistic integrity and takes bold steps to engage the community through music. The CSO employs 62 professional full time musicians, performs throughout the community, and offers significant educational programming aimed at improving areas of our community with the greatest need.

Core programming runs September to May and includes Classical, Pops, Movie, and Family series, plus other special performances with notable soloists. Annual favorite, Magic of Christmas, delights during the holidays each season. We also serve as the soundtrack to our community’s ballet and opera productions.

We perform everywhere from community parks and schools to breweries, places of worship, and senior care centers. We are deeply committed to the notion that music, accessible to all and experienced in many forms, enriches and unifies our community.

We actively nurture the next generation of musicians and music lovers by supporting three diverse youth orchestras, led by Resident Conductor Christopher James Lees. Project Harmony serves more than 200 students in criticalneed areas with free after-school lessons in music and life skills. We employ music as a tool for building community and even as an agent of change.

We believe in equity and inclusion, and aim to reflect diversity on stage. Our Music For All program welcomes our community members on public assistance to attend select performances for $1 per ticket, and we strive to be an industry leader in imaginative, relevant programming by intentionally seeking out women conductors, underrepresented in our industry, and conductors, composers, and guest artists of color.

The Charlotte Symphony plays a leading cultural role in the Charlotte area and aims to serve the community as a civic leader, reflecting and uniting our region through the transformative power of live music.