Regina Symphony
Orchestra

 Our History

Long before Regina had gained its status as a city, the cultural arts were beginning to flourish. As good fortune would have it, many of Regina’s early settlers, including members of the North West Mounted Police, were talented musicians and vocalists. However, that talent needed the stimulation provided by Scottish immigrant Franklin L. Laubach.

In early 1904 Franklin Laubach moved with his family from Edinburgh to a homestead just outside Regina.., Almost immediately, he got involved in musical leadership in the city and by December, 1904 he had organized the Regina Philharmonic Society. In 1906 he conducted Haydn’s Creation at Knox Presbyterian Church with a chorus of 67 voices and an orchestra of 13 musicians. In  1908 Frank and several other musical leaders formed the Regina Orchestral Society and its inaugural concert was presented in the brand new “Gingerbread City Hall” on December 3 of that year. Laubach continued to work tirelessly, organizing many music events until 1916 when, at the age of 59, he joined the Canadian army as the conductor of a military band based in England. After the war ended, and the Spanish Flu had abated, Orchestral Society rehearsals began again in early 1919.The evolution of the orchestra continued when in 1923 the Regina Choral and Orchestral Society became the Regina Symphony Orchestra (under a new conductor, Knight Wilson), the Regina Choral Society and the Regina Male Voice Choir,. However, the orchestra’s concert programs continued to read “Regina Orchestral Society” for over four more decades until the 1970’s. Finally in 1976, 52 years after the motion to change the name was first made, its registered legal name became the “Regina Symphony Orchestra”.

Darke Hall, on College Avenue, opened in 1929 and it became the orchestra’s first permanent home in 1931, after years of playing in various venues throughout the city. The orchestra continued to perform through the 1930’s – the toughest years on the prairies, with musicians performing primarily as volunteers, receiving honorariums only when there was a financial surplus.  During WWII, when Maestro Knight Wilson was also recruited to lead a Canadian military band, the Regina Conservatory hosted the orchestra, with many of the same players.

The period between 1959 and 1981 was that of steady growth for the orchestra. This was due to several significant changes during that time. The first was to the status of the Regina College to that of University. The University expanded its Music Department and hired first-rate musicians as instructors. This allowed the orchestra to start building its professional group. As well, public funding increased during the late 1960s to the early 1980s and the orchestra’s home moved to the Saskatchewan Centre of the Arts (now Conexus Arts Centre) in 1970, which allowed the audience to grow from 750 people per concert to more than 2,000.

Today the RSO is a full scale, fully professional orchestra that presents a pre-season outdoor concert, eight Masterworks concerts, five Pops concerts, three kids concerts, six double chamber music concerts, and occasional special concerts. As well, the Regina Symphony Chamber Players present dozens of school concerts each season, perform concerts in southern Saskatchewan communities, and offer free concerts in venues throughout the City of Regina. They also take part in educational activities aimed at students and First Nations youth.

The RSO plays an important role in the cultural fabric of southern Saskatchewan. By continuing to strive for excellence in performance and by remaining relevant to its audiences, the orchestra will continue to grow and to enrich life in southern Saskatchewan. The RSO organization will persist through the dedication, and determination provided by the RSO Music Director, Executive Director, Board of Governors, Musicians and Administration Staff. With the support of the orchestra’s audiences, sponsors, government and corporate partners the RSO will be performing long into the future.