Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra

Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra — Hobart’s chamber-scale state symphony

The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra is the smallest of the six Australian state symphonies — fifty musicians on the roster, a chamber-scale ensemble that has consciously developed a programming identity around the classical-period and early-Romantic repertoire that suits its scale. The principal home is the Federation Concert Hall on Davey Street in Hobart, with substantial regional Tasmanian touring to Launceston (Princess Theatre), Burnie and Devonport. The chief conductor since 2022 is Eivind Aadland, succeeding Marko Letonja.

What they’re known for

The TSO has one of the most distinctive programming identities of any Australian orchestra, built around the classical-period repertoire (Haydn, Mozart, early Beethoven, Schubert) where the chamber-scale forces produce a tighter, more period-aware sound than the larger eastern-states symphonies can. The orchestra’s recorded Haydn symphony cycle is one of its principal recording projects and has been reviewed strongly in the international classical press. The TSO also has the strongest twentieth-century classical-music programme of any Australian orchestra by repertoire diversity — Britten, Tippett, the Stravinsky neoclassical works, the smaller-scale Shostakovich symphonies all sit comfortably within the orchestra’s scale.

The TSO is also the orchestra-in-residence for the Dark Mofo and Mona Foma festivals run by MONA, with substantial festival programming each year that has produced some of the most adventurous orchestral programming in the country — collaborations with contemporary musicians, large-scale outdoor concerts at Macquarie Point, and the festival’s signature crossover programmes.

Home venues

  • Federation Concert Hall — 1,100 seats. The orchestra’s principal home. Acoustically dry-clear, well-suited to the classical-period repertoire that defines the TSO’s programming.
  • Princess Theatre, Launceston — used for the regular Launceston subscription concerts.
  • The orchestra also performs at the Theatre Royal Hobart, Federation Square (Hobart) for outdoor festival concerts, and at MONA itself for selected Dark Mofo programming.

The season pattern — and how to book

The TSO announces its annual season in mid-September. Subscriptions open immediately; single tickets follow in late October. The Federation Concert Hall’s smaller capacity means seat availability tightens fast for the marquee programmes — book within four weeks of single-ticket release. The Dark Mofo festival programming each June is announced separately as part of the festival programme launch in early April; these tickets often sell out within hours.

Planning a trip

The Federation Concert Hall sits on Davey Street in central Hobart — ten minutes’ walk from Salamanca Place and the Hobart waterfront. Pair the concert with the Salamanca Market on a Saturday morning, MONA on the Sunday (a 25-minute ferry ride from the waterfront), and the Tasman Peninsula on the Monday. A TSO weekend pairs unusually well with a Tasmanian week — the orchestra runs concerts most weeks of the year, and Tasmania itself is the destination as much as the orchestra is.

Pair the regional touring concerts in Launceston with a Tamar Valley wine-region weekend, or the Burnie concerts with the Cradle Mountain National Park.

Tour reach beyond the capitals

The TSO runs the most extensive intra-state touring of any Australian orchestra by venue density — every major Tasmanian regional centre receives multiple concerts a year. International touring is occasional. The orchestra has played at the BBC Proms in recent years, and the recorded catalogue (most of which is recorded at the Federation Concert Hall) reaches international classical music audiences through the international labels that distribute it.

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