The Mission of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony
To educate, entertain, and enrich the listeners by presenting performances of the highest quality.
The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra was founded in the fall of 1929 by G.T. Bennett, Director of the East Waterloo High School Orchestra; Ralph Pronk, director of the West Waterloo High School Orchestra; Cressy Whalen, then president of the Waterloo Musicians Union; and the late Myron Russell, emeritus head of the School of Music at the University of Northern Iowa. In 1929 the orchestra was named the Waterloo Symphony Orchestra.The September 19, 1929 edition of the Waterloo Courier carried the public announcement about the establishment of the orchestra to the community with an accompanying photograph featuring the 75 musicians.
Then, as now, community resources were solicited to underwrite the cost of the orchestra. Listed as charter “Sponsors” were the University Women’s Club, the Business and Professional Women’s Club, the B Natural Club and the Waterloo Supervisor’s Club. Early “Endorsers” were Rotary, Kiwanis, Lions, Optimist, Y-Men’s Clubs, American Legion and the Chamber of Commerce. The tradition of community giving continues as over the last 71 years, hundreds of businesses, foundations and individuals have been added to the list of original patrons who, through their generosity and civic pride, have helped finance the expenses of maintaining an outstanding orchestra in the communities of Waterloo and Cedar Falls.
The first concert was held at East High School, Thursday, February 6, 1930, with Mr. Bennett as conductor, sharing the honor with Mr. Pronk. This first concert featured two soloists: Mr. William E. Hayes, tenor and Myron Russell, English horn, both from Iowa State Teachers College.
Mr. Cressy Whalen was the first president of the Waterloo Symphony Orchestra Association which, through the years has been the governing body guiding the orchestra's functions and fortunes. A total of forty-seven different individuals have served as President of the orchestra; sixteen serving for more than one term of office. Following Mr. Whalen were Robert Parrott, Dr. Edward Rohlf, Dr. R.J. Carroll, Guy French, Ben F. Butler, Rev. David Jones, Dr. Frank Shaw, W.P. Hogan, Homer Asquith, Horace Van Metre, Dr. H.L. Sisson, Charles Swisher, Warren Mead, Sefton Abbott, Roger Tillapaugh, Richard Baker, Edward McCoy, Dr. Philip Hastings, Jay Levi, Robert Noonan, Henry Cutler, Dr. James Hutcheon, Victor Kennedy, George Day, Kathy Frerichs, Parke Behn, James Martin, James Potter, Bill Jenner, David Evans, Jean Ann Stoaks, Ed Wilson, Ken Wernimont, Marge Brom, David H. Buck, George Cemore, Jeri Jenner Karr, Joni Hollen, Wes Heitzman, David R. Mason, Mark Baldwin, Mary Kabel, Kathleen Wernimont, Richard Congdon, C. Kevin McCrindle and the current president, Russell Curtis.
There have been sixteen conductors of the orchestra since its beginnings. G.T. Bennett and Ralph Pronk conducted the first two concerts and Dr. Edward Kurtz, the head of the Orchestra Department at Iowa State Teachers College, was made official conductor in 1931.
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Edward Kurtz |
1931-1935 1935-1944 1944 1947-1955 1955-1958 1958-1971 1971-1972 1972-1974 1974-1992 1992-1993 1993-1994 1994-1997 1998-1998 1998-2000 1999-2000 2000-2001 2001-2002 2001-2002 2002-present |
The personnel of the orchestra include professional and amateur musicians from local and surrounding communities. Soloists from throughout the world have been engaged over the years including Gladys Swarthout, Janos Starker, Gyorgy Sandor, Rafael Druian, Josef Gingold, Victor Borge, Ferrante and Teicher, Peter Nero and Robert Merrill. In recent years, The King's Singers, Maureen Forrester, John Browning, Isaac Stern, “Doc” Severinsen, Sharon Isbin, Leon Bates, William Bennett, Simon Estes, YoYo Ma, Peter Schickele and Nadja Salerno-Sonenberg have appeared with the orchestra.
Soloists from the University of Northern Iowa past and present music faculty have included, among others, Jvone Maxwell, Emil Bock, Russell Baum, Harold Holst, Frank Hill, Joyce Gault, Charles Matheson, Jane Birkhead, Myron Russell, Karl Holvik, Thomas Barry, Frederick Halgedahl, Jon Hansen, Keith Johnson, Howard Aibel, Rowena Hammill, Angeleita Floyd, Randy Grabowski, Leslie Morgan, Jonathan Chenoweth, Randy Hogancamp, Thomas Tritle, Jeongwon Ham, Darryl Taylor, Sean Botkin and Genadi Zagor.
The Women's Committee of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony, with a current membership of approximately 250 women, has been very important for its support of the orchestra. In 1965 the name of this orchestra-minded group was changed to the Waterloo Symphony Orchestra Guild. In 2007 the group name was changed to Friends of the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony.
In 1969 the Orchestra Association voted to change the name of the Waterloo Symphony Orchestra to the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony Orchestra.
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