Cultural Advance: The Formation of Australia's Permanent Symphony Orchestras, 1944–1951

Abstract

This article explains why and how the six main Australian symphony orchestras were established on a permanent basis in the five years after the end of World War II. It analyses the role of the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) in fostering radio orchestras and classical concerts from 1932 as part of its broadcasting and cultural remit, and explains why federal music policies implemented on a state-by-state basis were seen as the way in which orchestras could progress. The article examines Eugene Ormandy's report on the state of Australia's orchestras, written in 1944 and promoted by the federal government, as the main catalyst for action over the formation of permanent orchestras. The article then explores the reactions to the report and the reasons why such ensembles needed to be shared between the ABC, the municipal authorities of leading state cities and state governments. The final part of the article investigates the financial, cultural and political complexities that needed to be surmounted at state and civic level to establish orchestras in Sydney, Brisbane, Hobart, Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth between 1945 and 1951. These developments, it is argued, formed a significant cultural advance in Australia's provision for the performing arts.