NORWOOD SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA OVER THE YEARS
From humble beginnings
The Norwood Symphony Orchestra traces its origins back to 1923, when local violin teacher Norman Sellick formed a small orchestra to help his students from the Unley School of Music develop their ensemble playing skills. It was very much a family affair, with his brother, sister-in-law and daughters all involved.
The first performance of the Unley Orchestral Society on 12th December 1923 is recorded in The Register (15/12/1923), and included a program of light music such as Mendelssohn’s Overture to Athalie and Bizet’s March of the Toreadors from Carmen.
With support from the Unley City Council, the orchestra soon began performing as the Unley City Orchestra and its reputation grew considerably after winning the Australian Orchestral Championship at the Royal South Street Competitions in Ballarat, not once but three times: in 1925, 1926 and 1928. A photo of the orchestra from the 1928 competition is shown below:
The first performance of the Unley Orchestral Society on 12th December 1923 is recorded in The Register (15/12/1923), and included a program of light music such as Mendelssohn’s Overture to Athalie and Bizet’s March of the Toreadors from Carmen.
With support from the Unley City Council, the orchestra soon began performing as the Unley City Orchestra and its reputation grew considerably after winning the Australian Orchestral Championship at the Royal South Street Competitions in Ballarat, not once but three times: in 1925, 1926 and 1928. A photo of the orchestra from the 1928 competition is shown below:
In 1936, as a part of South Australia’s centenary celebrations, the orchestra performed in two large-scale events. The first was a theatrical production entitled Heritage. It included contributions from renowned composers such as Miriam Hyde and Percy Grainger, both of whom had strong connections to Adelaide. The second was a grand choral concert in the newly opened Centennial Hall at Wayville, where the orchestra of 50 was joined by a massed choir of 1100 voices.
An orchestra on the move
As life returned to normal after the end of the war, the orchestra was formally registered as the Unley Orchestral Society and Unley City Orchestra Incorporated in January 1946. By this stage, Nelson Burton had taken over the conducting duties and the group was being billed as the Unley Symphony Orchestra in concerts.
The relationship with the Unley Council deteriorated in the 1950s and, during the same period, there was a serious matter of disagreement between new conductor Dr John Black and the committee on the future direction of the orchestra. This led to a number of members parting ways with the Unley City Orchestra and, along with Dr Black, forming the Burnside Symphony Orchestra.
A newly elected committee was unable to restore the relationship with the Unley Council and instead approached the City of Kensington and Norwood, who were keen to establish an orchestra in their area. It had been many years since Norwood had last had its own orchestra, with the earlier Kensington and Norwood Municipal Symphony Orchestra (1922–1927) having been wound up due to financial difficulties associated with the depression.
In early 1957, the move to Norwood went ahead, with rehearsals initially taking place under the grandstand at the Norwood Oval and performances held in the Norwood Town Hall under the name Kensington and Norwood City Orchestra.
Some noteworthy performances from the decades that followed included Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto in October 1973 with Standish Roberts (father of our current trumpet player, Ian Roberts) and a concert celebrating the 125th anniversary of the founding of the City of Kensington and Norwood in December 1978.
Another period of turmoil occurred within the orchestra’s leadership in 1980, when a controversial motion by the committee to dismiss conductor Verdon Williams AM caused divide among members. The committee ultimately resigned and went on to form what is now the (new) Unley Symphony Orchestra, adopting just one of our many operating names from decades past.
Throughout the 1980s, the orchestra held most of its concerts in the ground floor ballroom of the Norwood Town Hall, after the main concert hall was damaged by a fire. On the occasion of South Australia’s sesquicentenary in 1986, the orchestra joined forces with several local choirs to present Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 (Hymn of Praise), a work that is rarely performed due to its grand scale.
The relationship with the Unley Council deteriorated in the 1950s and, during the same period, there was a serious matter of disagreement between new conductor Dr John Black and the committee on the future direction of the orchestra. This led to a number of members parting ways with the Unley City Orchestra and, along with Dr Black, forming the Burnside Symphony Orchestra.
A newly elected committee was unable to restore the relationship with the Unley Council and instead approached the City of Kensington and Norwood, who were keen to establish an orchestra in their area. It had been many years since Norwood had last had its own orchestra, with the earlier Kensington and Norwood Municipal Symphony Orchestra (1922–1927) having been wound up due to financial difficulties associated with the depression.
In early 1957, the move to Norwood went ahead, with rehearsals initially taking place under the grandstand at the Norwood Oval and performances held in the Norwood Town Hall under the name Kensington and Norwood City Orchestra.
Some noteworthy performances from the decades that followed included Haydn’s Trumpet Concerto in October 1973 with Standish Roberts (father of our current trumpet player, Ian Roberts) and a concert celebrating the 125th anniversary of the founding of the City of Kensington and Norwood in December 1978.
Another period of turmoil occurred within the orchestra’s leadership in 1980, when a controversial motion by the committee to dismiss conductor Verdon Williams AM caused divide among members. The committee ultimately resigned and went on to form what is now the (new) Unley Symphony Orchestra, adopting just one of our many operating names from decades past.
Throughout the 1980s, the orchestra held most of its concerts in the ground floor ballroom of the Norwood Town Hall, after the main concert hall was damaged by a fire. On the occasion of South Australia’s sesquicentenary in 1986, the orchestra joined forces with several local choirs to present Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 2 (Hymn of Praise), a work that is rarely performed due to its grand scale.
Milestones and celebrations
A redevelopment in 1990 enabled the orchestra to finally return to performing in the refurbished Norwood Concert Hall from 1991, and rehearsing in what remains of the original ballroom, now known as the Don Pyatt Hall.
David Reid OAM became conductor at the beginning of 1992, which heralded the start of a long tenure that many remember fondly. Under David’s baton, the orchestra celebrated its 70th, 80th and 90th birthdays with special concerts, and performed in festivities for the local Italian, Greek and Russian communities. The long running tradition of ‘Proms’ concerts also commenced during this period.
In March 1998, the association was renamed the Norwood Symphony Orchestral Society Incorporated, following council mergers, and since this time has performed consistently as the Norwood Symphony Orchestra.
A changing of the guard occurred in 2015, when Michael Milton was selected as the incoming conductor to replace the retiring David Reid. During a handover period, Michael appeared as a guest conductor in July, reprised one of his items at the Norwood Concert Hall’s centenary gala in August, and performed as a violin soloist in November, before officially taking the reins at the start of 2016.
Over the last 8 years, under Michael’s leadership, we have celebrated the highs of many innovative and sold-out concerts, as well as the lows of having to cancel much of our 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As well as holding four concerts each year in the Norwood Concert Hall, the orchestra continues its community outreach at events such as Symphony in the Park and Big Sing.
We remain an entirely volunteer-run organisation and our objectives to this day are largely the same as when we first started out: that is, to advance culture and music education among the community, both performers and audiences alike.
David Reid OAM became conductor at the beginning of 1992, which heralded the start of a long tenure that many remember fondly. Under David’s baton, the orchestra celebrated its 70th, 80th and 90th birthdays with special concerts, and performed in festivities for the local Italian, Greek and Russian communities. The long running tradition of ‘Proms’ concerts also commenced during this period.
In March 1998, the association was renamed the Norwood Symphony Orchestral Society Incorporated, following council mergers, and since this time has performed consistently as the Norwood Symphony Orchestra.
A changing of the guard occurred in 2015, when Michael Milton was selected as the incoming conductor to replace the retiring David Reid. During a handover period, Michael appeared as a guest conductor in July, reprised one of his items at the Norwood Concert Hall’s centenary gala in August, and performed as a violin soloist in November, before officially taking the reins at the start of 2016.
Over the last 8 years, under Michael’s leadership, we have celebrated the highs of many innovative and sold-out concerts, as well as the lows of having to cancel much of our 2020 season due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As well as holding four concerts each year in the Norwood Concert Hall, the orchestra continues its community outreach at events such as Symphony in the Park and Big Sing.
We remain an entirely volunteer-run organisation and our objectives to this day are largely the same as when we first started out: that is, to advance culture and music education among the community, both performers and audiences alike.
Fun facts!
- The Norwood Symphony Orchestra remains the oldest continuously running community orchestra in South Australia, and the second oldest orchestra in general, after the Elder Conservatorium Symphony Orchestra.
- We are fortunate to have been led by many distinguished conductors and guest conductors over the years; far too many to list here. Michael Milton is the 19th principal conductor, while David Reid’s tenure (1992–2015) remains the longest.
- The orchestra’s longest serving member was Francie Gould (64 years), who joined in 1929 and remained active up until the orchestra’s 70th birthday concert in 1993. Of our current members, Michael Holland (58 years) and Alison Stuart (41 years) are the longest serving, with almost a century of playing between them!
- The most performed work over the last 32 years was Leroy Anderson’s Christmas classic, Sleigh Ride, with 7 performances, followed closely by Beethoven’s Egmont Overture and Handel’s Hallelujah Chorus, each with 6 performances.
- The first eight of Beethoven’s symphonies have each been performed 2 or 3 times in the last 32 years. These rank among our most popular symphonies.
- A second junior orchestra briefly existed in the late 1960s, under principal conductor Harold Fairhurst and assistant conductor Janis Laurs. Many of the younger players followed Mr Fairhurst to the Flinders Street School of Music’s orchestra, when it was founded in 1970.
- An annual NSO prize has been awarded at the Adelaide Eisteddfod since 1993, with the winner often invited to perform with the orchestra. Past recipients have included Sophie Rowell (violin, 1994), now Artistic Director of the Melbourne Chamber Orchestra, and Kristian Chong (piano, 1997), now a world-renowned touring pianist.
- Five honorary life memberships have been awarded so far in the orchestra’s history, to Syd Gould, Francie Gould, Harry Burghardt, Erica Lewis and David Reid.
Further information on the NSO’s rich history can be found in the below publication, of Robert Brown’s comprehensive book, published in 2000, from which much of the content here has been adapted.:
The History of South Australian Orchestras and The Norwood Symphony Orchestral Society Incorporated
Compiled and written by Robert Darwin Bruce Brown
23 October 2000
