The Hawaiûi Symphony Orchestra (HSO), formerly known as the Honolulu Symphony Orchestra, was founded in 1900. It is one of the oldest orchestras in the United States west of the Rocky Mountains. The orchestra performs at the Hawaii Theatre and the renovated Neal S. Blaisdell Concert Hall in Honolulu. Previous music directors included Fritz Hart, George Barati, Robert La Marchina, and Donald Johanos. Dane Lam is the current Music Director, having assumed the post in July 2023.
The orchestra was originally housed in a clubhouse on the slopes of Punchbowl. From 1996 to 2004, the orchestra was under the direction of conductor Samuel Wong. In August 2007, Andreas Delfs became principal conductor of the orchestra and led seven concerts per season in the orchestra's Halekulani Masterworks series.
In 2009âÂÂ2010, the Honolulu Symphony faced significant financial challenges and ceased operations following bankruptcy proceedings. In 2011, a group of Hawaiûi community leaders acquired the orchestraâÂÂs assets and relaunched the organization under the name Hawaiûi Symphony Orchestra, resuming performances later that year. JoAnn Falletta was appointed artistic director, and Steven Monder, former executive director of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, was appointed president.
In 2014, the Hawaiûi Symphony Orchestra introduced the musicthatPOPS concert series, featuring popular and multimedia programming alongside its classical offerings.
Falletta later assumed the title of Conductor Emeritus. Ignace Jang is the orchestraâÂÂs current concertmaster.