United States Symphony Orchestras

There seems to be a surprising lack of historical information on the Principal musicians of many of the leading symphony orchestras of the United States. 

Consequently, out of my own interest, I have begun to compile information on the musicians of the major US orchestras listed below.  The links to the web pages covering the named orchestras.

In most cases, there are two pages on each orchestra:

- First is a listing all the PRINCIPAL Musicians of that orchestra.  This lists in chronological order all the Principal, or first-chair musicians of the orchestra page.

- Second is a listing of ALL the musicians of each orchestra since its creation.

Any corrections or additions to these listings would be welcome by contacting me as shown at the foot of this page .

Links to Pages of Principal Musicians of leading United States symphony orchestras

Boston Symphony Principal Musicians

Boston Symphony List All Musicians

Chicago Symphony Principal Musicians

Chicago Symphony List All Musicians

Cleveland Orchestra Principal Musicians

Cleveland Orchestra List All Musicians

Philadelphia Orchestra Principal Musicians

Philadelphia Orchestra List All Musicians

Metropolitan Opera Orchestra Musicians

Saint Louis Symphony Musicians

San Francisco Symphony Principal Musicians

San Francisco Symphony List All Musicians

Russian Symphony Orchestra of New York Principal Musicians

Germania Musical Society Orchestra of the Ninteenth Century

Titles of First Chair Musicians

Note:  Today, except for the concertmaster (sometimes called the 'Leader' in Europe), the usual title for the first or leading instrument of an orchestral section is 'Principal', as in 'Principal Flute'.  However, in earlier years and in some orchestra sections, the first chair musician may have been referred to as 'Solo', or 'First'.