History & Mission:

The Florence Symphony Orchestra was born in the spring of 1949 to give local musicians an opportunity to make music together for their own pleasure and for that of the community. A group of music lovers originally came together to form a community band of local musicians. However, the first audition call brought in more string players than winds. It was decided that the band concept would be changed to compliment the talents Florence had to offer, and an orchestra was born. Upon application for membership in the American Symphony League, the organizers were informed that it would be impossible for a town the size of Florence to maintain and support an orchestra.

As the FSO enters its fifty ninth season, the original decision of the American Symphony League has been proven very wrong. The FSO has grown to be sixty members strong with four performances every year. While import musicians are brought in to fill missing parts, the group continues to be the only volunteer orchestra in South Carolina and one of the few remaining in the country.

A call for volunteers to form a community band has lead to over half a century of crowd-pleasing performances. With four concerts a season, and components such as the Florence Symphony Youth Orchestra and the Florence Symphony Guild, the Florence Symphony Orchestra enriches the cultural quality of Florence and the surrounding areas.