Symphony Orchestras

Be it Brahms or Broadway show tunes, New Orleans plays the notes

The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, based in New Orleans and performing throughout the South, carries the torch for live orchestral music in a city long enamored with the musical arts. Formed in 1991, the LPO is notable for being the oldest full-time musician-governed orchestra in the United States.

Loyola University- Roussel Hall Venue Images
Loyola University- Roussel Hall

Fans of everything from classics to pops can hear about 100 live performances during the season, with free shows and community engagement offered throughout the state. The seasons’ repertoires generally range from the works of classical composers – Mozart, Brahms, Beethoven, Mahler, Rachmaninoff, Tchaikovsky and others – to Broadway show tunes, pop standards and patriotic themes.

While shows are presented in churches, performing arts centers and college auditoriums throughout the region, the spectacular Orpheum Theater, a restored jewel box just off Canal Street across from the Roosevelt Hotel, is LPO’s home base.

Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra Cheryl Gerber
Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra

New Orleans Friends of Music brings internationally acclaimed musicians to the community for a chamber music series that performs at Dixon Hall on the campus of Tulane University and in Roussel Hall on Loyola University’s campus.

Other smaller orchestras perform throughout the city as well with popular outdoor concerts in parks and others spaces. There are also many special one-time only performances in churches and halls put on by New Orleans musicians trying something new. Here is a list of them all.

New Orleans Symphonies/Orchestras

Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra

  • 1010 Common St.

Carrying on an almost century-old tradition in New Orleans, the LPO is dedicated to maintaining the live orchestral music and a full-scale symphonic orchestra as an integral part of the cultural and educational life of the New Orleans area, the entire state of Louisiana, and the…