Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela
The Simón Bolívar Symphony Orchestra of Venezuela (SBSOV) was founded by Dr. José Antonio
Abreu and a group of fellow musicians who were inspired by the ideals of Simón Bolívar. The
orchestra comprises more than 200 young musicians ages 18-28, and is the flagship of the
Fundación Musical Simón Bolívar's orchestral academic program, known as El Sistema.
Across Venezuela, El Sistema currently involves 400,000 beneficiaries-75 percent of whom
live below the poverty line-in a system that includes more than 1,550 music groups
distributed among 286 academic centers. "For the children that we work with, music is
practically the only way to a dignified social destiny. Poverty means loneliness, sadness,
anonymity. An orchestra means joy, motivation, teamwork, the aspiration to success," says
El Sistema allows the musicians of the SBSOV to explore demanding repertoire through
master classes and concerts, involving soloists from leading orchestras and arts
institutions, such as the Berliner Philharmoniker, Sibelius Academy of Finland,
Internationale Bachakademie Stuttgart, and New England Conservatory. Their work with
international conductors has included performances with Sir Simon Rattle and Claudio
Abbado, as well as working for months with Gustavo Dudamel, the orchestra's music director
and a product of El Sistema.
The SBSOV has toured Germany several times, and performed at the Parco della Musica
in Rome, Teatro Massimo in Palermo, and Lucerne Easter Festival. In the summer of 2007, it
appeared at the BBC Proms, Edinburgh Festival, Schleswig-Holstein Festival, and Semperoper
Dresden. Later that year, the SBSOV toured to Mexico, Spain, Los Angeles, San Francisco,
Boston, and Carnegie Hall, where the orchestra was conducted by Mr. Dudamel and Mr. Rattle
as part of the Berlin in Lights festival. In 2008, the SBSOV performed in
residency at the Salzburg Festival and made its Asian debut with concerts in Beijing,
Seoul, Tokyo, and Hiroshima. The following year, the orchestra made its Canadian debut to
celebrate the awarding of the Glenn Gould Prize to Dr. Abreu.
Appearances in 2010 included a residency at the Lucerne Festival, a major European tour,
and a Latin American tour to mark the bicentennial of the region's independence. Between
January and February 2012, the SBSOV participated in a three-week residency at Walt Disney
Concert Hall in Los Angeles, alternating with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in performances
of Mahler's nine symphonies as part of The Mahler Project led by Mr. Dudamel.
This program culminated in Caracas, with concerts by both orchestras at the Teatro Teresa
Carreño. In June and July, the SBSOV performed at Stirling Castle in Scotland as part of
the Cultural Olympiad, framed within the celebration of the London Olympics.