Orchestra Iowa began as the Cedar Rapids Symphony Orchestra. Its first concert was held on April 23, 1923 in the Sinclair Auditorium at
Coe College, with general admission costing $0.75 and season tickets for $5. By 1928 the orchestra was playing its concerts at Veterans Memorial Coliseum. They continued playing during the
Great Depression and
World War II. It was not until the 1950s that the orchestra had a paid music director and began to pay the musicians. A string quartet was established in the 1970s. By 1980 the orchestra moved to its current location at the Paramount Theatre. The orchestra has an outreach program to area students and the Orchestra Iowa School was begun in 1988 to teach instrumentalists of all ages and experience levels. An endowment program was begun in 1990. In 2004 the administrative offices and the school moved to its current location on Third Ave, next to the Paramount Theatre. Orchestra Iowa has partnered with nationally syndicated
From the Top radio program,
Iowa Public Television, and
Iowa Public Radio to bring symphonic music and music education programs to more people. The building was extensively damaged in 2008 by the
flooded Cedar River that submerged downtown Cedar Rapids. The orchestra had to perform in a variety of venues as a result. They returned to the Paramount Theatre for the 2012–2013 season. Orchestra Iowa became the orchestra for the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre in 2009. The Opus Concert Café, which opened in 2011, provides a space for chamber concerts and other performances. With the 2012–2013 season they began a collaboration with Ballet Quad Cities. They perform with the ballet at both the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids, and at the ballet's main performance venue the
Adler Theatre in
Davenport, Iowa. ==Music directors==