The Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, founded in 1928 by Vittorio Gui as the Stabile Orchestrale Fiorentina, has since its beginnings had an intense activity of concert and opera seasons at the Teatro Comunale di Firenze. In 1933, it contributed to the birth of the oldest and most prestigious European musical festival after that of Salzburg: the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, from which it derives its name. After Gui, the principal conductors have been Mario Rossi, Piero Bellugi and Bruno Bartoletti. Important chapters in the history of the Orchestra have been the tenure of Riccardo Muti (1969- 1981) as head conductor and that of Zubin Mehta, principal conductor since 1985. Mehta has put his stamp on each seaon with important symphonic and operatic procutions and significant tours. The Orchestra has also had privileged relationships with Myung-Whun Chung and Semyon Bychkov, principal guest conductors from respectively 1987 and 1992.

Highly regarded in the international music world, during the course of its history, the Orchestra has been guided by some of the world’s most renown conductors: De Sabata, Guarnieri, Marinuzzi, Gavazzeni, Serafin, Furtwängler, Walter, Klemperer, Dobrowen, Perlea, Erich Kleiber, Rodzinski, Mitropoulos, Karajan, Bernstein, Schippers, Claudio Abbado, Maazel, Giulini, Prêtre, Sawallisch, Carlos Kleiber, Solti, Chailly, Sinopoli, and Ozawa. In addition, illustious composers have conducted their own works often in world premiere: Richard Strauss, Pietro Mascagni, Ildebrando Pizzetti, Paul Hindemith, Igor Stravinskij, Goffredo Petrassi, Luigi Dallapiccola, Krzysztof Penderecki and Luciano Berio.

From the 1950s, the Orchestra has made important recordings and radio and television performances for which it has received prestigious prizes like the Grammy Award. Most recently, it has had an extremely sucessful third tour in Japan with Zubin Mehta, its honorary conductor for life. It went on a much-applauded tour to Warsaw, the Musikverein in Vienna, Frankfurt, and Baden Baden. On the 80th anniversary of its foundation it received the Fiorino d’Oro of the City of Florence for its high artistic merits.