BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra

The origins of the orchestra date back to the Cardiff Station Orchestra, formed in 1924, which had become the National Orchestra of Wales by 1928. Funding problems resulted in the orchestra disbanding in 1931. In 1935, the BBC Welsh Orchestra was established as a 20-member ensemble, but the orchestra was dissolved with the advent of the Second World War in 1939. After the war, the BBC Welsh Orchestra was revived as a 31-member ensemble, with Mansel Thomas as its first principal conductor. In 1947, the BBC Welsh Chorus was founded as the affiliate chorus of the orchestra. The orchestra's ensemble size increased steadily, reaching 44 musicians in the 1960-1961 season, 60 musicians in 1974, and 66 musicians in 1976, when the orchestra's name was changed to the BBC Welsh Symphony Orchestra. Renamed The BBC National Orchestra Of Wales in 1993.