Jackson Symphony Orchestra

The Jackson Symphony Orchestra has a rich and vibrant history bringing world class music to its community since 1949. The JSO has performed with many legendary figures in the world of music including Pascal Rogé, Inon Barnatan, Vanessa Perez, Dizzy Gillespie, Grant Johannesen, Ed Asner, William Warfield and Ralph Votapek. The orchestra has also toured with Mannheim Steamroller, Ann Murray, and the Manhattan Transfer. Since assuming the Music Director position in 2017, Matthew Aubin has catapulted the JSO to higher levels of artistic excellence and financial sustainability. He has launched several innovative initiatives drawing the attention of both national and international funders and collaborators such as partnerships with the Gilmore Keyboard Festival, University of Michigan, Michigan State University, and Ballet Chelsea. In recent years, the JSO has also significantly expanded its community programming including educational programs for children, family programming, and a non-classical series titled ‘Music-on-Tap’ featuring singer songwriters. The orchestra has premiered works by such distinguished composers as Jeff Beal, Jeremy Crosmer, Marcus Norris, Lowell Liebermann, and its own composer in residence, J. Bruce Brown. Operas including Tosca, La Boheme, Merry Wives of Windsor, Die Fledermaus have been presented in fully staged productions and eight different collaborations with the Indianapolis Ballet and Grand Rapids Ballet have resulted in magical productions of Sleeping Beauty and The Nutcracker. The JSO’s administrative offices, Community Music School, and 300-person recital hall are located in downtown Jackson and were recently renovated in 2019.