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The beginnings of the Thuner Stadtorchester go back to the year 1896, when our Liebhaberorchester under the name Orchesterverein Thun gave its first public concert, in the hall of the Hotel Falken in Bälliz, today's nursing home.
The conductor August Oetiker was the personality who first coined the orchestra for nearly 40 years the orchestra. In addition ge also directed the Cäcilienverein (today Cäcilienchor). In the 1940’s, began the tradition of subscription concerts. The Music Director at this time was Alfred Ellenberger, who also worked as a music teacher at the Lehrerinnenseminar and in Gymnasium. All of his students received instruction in the introductions to the subscription concerts.
After Alfred Ellenberger's death, the Music Director of the orchestra for about 20 years was François Pantillon. After his resignation, he wrote on behalf of the orchestra, a violin concerto, which was premiered successfully in 2006 with Alexandre Dubach. The Music Director of the orchestra since 1999 is Laurent Gendre.
A tradition of the Thuner Stadtorchester is also the occasional performance of the oratorios with the Thun’s choirs, primarily with the Cäcilienchor. Just last season, Joseph Haydn's Creation was performed, on the occasion of the 100th Anniversary of Cäcilienchor.
An attraction of the concerts are great instrumental soloists, especially the orchestra’s master violinist Alexandre Dubach, who is since 2010 Honorary Member of the Association of Thuner Stadtorchester. Other soloists who have performed with the orchestra are: pianists like Adrian Oetiker, Aglaia Graf or Reto Reichenbach; cellists such as Thomas and Patrick Demenga or the clarinetist Reto
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