Playing a Critical Role in the Region

Since its founding as Palatine Hills Symphony in 1982, Orchestra Nova Northwest has become a staple of Multnomah County’s arts scene, bringing over sixty paid core musicians together each year in concerts designed to welcome audiences throughout Multnomah and Washington Counties in Northwest Oregon.

What started out as a volunteer orchestra formed by Jerry Leudders became an incorporated non-profit organization when John Trudeau took over as music director and conductor in 1986, which in turn led Palatine Hills Symphony to become the Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Huw Edwards served in that same role from 2000 to 2012, which is when the orchestra added “Portland” to its moniker, becoming Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra. Steven Byess took the reins as Music Director in 2014 after a national search and continues to lead the ensemble forward with aplomb. Under Byess’s leadership the orchestra’s reputation for inclusive and bold programming combined with masterful renditions of the classics, has only grown. In July of 2024 PCSO changed its name once again, becoming  Orchestra Nova Northwest.

Playing a critical role in the artistic landscape of the Portland Metro area, ONN provides affordable and comfortable concert environments for audiences of all kinds, while also providing competitive, creative jobs and opportunities for the area’s leading freelance professionals, music educators, and newly established conservatory-trained musicians. As the only orchestra that performs regularly in East County, ONN continues to invest in communities and areas in our region that have been historically under-represented and complements its concert programming with multiple educational and outreach initiatives aimed at enlarging the audience for symphonic music in our region.

 

Mission & Values

Orchestra Nova Northwest is a professional orchestra serving the greater Portland area from Gresham to Hillsboro. ONN cultivates and champions a diverse community of musicians and audiences through affordable and accessible performances. Each season we intentionally showcase living, local, and female composers and collaborators who represent our diverse and changing community.

 

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion at ONN

Orchestra Nova Northwest recognizes that orchestral music traditions have historically been shaped largely by privilege, exclusivity, and bias. Guided by the belief that our artform is strengthened and made more meaningful when it is accessible and representative of our diverse, changing communities, we commit to changing the narrative in the following ways:

  • Creating space onstage each season for all who seek creative expression via the orchestral arts, including, but not limited to, living, local, female, and underrepresented composers/collaborators.
  • Adopting systems and practices that acknowledge the varying needs of a diverse audience, including disadvantaged, underserved, and at-risk populations and those from differing socioeconomic, ethnic, and age groups.
  • Recruiting personnel, especially at the leadership level, who bring diverse viewpoints and backgrounds to elevate underrepresented voices, bring willingness to expand institutional perspective, and bring balance to the decision-making process.

As we work to create a welcoming, accessible, and relevant concert experience for the widest possible audience, we recognize that the path to greater inclusivity is neither routine nor predictable; we therefore commit ourselves to fostering a culture of curiosity, learning, and adapting for the sake of our art form and community.

(Adopted January, 2020)

Make a difference at ONN

Curious, talented, and open-minded individuals keep Orchestra Nova Northwest going and growing on all levels. As artists and arts administrators, we recognize that our best, most creative work happens when we learn from our diverse perspectives and experiences; we are an equal opportunity employer.

Administrative Team

We do not currently have any open positions.

Auditions

We are not currently holding auditions.

 

Request a Ticket Donation

Orchestra Nova Northwest is pleased to offer local non-profit organizations donated ticket vouchers to help with auctions and fundraisers. Vouchers are good for two tickets to one ONN concert, and are valued at $60 each.

Note: If you’re a social service organization looking to support clients with concert tickets, visit our Community Connections page instead.

Please submit ticket donation requests at least four weeks prior to your event – if approved, you will receive your voucher within two weeks. Note that we are unable to support organizations with political or religious affiliations.

















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Contact ONN

Orchestra Nova Northwest’s offices are located in the Rose City Park neighborhood of Portland, in the Rose City Park United Methodist Church.

Physical address:
5830 NE Alameda
Portland, OR 97213

Mailing address:
PO Box 6559
Portland, OR 97228

Box Office: Open Monday through Friday, 9 am – 1 pm: 503-234-4077 / info@novanw.org







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