CALGARY PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
on-going financial support and involvement


The Rozsa Family has been involved with the Calgary Philharmonic Orchestra since it was founded in the early 1950's.

Quickly establishing themselves as committed concert attendees, Drs. Theodore and Lola Rozsa, soon pursued more active roles in the organization. Theodore became a Board member, participating on the music selection committee. Lola, a founder of the public school children's concerts and the Benny the Bookworm fundraiser , enjoyed a term as president of the Women's League of the Philharmonic.

In 1985, Theodore and Lola agreed to endow the Maestro's Chair, which enticed leading Canadian conductor Mario Bernardi to the CPO. Subsequently, Austrian Maestro Hans Graf became the principle conductor of the orchestra. Both artists remain involved with the CPO as conductors emeritus and laureate respectively. This visionary support enabled the orchestra to achieve new levels of artistic competence that  resulted in numerous recordings and a highly celebrated European tour in 2001.

In recognition of their generous support in both time and money, the Rozsa Family has a permanent seat on the Board of Directors of the CPO. All three children have served lengthy terms on both the Board of the Society and of the CPO Foundation.

Under the auspices of the Rozsa Foundation, the Rozsa Family continues to support the CPO financially by facilitating collaborative ventures with other arts organizations such as Honens and The Calgary Opera. The Foundation also appoints a promising citizen under the age of thirty-five to the Board in order to foster diversity and to develop community leadership.

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