About Us

The Coachella Valley Symphony is comprised of desert community residents, guest musicians, out-of-state snowbirds, and musicians from the surrounding Southern California area. The 50+ piece orchestra performs an extensive variety of classical and popular music. 

In 1993, through the tireless efforts of Jeannette Banoczi, the Coachella Valley Symphony was founded.  She wanted others to share in her passion for playing music and realized there were few opportunities in the desert. The original conductor, Thomas Mancini, passed the baton to Maestro Christian Chalifour who led the orchestra from 1995-2010.

We began our 23rd season with our new conductor, John Mario, and our orchestra has grown to include new musicians and new members of the Board of Directors since that time. The Coachella Valley Symphony continues to build upon the foundation for music education and community development to this day. We have expanded our youth and scholarship programs. We have also added new sponsorship opportunities. We are pleased to provide our community musicians with an opportunity to perform exceptional works, to provide youth with individual and group scholarships, and to provide affordable concerts to our audiences. We believe that the diverse concerts we offer to the community engage, educate and instill a life-long love of music.