Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra with Strauss and Markus Stenz

Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra (founded 1912): 120+ concerts/year, 150K+ reached; led by Robert Spano; played Carnegie Hall & Kennedy Center; 13 acclaimed recordings.

Richard Strauss, born in Munich, Germany, was a leading late Romantic and early Modern German composer and conductor. Renowned for his tone poems, including *Also sprach Zarathustra*, and operas like *Der Rosenkavalier*, he mastered orchestral and vocal composition. Strauss collaborated notably with librettist Hugo von Hofmannsthal. He was also a successful conductor of orchestras and director of opera houses.

Markus Stenz is a German conductor known primarily for his work in the fields of opera and orchestral music. He has held high-profile positions with numerous international ensembles, including serving as the principal conductor of the Netherlands Radio Philharmonic Orchestra, the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra, and the Gürzenich Orchestra of Cologne. He is widely recognized for his championing of contemporary composers and his extensive, award-winning discography.