The Saratov Conservatory Symphony Orchestra was created just after the Conservatory was opened, in 1912 the first Russian provincial conservatory and the third in Russia, after St Petersburg and Moscow. From 1935 the Conservatory took the name of Leonid Sobinov, the famous Russian tenor. Following tradition, usually the artistic director and chief conductor of the orchestra also was the artistic director and chief conductor of the Saratov Philharmonic Orchestra. Chief conductors of the Saratov Conservatory Symphony Orchestra have included such prominent musicians as Nathan Faktorovich, Martyn Nersesyan, and Yuri Aronovich. For many years Roman Matsov worked with the orchestra, which has also performed under the baton of such famous conductors as Mstislav Rostropovich, Karl-Wilhelm Brandt, Konstantin Saradzhev, Nisson Shkarovsky, Gennady Provatorov, and Yuri Kochnev.
