Presidential Symphony Orchestra, Ankara, Türkiye

Standing: Notable
Rank: Rank 2,019 of 5,060

Reviewed by Elena Voss · Roavina Travel Editor

About Presidential Symphony Orchestra

The Presidential Symphony Orchestra (Cumhurbaşkanlığı Senfoni Orkestrası, CSO) is the presidential symphony orchestra of the Republic of Turkey, based in Ankara. Its history goes back to 1826, when Sultan Mahmud II turned the Ottoman military band into a Western-style band, which makes it one of the first symphony orchestras in the world. The orchestra moved to the new capital Ankara on 27 April 1924 on the orders of Mustafa Kemal Atatürk and took its present name by law in 1957. Its concert home is CSO Ada Ankara.

Checked 2026-11-10 · Source

What's inside

CSO Ada Ankara, the orchestra's concert campus, was designed by Uygur Architects after they won a competition in 1992, and opened on 3 December 2020. Its largest stage, the Ziraat Bankası Main Hall, seats 2,023 in a vineyard-style auditorium with 360-degree views. The CSO1826 Exhibition Area traces the orchestra's roughly 200-year history with documents, photographs and instruments, among them a cymbal used by Muzika-i Hümayun musicians in 1838, the harpsichord of Ayşe Savaşır and the first record of the Turkish national anthem from 1933.

Checked 2026-11-10 · Source

Getting there

CSO Ada Ankara is at Talatpaşa Bulvarı No: 38, 06330 Opera, Ankara. By metro, get off at Sıhhiye on the OSB–Törekent–Koru line, or at Adliye on the Keçiören–Kızılay line. By bus, use the Selim Sırrı Tarcan Spor Salonu stops on Talatpaşa Bulvarı or the Adliye stops on Atatürk Bulvarı. The Başkentray suburban train stops at Yenişehir. Visitors coming by car can use the paid car park, which has four levels and 703 spaces.

Checked 2026-11-10 · Source