In the first year after its founding, the orchestra began touring for several weeks at a time, and these tours expanded over the years.
Concert engagements came from many different institutions, and contrary to what one might think, the Hohner company was not usually the organiser. The most important manager, without whom the orchestra would never have achieved its success and fame, was its long-time impresario Alexander Levitoff, a Russian émigré living in Paris, who paved the way for many of the orchestra’s major tours. A special feature of his orchestral engagements was that contracts for tours were only binding with a handshake.
Orchestra bus with trailer for instruments
1947
Concert tour through northern Germany
1948
Concert tour through southern Germany
Concert tour through the entire French-occupied zone
Tour of Bavaria
Tour of the border triangle
Concert tour through northern Germany
1949
Concert tour through southern and northern Germany
Switzerland – first great tour abroad
1950
50 concerts in southern Germany together with Willy Reichert
Concert tour of Switzerland
Concert tour of northern Germany
1951
First concert tour of Paris and several concert tours within Germany
1952
Three tours of Germany lasting several weeks and concert tour of Denmark
1953
First tour of Portugal
Concert tour of Denmark
Three-month tour of Germany
Concert tour of Denmark, Sweden and France
1954
Three-month tour of Spain, Portugal and North Africa
Two-month tour of Germany
Two-month concert tour of France and Spain
1955
1955 was the busiest year for touring
February/March: Concert tour of Portugal
April/May: Concert tour of Germany
June-November: 6-month concert tour of Australia and New Zealand
1956
Concert tour of Holland and Belgium
2 tours of Germany (May-July and September-December)
1957
Concert tour of England, Holland and Belgium
Tour of West Germany and Berlin, with a concert in Paris in between
1958
Concerts in Switzerland
2-month tour of Spain, Portugal and France
2-month concert tour of Germany and Austria
1959
Numerous radio and record recordings
3-month autumn tour of Germany, Holland and France
First recordings at Television Strasbourg
1960
Concert tour of France, Spain and Portugal
Three-month autumn tour of Germany
1961
Concert tour of the USA and Mexico (January-March)
Television recordings
Recordings in Vienna
Two tours of Germany (July-August and September-December)
1962
Four major tours of Germany (March–May, July–August, October, November–December)
1963
Recordings in Vienna
Two-month spa tour of Germany
Three-month autumn tour (last concert of the orchestra on 13 December)