The New York Philharmonic is the oldest symphony orchestra in the United States. It performs most of its concerts at the Avery Fisher Hall in New York.

The orchestra started in 1842. At that time it was called the Philharmonic Society. At its first concert the orchestra played a very long programme which included Beethoven’s Symphony No. 5 conducted by Ureli Corelli Hill. The musicians worked as a cooperative or "communistic" society. This meant that the musicians themselves made up the rules about how the orchestra should be run: who would become a member, which music would be performed, and who would conduct. At the end of each season they divided any money the orchestra had earned amongst themselves.