Hudson Festival Orchestra (HFO) is a professional orchestra formed in 2019 by Artistic Director/Conductor Gwen Gould, and based in the city of Hudson, NY.  

Inspired by the dream expressed by Martin Luther King at the March on Washington in 1963, which she attended, Gould is dedicated to bringing the diverse community of Hudson together through music, and as MLK expressed it “to transform the jangling discords of our nation into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood."

The primary event of the HFO is the presentation of an annual concert for full orchestra on the Hudson waterfront. Called “Hudson in Concert: A Community Celebration,” it is free and open to the public and celebrates our diverse American heritage through music. HFO presents other smaller multi-cultural performances throughout the year.

Further inspired by the book “River of Dreams” by area resident Hudson Talbott this event invites our audience to take in the natural beauty of the Hudson River and the distant Catskill Mountains while enjoying the HFO’s harmonious embodiment of hope and a profound vision for unity.