On April 11, 1888, after years of preparation, the Concertgebouw, Amsterdam’s concert hall, was officially opened. At last, Amsterdam had its own true temple of music, and it quickly proved to be one of the world’s finest concert halls. Half a year later, on November 3, 1888, the Concertgebouw Orchestra (= RCO), established especially for this concert hall, gave its first concert. Under the direction of Willem Kes and Willem Mengelberg, in only a few short decades the orchestra had developed into one of Europe’s leading ensembles. In 1897, Richard Strauss spoke of an orchestra that was 'wirklich prachtvoll, voll Jugendfrische und Begeisterung', and from the very beginning of the 20th century, dozens of composers and conductors came to Amsterdam to work with this now-famous orchestra. Since the celebration of their first hundred years in 1988, the orchestra has borne the honour of the title of Royal Orchestra. Around the globe, and with a character all its own, it is universally recognized as one of the world’s leading symphony orchestras.