The Sinfonieorchester Basel was formed in 1997 from merging the Basler Sinfonie-Orchester (Basel Symphony Orchestra) and the Radio-Sinfonieorchester Basel (Radio Symphony Orchestra Basel). Since 2012 it is entirely responsible for its own affairs, both artistic and commercial. Current chief conductor since 2016 is Ivor Bolton, who followed Mario Venzago (1997-2002), Marko Letonja (2003-2006) and Dennis Russell Davies (2009-2016).