most notably Jón Leifs (1899-1968), composer and conductor, who had studied at the Leipzig Conservatory during World War I. Leifs emphasized the inevitable need of a decent symphony orchestra lest Iceland should lag behind other civilized countries. Furthermore, the growing music industry was stimulated by a handful of European musicians who came to live and work in Iceland during the first half of the century. Among the most influential were Franz Mixa (1902–1994), Victor Urbancic (1903–1958) and Wilhelm Lanzky-Otto (1909–1991). Foundation and first years (1950–1956) During the late-forties, the dream of a professional orchestra loomed ever larger in public discussion in Iceland. A group of musicians, led by composers Páll Ísólfsson (1893-1974) and Jón Þórarinsson (1917-2012), wrote a formal proposal to the government where suggestions of administration and ownership of the planned orchestra were put forward. Eysteinn Jónsson (1906-1993), minister of culture, introduced a bill in Parliament during the winter of 1947-1948 where a special fund for the management of an orchestra was planned. Jónsson's bill assumed that financial support should come from The National Radio (Ríkisútvarpið; RÚV), The Reykjavík Music Society (Tónlistarfélag Reykjavíkur) and The National Theatre (Þjóðleikhúsið), which was not yet in operation. The rest of the funding was supposed to come from a tax imposed on movie tickets. However, there was no agreement on the bill in Parliament as MPs representing constituencies outside Reykjavík expressed great antagonism to the idea. In 1950, the steering committee of RÚV agreed to experimentally finance the activity of an orchestra of 40 members for a few months. No formal inaugural meeting was held so the orchestra's foundation date is considered March 9, 1950 when its first concert took place. At the outset, the ISO was efficient in concerting and gave fifteen public performances during its first year of existence. However, the beginning was unpromising from a financial perspective: Operating costs were higher than applied to any other musical institution of the country, no budget estimates had yet been made and the public response was marked by lack of interest. Wage disputes were frequent and members of the orchestra, most of whom worked part-time, regularly consulted their unions. In early 1953, members of the orchestra went on strike on account of overdue wage payments. Only a few weeks after the ISO's inauguration, Þjóðleikhúsið opened for the first time, and the two institutions maintained a close alliance for several years. The ISO had