Presidential Symphony Orchestra is one of the oldest orchestras in the world that has been able to operate without any interruptions.

Polyphonic music entered our country starting with Sultan Mahmud the Second's era in 1826 with the westernization movements and institutionalized in a short time. After this fundamental step, Guissepe Donizetti was invited to Turkey by Sultan Mahmud the Second from the imperial palace of Austria-Hungary to lead the orchestra. Until the Foundation of the Republic, the name of the orchestra was "Mızika-i Hümayun"(Royal Band) and it performed solely in the palace. This institution of art taken over in 1924 was transferred to Ankara according to the command of Great Turk Atatürk and reorganized with a new perspective as an educational institution operating to elevate the cultural and artistic level of the people. 

The orchestra as the first institution of the Republic was honoured by Great Turk Atatürk naming it with his supreme authority. The orchestra recreated on his visionary principles of music and art and the polyphonic music was carried to an honourable condition. With this understanding, considering the effectiveness of the art for the development process of the Republic, Musical Teachers School was founded in 1924 and entered into training in unison with the orchestra. After the education conducted with the scarce resource of that era, the talented young students were sent to Europe. After they had completed their education in 1934 and had returned to Turkey, They – also known as Turkish Fives Adnan Saygun, Cemal Reşit Rey, Ulvi Cemal Erkin, Hasan Ferit Alnar,and Necil Kazim Akses founded Contemporary Turkish Composing School.

Musical Teachers School was the basis of the Conservatory of Ankara founded in 1936 and gave support to this conservatory with its teaching staff. The main source of Istanbul and Izmir State Symphony Orchestras and the other artistic institutions in Turkey was Musical Teachers School. The composers educated with the western music and founded contemporary composing school affected by both folk music and the most progressive trends have been listened admiringly even at the present time. 

In 1934 Ahmet Adnan Saygun, in 1935 well-known German Maestro Dr. Ernst Praetorius with the suggestion of composer Paul Hindemith who was charged with organizing the programs of the institutions training in the field of universal polyphonic music were appointed as the head of the orchestra. The valuable orchestra pedagogue Praetorius elevated the orchestra to the international levels in technical sense. After the death of Praetorius the orchestra was conducted for many years by the famous conductors like Ferit Anlar, G.E. Lessing and many others. Especially Lessing conducted many premiers of Contemporary Turkish Composers’ works and put them in the repertory of the orchestra, conducted these works in the country and abroad, recorded and made them known. 

Besides the prominent conductors like Louis Fremaux, Lukas Foss, Walters Susskind, Jiri Belohlavek, Aaron Copland, Jean Perisson, Vladimir Fedoseyev, Karsten Andersen, Bruno Aprea, Massimo Pradella, Tadeusz Strugala, Marek Pijarowski, Cansug Kahidze, Gilbert Varga , Chiristian Jarvi, Michel Tabacnik, Alexander Rahbari the orchestra collaborated with notable soloists like world famous Turkish ones Suna Kan, Ayşegül Sarıca, İdil Biret, Gülsin Onay, Verda Erman, Hüseyin Sermet, Fazıl Say, Özgür Aydın and also foreigners like Andre Navara, Yehudi Menuhin, Joaquin Rodrigo, Arto Noras, Alberich Mayer, Jean Pierre Rampal, Igor Oistrakh, Marin Gerass, Raphael Wallfisch, Hagai Shaham, Truls Mork, Viktor Pkayzen, Julian Rachlin, Paul Tortelier, Pierre Fournier, Valeri Klimov, Grigory Sokolov, Peter Katin, Gary Karr, Stefan Ruha, Robert Cohen, Janos Starker, Yuri Bashmet, Valeri Oistrakh, Vadim Repin, Andor Foldes, Alexander Markov, Vaclav Hudecek, Karl Leister, Lothar Koch, Alirio Diaz, Carol Byers, Natalia Gutman, Sarah Chang, Antonio Meneses, Stefan Dohr, Alexander Rudin, Maria Kliegel, Elina Vahala, Swingle Singers and Klazz Brothers & Cuba Percussion. 

After the special law numbered 6940 was published in 1957 Presidential Symphony Orchestra made a name in the international platform as well and performed in Germany, Austria, Bulgaria, Romania, Yugoslavia, Russia, Italy, France, Switzerland, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Spain, Poland, Cyprus, Czech Republic, South Korea, Japan, USA, England, Hungary and China; and contributed to be introduced the Turkish Republic’s cultural being to the world in just the same way as Atatürk’s wish thanks to many positive criticism received from the world's well known cultural centers.

The orchestra was conducted by Assistant Conductor Hikmet Şimşek between the years of 1957 and 1986. Gürer Aykal was appointed as Assistant conductor in 1974 and became Chief Conductor in 1988 according to the provisions of the special law numbered 6940. In January 2007 Rengim Gökmen, in December 2011 Erol Erdinç, in March 2013 Rengim Gökmen again and in July 2014 Selman Ada was appointed to the Chief Conductor position of the orchestra.

Since the foundation law passed in 1957 besides the periodic concerts, the orchestra has given concerts more than two thousands around every corner of the country from Edirne to Hakkari for radio, TV and for children, youth and public and has pioneered to introduce, to diffuse and to attach polyphonic music in all parts of Turkey.