Mid-Winter Mid-Night Satellite

While video recording the star Tycho 1311-1818-1 in Taurus on a very cold Thursday evening last week (-4° F) in the hope that asteroid 126561 (2002 CF₁₀₅) would pass in front of it (it didn’t), I was surprised and delighted to serendipitously record a very slow moving Earth-orbiting satellite crossing the field. Now, in order to see a satellite, it must be illuminated by sunlight. But to see any satellite during the first week of January only 10 minutes before local midnight, it must be very far from the Earth indeed (more on that later).

Here’s a video of the event showing its complete traversal of the field of view:

Slow-Moving Satellite

I’m hoping that one of the good people that frequent the satellite observers’ forum SeeSat-L will be able to identify this unusual object. Requisite to that, of course, are two precise positions at two precise times and the observer’s location.

A very useful online tool provided by the Department of Physics at Virginia Tech allows one to input the right ascension, declination, and x-y coordinates of between 4 and 10 known objects, and it does an astrometric solution across the field so you can determine the right ascension and declination of an unknown object.

Using Guide 9.1, Limovie, and this tool, I determined the following:

At 5 Jan 2018 5:42:58.122 UT, the satellite was located at:
5^h45^m48.14^s +21°45’17.5″ (apparent coordinates, epoch of date).

At 5 Jan 2018 5:50:22.931 UT, the satellite was located at:
5^h46^m53.98^s +21°48’06.3″ (apparent coordinates, epoch of date).

Observer Location: 42°57’36.9″N, 90°08’31.1″ W, 390 m.

Using the satellite coordinates above, and the angular separation calculator kindly provided by the Indian Institute of Astrophysics, we find that the satellite traversed just 0.2590° in 0.1236 hours. That’s 2.095° per hour, or only about four moon diameters in an hour!

Surely, this satellite must be way out there. How far? To determine that, I did a couple of what we used to call during my college physics days “back-of-the-envelope” (BOTEC) calculations. These are rough approximations—using simplifying assumptions—that should get you to an answer that is at least the right order of magnitude.

If we can estimate the orbital angular velocity of the satellite, we can determine its orbital period, and if we could determine that, we can calculate it orbital distance. Now, we don’t know yet if this satellite is in a near-circular or highly-elliptical orbit. If the satellite is an a highly-elliptical orbit and we observe it near apogee, its angular velocity will be somewhat slower than the angular velocity of a circular orbit at that same distance. If we observe it near perigee, then its angular velocity will be somewhat faster that the angular velocity of a circular orbit at that same distance. First simplifying assumption: let’s assume a circular orbit.

The next simplifying assumptions are that (1) the satellite passes through the observer’s zenith, and (2) the distance to the satellite is large in comparison to the radius of the Earth. At the time of observation, the satellite was at an altitude between 65° and 66° above the horizon. Not quite the zenith, but maybe close enough.

First, we need to compensate for the fact that the observer’s location on the surface of the Earth is moving in the same direction (along right ascension) as the satellite is orbiting (eastward) as the Earth rotates. We need to add the Earth’s rotational velocity to the right ascension component of the satellite’s velocity to get its true angular velocity relative to the center of the Earth. This of course assumes that the radius of the Earth is small compared to the distance to the satellite.

During the 0.1236 hours we observed the satellite, it moved 0.2743° eastward in right ascension and 0.0469° northward in declination. We now need to add a portion of the Earth’s angular velocity to the right ascension component of the satellite’s angular velocity. If the satellite were at the north celestial pole, the amount we would add would be zero. If, on the other hand, the satellite were on the celestial equator, we would add the full amount. Since cos 90° is 0 and cos 0° is 1, let’s add the Earth’s rotational angular velocity times the cosine of the satellite’s declination to the right ascension component of the satellite’s angular velocity.

The Earth turns through 360° in one mean sidereal day (23^h 56^m 04^s = 86,164^s). That’s 1.8591° during the 0.1236 hours we observed the satellite. Taking that times the average declination of the satellite during the observation time, we get 1.8591° cos 21.7783° =1.7264°. Adding this to the 0.2743° the satellite moved in right ascension, we get new components for the satellite’s angular displacement of 0.2743° + 1.7264° = 2.0007° in right ascension and 0.0469° in declination. This gives us the “true” angular displacement for the satellite of

This is a motion of about 16.19° per hour, giving us a rough orbital period of 22.235 hours or 80,045 seconds.

Using Newton’s form of Kepler’s Third Law to calculate the orbital semi-major axis, we get (as a very rough estimate):

where G is the gravitational constant, M is the mass of the Earth in kg, and P is the satellite’s orbital period in seconds.

Geosynchronous satellites have an orbital radius of 42,164 km, so our mystery satellite is almost as far out as the geosynchronous satellites. If it were further, the satellite would have been moving westward across our field of view, not eastward.

Admittedly, this is a lot of hand waving and is almost certainly wrong, but perhaps it gets us reasonably close to the right answer.

Now, let’s consider the shadow of the Earth to give us another estimate of the satellite’s distance.

At the time of observation, the Sun was located at 19^h04^m23^s -22°36’40”. The anti-solar point, which is the center of the Earth’s shadow cone, was then located at 7^h04^m23^s +22°36’40”. That is only 18.1° from the satellite. The Sun’s angular diameter at that time was 32.5 arcminutes. In order for the satellite to not be shadowed by the Earth, the angular diameter of the Earth as seen from the satellite must be less thanThe distance from the center of the Earth at which the Earth subtends an angle of 18.6° is given bySo, using this method, the satellite must be at an orbital radius of at least 38,905 km to be outside the Earth’s umbral shadow cone.

Now, on to something less speculative: the varying brightness of the satellite. I used Limovie to track the satellite across most of the field and got the following light curve.

At first blush, it appears the satellite is tumbling with a period of around 51.2^s. But a closer inspection reveals that a larger amplitude is followed by a smaller amplitude is followed by a larger amplitude, and so on. So the tumbling period looks to me to be more like 102.4^s. The mean (unfiltered) magnitude of the satellite looks to be around 11.8^m, but ranging between 10.7^m and 13.0^m. Thus the amplitude is around 2.3 magnitudes. You will find the raw data here.

Update January 10, 2018

Alain Figer, French astronomer and satellite enthusiast, was kind enough to identify this object for me. Alain writes, “At first glance I noticed, using Calsky, that Falcon 9 rocket, 2017-025B, #42699, might be your satellite…From the MMT data (astroguard russian site) 2017-025B rotation period was measured at 89.55s on 13 OCT 2017. That figure seems to me in rather good agreement with yours at 102.4s, since the rotation period of this rocket might be quickly lengthening, a rather classical behaviour for such newly launched rockets.” Alain goes on to say, “For estimating the satellite altitude from your own observations you have to consider its highly eccentric elliptical orbit.” Thank you, Alain!

After I got home from work this evening, I began thinking, “Hmm, Guide is such an amazing program, maybe it can show me accurate satellite positions as well.” Turns out, it can! After downloading the current orbital elements for all satellites and turning on the satellite display, I was able to confirm Alain’s determination that this object is indeed Falcon 9 rocket body 2017-025B.

SpaceX launched the Inmarsat-5 F4 commercial communications satellite from historic Launch Complex 39A at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida using a Falcon 9 rocket on May 15, 2017. Here are some pictures and a video of that launch.

The Falcon 9 rocket body currently orbits the Earth once every 23^h21^m19^s in a highly-elliptical orbit (e=0.8358) that ranges from a perigee height of 432.4 km to an apogee height of 69,783 km. During the time of observation, its range (i.e. distance from me, the observer) went from 64,388 km to 64,028 km. The semi-major axis of its orbit is 41,481 km which is 3.3% higher than my (lucky) estimate above. The shadow criterion of > 38,905 km is met as well.

Meteor Shower Calendar 2018

Here’s our meteor shower calendar for 2018. It is sourced from the IMO’s Working List of Visual Meteor Showers (https://www.imo.net/files/meteor-shower/cal2018.pdf, Table 5, p. 25).

Each meteor shower is identified using its three-character IAU meteor shower code. Codes are bold on the date of maximum, and one day either side of maximum.

Here’s a printable PDF file of the meteor shower calendar shown below:

Meteor Shower Calendar 2018

Happy meteor watching!

January 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
	1 DLM QUA	2 DLM QUA	3 DLM QUA	4 DLM QUA	5 DLM QUA	6 DLM QUA
7 DLM QUA	8 DLM QUA	9 DLM QUA	10 DLM QUA GUM	11 DLM QUA GUM	12 DLM QUA GUM	13 DLM GUM
14 DLM GUM	15 DLM GUM	16 DLM GUM	17 DLM GUM	18 DLM GUM	19 DLM GUM	20 DLM GUM
21 DLM GUM	22 DLM GUM	23 DLM	24 DLM	25 DLM	26 DLM	27 DLM
28 DLM	29 DLM	30 DLM	31 DLM ACE

February 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
				1 DLM ACE	2 DLM ACE	3 DLM ACE
4 DLM ACE	5 ACE	6 ACE	7 ACE	8 ACE	9 ACE	10 ACE
11 ACE	12 ACE	13 ACE	14 ACE	15 ACE	16 ACE	17 ACE
18 ACE	19 ACE	20 ACE	21	22	23	24
25 GNO	26 GNO	27 GNO	28 GNO

March 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
				1 GNO	2 GNO	3 GNO
4 GNO	5 GNO	6 GNO	7 GNO	8 GNO	9 GNO	10 GNO
11 GNO	12 GNO	13 GNO	14 GNO	15 GNO	16 GNO	17 GNO
18 GNO	19 GNO	20 GNO	21 GNO	22 GNO	23 GNO	24 GNO
25 GNO	26 GNO	27 GNO	28 GNO	29	30	31

April 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
1	2	3	4	5	6	7
8	9	10	11	12	13	14 LYR
15 PPU LYR	16 PPU LYR	17 PPU LYR	18 PPU LYR	19 ETA PPU LYR	20 ETA PPU LYR	21 ETA PPU LYR
22 ETA PPU LYR	23 ETA PPU LYR	24 ETA PPU LYR	25 ETA PPU LYR	26 ETA PPU LYR	27 ETA PPU LYR	28 ETA PPU LYR
29 ETA LYR	30 ETA LYR

May 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
		1 ETA	2 ETA	3 ELY ETA	4 ELY ETA	5 ELY ETA
6 ELY ETA	7 ELY ETA	8 ELY ETA	9 ELY ETA	10 ELY ETA	11 ELY ETA	12 ELY ETA
13 ELY ETA	14 ARI ELY ETA	15 ARI ETA	16 ARI ETA	17 ARI ETA	18 ARI ETA	19 ARI ETA
20 ARI ETA	21 ARI ETA	22 ARI ETA	23 ARI ETA	24 ARI ETA	25 ARI ETA	26 ARI ETA
27 ARI ETA	28 ARI ETA	29 ARI	30 ARI	31 ARI

June 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
					1 ARI	2 ARI
3 ARI	4 ARI	5 ARI	6 ARI	7 ARI	8 ARI	9 ARI
10 ARI	11 ARI	12 ARI	13 ARI	14 ARI	15 ARI	16 ARI
17 ARI	18 ARI	19 ARI	20 ARI	21 ARI	22 JBO ARI	23 JBO ARI
24 JBO ARI	25 JBO	26 JBO	27 JBO	28 JBO	29 JBO	30 JBO

July 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
1 JBO	2 JBO	3 CAP	4 CAP	5 CAP	6 CAP	7 CAP
8 CAP	9 CAP	10 CAP	11 CAP	12 CAP SDA	13 CAP SDA	14 CAP SDA
15 CAP SDA PAU	16 CAP SDA PAU	17 PER CAP SDA PAU	18 PER CAP SDA PAU	19 PER CAP SDA PAU	20 PER CAP SDA PAU	21 PER CAP SDA PAU
22 PER CAP SDA PAU	23 PER CAP SDA PAU	24 PER CAP SDA PAU	25 PER CAP SDA PAU	26 PER CAP SDA PAU	27 PER CAP SDA PAU	28 PER CAP SDA PAU
29 PER CAP SDA PAU	30 PER CAP SDA PAU	31 PER CAP SDA PAU

August 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
			1 PER CAP SDA PAU	2 PER CAP SDA PAU	3 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	4 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU
5 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	6 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	7 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	8 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	9 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	10 KCG PER CAP SDA PAU	11 KCG PER CAP SDA
12 KCG PER CAP SDA	13 KCG PER CAP SDA	14 KCG PER CAP SDA	15 KCG PER CAP SDA	16 KCG PER SDA	17 KCG PER SDA	18 KCG PER SDA
19 KCG PER SDA	20 KCG PER SDA	21 KCG PER SDA	22 KCG PER SDA	23 KCG PER SDA	24 KCG PER	25 KCG
26	27	28 AUR	29 AUR	30 AUR	31 AUR

September 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
						1 AUR
2 AUR	3 AUR	4 AUR	5 SPE AUR	6 SPE	7 SPE	8 SPE
9 DSX SPE	10 STA DSX SPE	11 STA DSX SPE	12 STA DSX SPE	13 STA DSX SPE	14 STA DSX SPE	15 STA DSX SPE
16 STA DSX SPE	17 STA DSX SPE	18 STA DSX SPE	19 STA DSX SPE	20 STA DSX SPE	21 STA DSX SPE	22 STA DSX
23 STA DSX	24 STA DSX	25 STA DSX	26 STA DSX	27 STA DSX	28 STA DSX	29 STA DSX
30 STA DSX

October 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
	1 STA DSX	2 ORI STA DSX	3 ORI STA DSX	4 ORI STA DSX	5 ORI STA OCT DSX	6 ORI STA DRA OCT DSX
7 ORI STA DRA OCT DSX	8 ORI STA DRA DSX	9 ORI STA DRA DSX	10 ORI DAU STA DRA	11 ORI DAU STA	12 ORI DAU STA	13 ORI DAU STA
14 ORI EGE DAU STA	15 ORI EGE DAU STA	16 ORI EGE DAU STA	17 ORI EGE DAU STA	18 ORI EGE DAU STA	19 LMI ORI EGE STA	20 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA
21 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	22 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	23 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	24 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	25 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	26 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA	27 NTA LMI ORI EGE STA
28 NTA ORI STA	29 NTA ORI STA	30 NTA ORI STA	31 NTA ORI STA

November 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
				1 NTA ORI STA	2 NTA ORI STA	3 NTA ORI STA
4 NTA ORI STA	5 NTA ORI STA	6 LEO NTA ORI STA	7 LEO NTA ORI STA	8 LEO NTA STA	9 LEO NTA STA	10 LEO NTA STA
11 LEO NTA STA	12 LEO NTA STA	13 NOO LEO NTA STA	14 NOO LEO NTA STA	15 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA	16 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA	17 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA
18 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA	19 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA	20 NOO AMO LEO NTA STA	21 NOO AMO LEO NTA	22 NOO AMO LEO NTA	23 NOO AMO LEO NTA	24 NOO AMO LEO NTA
25 NOO AMO LEO NTA	26 NOO LEO NTA	27 NOO LEO NTA	28 PHO NOO LEO NTA	29 PHO NOO LEO NTA	30 PHO NOO LEO NTA

December 2018

SUN	MON	TUE	WED	THU	FRI	SAT
						1 PUP PHO NOO NTA
2 PUP PHO NOO NTA	3 HYD PUP PHO NOO NTA	4 GEM HYD PUP PHO NOO NTA	5 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP PHO NOO NTA	6 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP PHO NOO NTA	7 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP PHO NTA	8 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP PHO NTA
9 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP PHO NTA	10 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP NTA	11 DLM GEM HYD MON PUP	12 DLM COM GEM HYD MON PUP	13 DLM COM GEM HYD MON PUP	14 DLM COM GEM HYD MON PUP	15 DLM COM GEM HYD MON PUP
16 DLM COM GEM MON	17 DLM URS COM GEM MON	18 DLM URS COM MON	19 DLM URS COM MON	20 DLM URS COM MON	21 DLM URS COM	22 DLM URS COM
23 DLM URS COM	24 DLM URS	25 DLM URS	26 DLM URS	27 DLM	28 DLM QUA	29 DLM QUA
30 DLM QUA	31 DLM QUA

The Good Old Days of Astronomy…

Those of you who grew up in the 1950s and 1960s as I did will especially delight in reading the July 7, 2007 entry of Uncle Rod’s Astro Blog, courtesy of Alabama astronomer Rod Mollise. What a hoot!

And here’s a note from Phil Harrington’s website about Celestron’s ads in the 1990s: “It must be good to be an amateur astronomer in California, judging by the ads run by Celestron over the years…Yup, just another typical club star party, right?” Photo montage by Rod Mollise.

Plastic Recycling

That number you see within the recycling symbol on recyclable plastic is called the “resin identification code” or RIC. One pet peeve: the recycling symbol and RIC are often too small, not easy to see, or are difficult to find. Also, some plastics and plastic parts that could be recycled are not labeled.

The seven different types of recyclable plastics are listed below, along with a small subset of initial and recycling uses. New applications for recycled plastics are being invented all the time! Perhaps you have some ideas.

♳

Polymer: Polyethylene terephthalate (C₁₀H₈O₄)_n
Other names & abbreviations: PETE, PET, polyester
Common uses: beverage bottles, fibers for clothing
Recycling uses: non-food containers, strapping, carpet fiber

♴

Polymer: High-density polyethylene (C₂H₄)_n
Other names & abbreviations: HDPE, PE-HD
Common uses: milk jugs, food containers
Recycling uses: plastic lumber, parking bumpers, recycling bins, sheds

♵

Polymer: Polyvinyl chloride (C₂H₃Cl)_n
Other names & abbreviations: PVC, V
Common uses: bottles, non-food packaging
Recycling uses: pipes, fencing, flooring, lawn chairs, wire insulation

♶

Polymer: Low-density polyethylene (C₂H₄)_n
Other names & abbreviations: LDPE, PE-LD
Common uses: plastic bags, six-pack rings, containers, snap-on lids
Recycling uses: packaging foam, plastic film, garbage bags

♷

Polymer: Polypropylene (C₃H₆)_n
Other names & abbreviations: PP
Common uses: food containers, medical & lab equipment, pill bottles
Recycling uses: pallets, trays, landscape borders, compost bins, bike racks

♸

Polymer: Polystyrene (C₈H₈)_n
Other names & abbreviations: PS
Common uses: plastic cutlery, disposable razors, CD & DVD cases
Recycling uses: packaging material, insulation sheets, park benches

♹

Polymer: Other Plastics (acrylic, nylon, polycarbonate, etc.)
Other names & abbreviations: OTHER, O
Common uses: plastic lenses, food packaging & bottles, LCD screens, etc.
Recycling uses: plastic lumber, bus shelters, traffic lights, signs, etc.

Big Binoculars

It is often said (and rightfully so) that your first telescope should be a pair of binoculars. And your second pair of binoculars should be big binoculars on a hands-free binocular mount. It is amazing how much you can see (and how beautiful it is) at a dark-sky location with 16 x 70 binoculars mounted on an Orion Monster Parallelogram Binocular Mount & Tripod, for example.

And then there’s the realm of binocular telescopes, such as a 6, 10, or 16″ Reverse Binocular Telescope from JMI. As famed astrophotographer Tony Hallas says in a letter in the July 2007 issue of Sky & Telescope, “Daphne and I have observed…many…deep-sky objects many times over the years using conventional telescopes, including very big ones. Neither of us ever wants to go back to monocular observing. Looking with both eyes through twin scopes with fast optical systems enables the brain to absorb so much more information—it’s utterly breathtaking.”

Vacuum Telescopes

The light from a celestial object is bounced and distorted as it penetrates the Earth’s turbulent atmosphere, and this image degradation continues all the way into the telescope. Currents of air within the telescope tube caused by parts of the tube or optics being at different temperatures can severely degrade a telescope image, particularly in a large telescope.

Nowhere is this more apparent than in a professional solar telescope. Sunlight entering the telescope heats up the inside of the telescope and optical components, resulting in turbulent air currents that make the images less sharp than they could be.

To solve this problem, some solar telescopes contain a vacuum so there is no air to heat and therefore no image distortion within the telescope. This requires, however, a rather thick piece of glass (of high optical quality, of course) at the front of the telescope in order to maintain the vacuum within the tube. A good example of this kind of telescope is the Swedish 1-m Solar Telescope (SST) located on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands.

A much thinner front lens can be used if the telescope tube is filled with helium rather than evacuated, and though the results are much better than an air-filled telescope tube, they are not quite as good as with a vacuum telescope.

I am not aware of any vacuum telescopes being used for nighttime observations.

Meteor Watcher’s Network

I’ve been a meteor watching enthusiast since at least the early 1980s. I had the good fortune back then of getting to know Paul Martsching when we both lived in Ames, Iowa, and few people in the world have logged more hours in the name of meteor science than he. We have been close friends ever since.

We’ve learned that here in the U.S. Midwest, for any given astronomical event you wish to observe, there is between a 2/3 and 3/4 chance that it will be clouded out—unless you are willing to travel. Weather forecasting has gotten much better over the years, and nowadays you can vastly improve your chances of not missing that important astronomical event, such as the Perseid meteor shower in August or the Geminid meteor shower in December.

Paul and I have traveled from Ames, Iowa to Nebraska, South Dakota, North Dakota, Kansas, Missouri, and Illinois over the years to escape cloudy skies. Just last year, we had to travel to north of Jamestown, North Dakota to see the Perseids, and this year it appears we will need to travel to southern Kansas, Oklahoma, or Arkansas to get a clear view of the Geminids.

Weather forecasts don’t begin to get really accurate until about 48 hours out, so we often have to decide at nearly the last minute where to travel. Therein lies the problem. Where can we find a safe observing spot to put down our lawn chairs where there are no terrestrial lights visible brighter than the brightest stars, and no objectionable skyglow from sources or cities over the horizon? It is a tall challenge.

What we need to develop is a nationwide network of folks who know of good places to watch meteors. This would include astronomy clubs, individual astronomy enthusiasts, managers of parks and other natural areas, rural land owners who would allow meteor watchers on their land, rural B&Bs, cabins, lodges, ranches, and so on. Once you know where you need to go to get out from under the clouds, there would be someone you could call in that area of the country to make expeditious observing arrangements for that night or the following night. And perhaps lodging as well, if available.

If you would like to work with me to build a meteor watcher’s network or have ideas to share, please post comments here or contact me directly.

Do Dark Matter and Dark Energy Exist?

Numerous searches for the particle or particles responsible for dark matter have so far come up empty. What if dark matter doesn’t really exist? Could there be alternative explanation for the phenomena attributed to dark matter?

In the November 10, 2017 issue of the Astrophysical Journal, Swiss astronomer André Maeder presents an intriguing hypothesis that non-baryonic dark matter need not exist, nor dark energy either. In “Dynamical Effects of the Scale Invariance of the Empty Space: The Fall of Dark Matter?” he suggests that scale invariance of empty space (i.e. very low density) over time could be causing the phenomena we attribute to dark matter and dark energy.

What is scale invariance? In the cosmological context, it means that empty space and its properties do not change following an expansion or contraction. Scales of length, time, mass, energy, and so on are defined by the presence of matter. In the presence of matter, space is not scale invariant. But take the matter away, and empty space may have some non-intuitive properties. The expanding universe may require adding a small acceleration term that opposes the force of gravity. In the earlier denser universe, this acceleration term was tiny in comparison to the rate at which the expansion was slowing down, but in the later emptier universe, the acceleration term dominates. Sound like dark energy, doesn’t it? But maybe it is an inherent property of empty space itself.

The existence of dark matter is primarily suggested by two observed dynamical anomalies:

Flat outer rotation curve of spiral galaxies (including the Milky Way)
Motions of galaxies within galaxy clusters

Many spiral galaxies have a well-known property that beyond a certain distance from their centers, their rotation rate (the orbital velocity of stars at that distance) stays nearly constant rather than decreasing as one would expect from Keplerian motion / Newtonian dynamics (think planets orbiting the Sun in our own solar system— the farther the planet is from the Sun, the slower it orbits). Only there seems to be evidence that the rotation curves of galaxies when they are young (as seen in the high-redshift universe) do have a Keplerian gradient, but in the present-day universe the rotation curve is flat. So, it appears, flat rotation curves could be an age effect. In other words, in the outer regions of spiral galaxies, stars may be orbiting at the same velocity as they did in the past when they were closer to the galactic center. Maeder writes:

…the relatively flat rotation curves of spiral galaxies is an age effect from the mechanical laws, which account for the scale invariant properties of the empty space at large scales. These laws predict that the circular velocities remain the same, while a very low expansion rate not far from the Hubble rate progressively extends the outer layers, increasing the radius of the Galaxy and decreasing its surface density like 1/t.

We need to study the rotation curves (as a function of galactocentric radius all the way out to the outermost reaches of the galaxy) of many more galaxies at different redshifts (and thus ages) to help us test the validity of the scale invariant vs. dark matter hypotheses. Maeder suggests a thorough rotation study of two massive and fast-rotating galaxies, UGC 2953 (a.k.a. IC 356; 50-68 Mly) and UGC 2487 (a.k.a. NGC 1167; 219-225 Mly), would be quite interesting.

The observed motions of galaxies within many galaxy clusters seems to indicate there is a substantial amount of unseen mass within these clusters, through application of the virial theorem. However, the motions within some galaxy clusters such as Coma (336 Mly) and Abell 2029 (1.1 Gly) may be explainable without the need to resort to “exotic” dark matter.

Then there’s the AVR (Age-Velocity Dispersion Relation) problem which, incidentally, has nothing to do with dark matter. But it may offer evidence for the scale invariant hypothesis. It is convenient to specify the motion of a star in a spiral galaxy such as the Milky Way in a galactocentric coordinate system.

U = component of velocity towards the galaxy center

V = component of velocity in the direction of galactic rotation

W = component of velocity orthogonal to the galactic plane

Maeder writes:

The AVR problem is that of explaining why the velocity dispersion, in particular for the W-component, considerably increases with the age of the stars considered … Continuous processes, such as spiral waves, collisions with giant molecular clouds, etc… are active in the disk plane and may effectively influence the stellar velocity distributions. However…vertical heating (the increase of the dispersion σ_W) is unexpected, since the stars spend most of their lifetime out of the galactic plane.

There may be more to “empty” space than meets the eye…

References
Maeder, A., 2017, ApJ, 849, 158
arXiv:1710.11425

Theory and Observation

We continue our series of excerpts (and discussion) from the outstanding survey paper by George F. R. Ellis, Issues in the Philosophy of Cosmology.

Thesis F1: Philosophical choices necessarily underly cosmological theory.
Some cosmologists tend to ignore the philosophical choices underlying their theories; but simplistic or unexamined philosophical standpoints are still philosophical standpoints!

Cosmology, and indeed all human inquiry, is based on (at least) two unproven (though certainly reasonable) assumptions:

The Universe exists.
The human mind is at least to some degree capable of perceiving and understanding the Universe.

Any cosmological theory will have additional foundational unproven assumptions. These are called axioms. Ellis admonishes us to at least be aware of them, and to admit to them.

8.1 Criteria for theories
As regards criteria for a good scientific theory, typical would be the following four areas of assessment: (1) Satisfactory structure: (a) internal consistency, (b) simplicity (Ockham’s razor), and (c) aesthetic appeal (‘beauty’ or ‘elegance’); (2) Intrinsic explanatory power: (a) logical tightness, (b) scope of the theory—the ability to unify otherwise separate phenomena, and (c) probability of the theory or model with respect to some well-defined measure; (3) Extrinsic explanatory power, or relatedness: (a) connectedness to the rest of science, (b) extendability—providing a basis for further development; (4) Observational and experimental support, in terms of (a) testability: the ability to make quantitative as well as qualitative predications that can be tested; and (b) confirmation: the extent to which the theory is supported by such tests as have been made.

As you can see, a theory is not an opinion. It must be well-supported by facts. It must be internally consistent. It must have explanatory power. The Russian physicist A. I. Kitaĭgorodskiĭ (1914-1985) put it succinctly: “A first-rate theory predicts; a second-rate theory forbids, and a
third-rate theory explains after the event.” Einstein’s special and general relativity are spectacular examples of first-rate theories. In over 100 years of increasingly rigorous and sophisticated experiments and observations, relativity has never been proven to be incorrect.

Ellis emphasizes the importance of observational and experimental support in any scientific theory.

It is particularly the latter that characterizes a scientific theory, in contrast to other types of theories claiming to explain features of the universe and why things happen as they do. It should be noted that these criteria are philosophical in nature in that they themselves cannot be proven to be correct by any experiment. Rather their choice is based on past experience combined with philosophical reflection. One could attempt to formulate criteria for good criteria for scientific theories, but of course these too would need to be philosophically justified. The enterprise will end in infinite regress unless it is ended at some stage by a simple acceptance of a specific set of criteria.

So, even our criteria about what makes a good scientific theory rest upon axioms that cannot be proven. But unlike religion, scientific theories never posit the existence of any supernatural entity.

Thesis F3: Conflicts will inevitably arise in applying criteria for satisfactory cosmological theories.
The thrust of much recent development has been away from observational tests toward strongly theoretically based proposals, indeed sometimes almost discounting observational tests. At present this is being corrected by a healthy move to detailed observational analysis of the consequences of the proposed theories, marking a maturity of the subject. However because of all the limitations in terms of observations and testing, in the cosmological context we still have to rely heavily on other criteria, and some criteria that are important in most of science may not really make sense.

String theory? Cosmic inflation? Multiverse? If a theory is currently neither testable nor directly supported by observations, is it science, or something else?

References
Ellis, G. F. R. 2006, Issues in the Philosophy of Cosmology, Philosophy of Physics (Handbook of the Philosophy of Science), Ed. J. Butterfield and J. Earman (Elsevier, 2006), 1183-1285.
[http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0602280]

Symphonies by Women

Last Updated: March 31, 2024

How many women have achieved the compositional milestone of writing a symphony for full orchestra? The answer is, quite a few! What follows is what I believe to be a comprehensive list of all symphonies written by women. If you know of others—or if you find anything here that needs correcting or adding to—please post a comment. So many of these works have been unjustly neglected. The day will come (hopefully soon) when any short list of the greatest composers will include women.

When I originally started this list back in 2017, I had in mind only including works explicitly with titles such as Symphony No. 1, Symphony No. 2, and so on. But I’ve since learned that what constitutes a “symphony” defies any rigid definition, particularly when considering 20th- and 21st-century works. So, I’ve capitulated to include anything named “symphony” or “sinfonia” by the composer. Still, if you find any works here that really shouldn’t be included here as symphonies, please post a comment and I will consider removing them.

Looking towards the future, one composer to watch will certainly be Alma Deutscher. Her first of what will hopefully be many symphonies is eagerly anticipated.

I’ve created a forum where you can post and listen to any available performances or recordings of works listed here (and in general) that are not yet (or currently) commercially available. I hope you will consider participating, and please do tell others about it. Composers are welcome to post their own work, too!

Classical Music Little-Known Favorites

Els Aarne (1917-1995)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Rosalina Abejo (1922-1991)
Gregoria Symphony (1950)
Pioneer Symphony (1954)
Thanatopsis Symphony (1956)
The Trilogy of Man Symphony (1971)
Guerilla Symphony (1972)
Dalawang Pusong Dakila [Two Great Hearts] Symphony (1975)
Pag-ibig sa Tinubuang Bayan, a choral symphony (1979)
Symphony No. 3, “Hold High the Torch” (1981)
Jubilee Symphony (1984)
Brotherhood Symphony (1986)
Symphony of Psalms (1988)
Symphony of Life (1988)
Symphony of Fortitude and Sudden Spring (1989)
Beatriz Symphony
Marian Symphony

Lejla Agolli (1950-)
Symphony in C♯ minor (1973)

Maria Theresia Ahlefeldt (1755-1810)
Symphony in F major

Eleanor Alberga (1949-)
Symphony No. 1, “Strata” (2022)

Iryna Aleksiychuk (1967-)
Symphony for large symphony orchestra (1995)

Liana Alexandra (1947-2011)
Symphony No. 1, op. 1 (1971)
Symphony No. 2, op. 16, “Hymns” (1978)
Symphony No. 3, op. 24, “Diachronies-Harmonies” (1981)
Symphony No. 4, op. 28, “Contemporary Rhythms” (1984)
Symphony No. 5 (1986)
Symphony No. 6 (1989)
Symphony No. 7 (1996)
Symphony No. 8, “Variations” (2003)
Symphony No. 9, “Jerusalem” (2003)

Franghiz Ali-Zadeh (1947-)
Symphony (1976)

Julia Alonso (1889-1977)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Olga Alyushina (1975-)
Symphony

Maria Charlotte Amalie (1751-1827) [Duchess of Saxe-Gotha]
Symphony [for orchestra of 10 instruments]

Karen Amrhein (1970-)
Symphony of Seasons

Elfrida Andrée (1841-1929)
Symphony No. 1 in C major (1869)
Symphony No. 2 in A minor (1893)
Symphony in one movement, F minor
Organ Symphony No. 1 in B minor (1892)
Organ Symphony No. 2 in E♭ major for organ and brass (~1892)

Minni Kim-Huai Ang (1966-)
Symphony

Dina Appeldoorn (1884-1938)
Symphony No. 1, “May Symphony” (1915, rev. 1916 & 1925)
Symphony No. 2, “Wie in lauter Helligkeit” (1916)
North Sea Symphony (1924)

Adelaide Orsola Appignani (1807-1884)
Sinfonia (1834)

Kimberly Archer (1973-)
Symphony No. 1, “For Those Taken Too Soon” (for concert band) (2001)
Symphony No. 2 (for concert band) (2003)
Symphony No. 3 (for concert band) (2008)

Violet Archer (1913-2000)
Symphony (1946)
Sinfonia (1969)

Reiko Arima (1933-)
Symphony No. 1, “Okinawa”

Claude Arrieu [Louise-Marie Simon] (1903-1990)
Symphony in C major (1940)

Francine Aubin (1938-2016)
Symphony No. 1, “Allégorique”
Symphony No. 2, “de l’Espoir”
Symphony No. 3, “Kiev” (1991)
Symphony No. 4, “Juive” (2010) – orchestration of the work of Lionel Stoléru

Lera Auerbach (1973-)
Symphony No. 1, “Chimera” (2006)
Symphony No. 2, “Requiem for a Poet” (2006)
Symphony No. 3, “The Infant Minstrel and His Peculiar Menagerie” (2016)
Symphony No. 4, “Arctica” (2019)
Symphony No. 5, “Paradise Lost” (2022)
Symphony No. 6, “Vessels of Light” (2022)
String Symphony No. 1, “Memoria de la Luz” (2013)
String Symphony No. 2, “Night: Darkness of Light” (2024)

Elizabeth Austin (1938-)
Symphony No. 1, “Wilderness Symphony” (1987)
Symphony No. 2, “Lighthouse” (1993)

Ana-Maria Avram (1961-2017)
Symphony

Pikə Axundova (1984-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Svitlana Azarova (1976-)
Symphony No. 1 (1999)
Symphony No. 2, “Lana Sweet” (2003)
Symphony “Hundred Thirty One Angstrom” (2014)

Grażyna Bacewicz (1909-1969)
Symphony No. 1 (1945)
Symphony No. 2 (1951)
Symphony No. 3 (1952)
Symphony No. 4 (1953)
Symphony (1933, lost)
Symphony (1938, lost)
Symphony for string orchestra (1946)

Maya Badian (1945-)
Holocaust—In Memoriam, Symphony (1987, 1998)

Judith Bailey (1941-)
Symphony No. 1, op. 21 (1981)
Symphony No. 2, op. 24 (1982)
Cliff Walk Symphony, op. 82 (2007)

Teresa Bancer (1935-2018)
Symphony

Mansi Barberis (1899-1986)
Symphony No. 1 (1941)

Laura Wilson Barker (1819-1905)
Symphony (1845)

Elsa Barraine (1910-1999)
Symphony No. 1 (1931)
Symphony No. 2 (1938)
Symphony No. 3 (1947)

Rasa Bartkevičiūtė (1967-)
Symphony No. 1, “In perpetuum” (1993)
Symphony No. 2, “Fantasy” (1995)
Symphony No. 3, “El Dorado” (1997)
Symphony No. 4, “Rhapsody” (2001)

Marion Bauer (1882-1955)
Symphony No. 1, op. 45 (1947-50)

Amy Beach (1867-1944)
Symphony in E minor, op. 32,”Gaelic” (1894-6)

Sally Beamish (1956-)
Symphony No. 1 (1992)
Symphony No. 2 (1998)

Marguerite Béclard d’Harcourt (1884-1964)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “The Seasons” (1951)

Anđelka Bego-Šimunić (1941-2022)
Symphony No. 1 (1966)

Elizabeth Bell (1928-2016)
Symphony No. 1 (1971; 1988)

Ivane Bellocq (1958-)
Symphonie déconcertante (1997)

Marie Barker Nelson Bennett (1926-2018)
Symphony No. 1, “The Medead” (1977)
Symphony No. 2, “Hodeeyaada” (1994)
Symphony No. 3, “Symphony of the Millenium” (2000)
Symphony No. 4, “Universe” (1998)

Louise Bertin (1805-1877)
5 chamber symphonies, unpublished

Diane Bish (1941-)
A Symphony of Hymns (1983)
A Symphony of Psalms, for organ, choir, orchestra and soloist (1989)

Sylvie Bodorová (1954-)
Symphony No 1, “Con le campane” (2011)

Natasha Bogojevich (1966-)
Symphony No. 1 (1991)

Mélanie Bonis (1858-1937)
Burlesque Symphony, op. 185 posth., for percussion, wind instruments, and piano

Henriette van den Boorn-Coclet (1866-1945)
Symphony in F major (1904)
Symphony Wallone in D major (1923)

Johanna Bordewijk-Roepman (1892-1971)
Symphony No. 1 (1942)

Victoria Borisova-Ollas (1969-)
Symphony No. 1, “The Triumph of Heaven” (2001)
Symphony No. 2, “Labyrinths of Time” (2017)

Marianna Bottini (1802-1858)
Symphony for orchestra (1818)
Symphony for wind band (1819)

Ina Boyle (1889-1967)
Symphony No. 1, “Glencree” (1927)
Symphony No. 2, “The Dream of the Rood” (1930)
Symphony No. 3, “From the Darkness” (1951)

Margaret Brandman (1951-)
Firestorm Symphony (2009)

Ilona Breģe (1959-)
Symphony No. 1 (2004)
Symphony No. 2 (2006)
Symphony No. 3 (2010)

Radie Britain (1899-1994)
Southern Symphony (1935)
Cosmic Mist Symphony (1962)

Margaret Brouwer (1940-)
Symphony No. 1, “Lake Voices” (1997)

Tamar-kali Brown (1973?-)
Sea Island Symphony (2023)

Elisabetta Brusa (1954-)
Nittemero Symphony (1988)
Symphony No. 1, op. 10 (1990)
Symphony No. 2, op. 22 (2015)
Symphony No. 3, op. 27 (2022)

Joanna Bruzdowicz (1943-2021)
Symphony No. 1 (1975)
Symphony No. 2 “Concertino for Orchestra” (2007)

Nini Bulterijs (1929-1989)
Symphony (1965)

Diana Burrell (1948-)
Symphonies of Flocks, Herds and Shoals (1996)

Santa Bušs (1981-)
Liminarité, chamber symphony (2014)

Anne Lois Butler (1912-2006)
Symphony of the Hills

Sofía Cancino de Cuevas (1897-1982)
Symphony No. 1 (1935)
Symphony No. 2 in G major

Matilde Capuis (1913-2017)
Symphony in G minor

Ann Carr-Boyd (1938-)
Symphony in three movements (1964)

Wendy Mae Chambers (1953-)
Symphony of the Universe (1989)

Cécile Chaminade (1857-1944)
Les Amazones, symphonie dramatique, op. 26 (1884)

Elizabeth Charles (?-?)
Little Symphony (1941)
[student composition, Institute of American Music of the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York; active 1938-1942]

Chen Yi (1953-)
Symphony No. 1 (1986)
Symphony No. 2 (1993)
Symphony No. 3 (2002)
Symphony No. 4, “Humen 1839” (2009)

Geghuni Chitchyan (1929-)
Chamber Symphony, “In Memoriam Aram Khachaturian” (1988)

Françoise Choveaux (1953-)
Symphony Indigo, op. 2 (1993)
Symphony Blanche, op. 100 (2001)

Tatyana Chudova (1944-2021)
Symphony No. 1 in A♭, “Timur and his Team” (1982)
Symphony No. 2, “How the Steel was Tempered” (1983)
Symphony No. 3, “The Young Guard” (1984)
Symphony No. 4 (1988)

Iulia Cibișescu-Duran (1966-)
Symphony No. 1 (1990)
Symphony No. 2 (2017)

Maia Ciobanu (1952-)
Symphony No. 1, “Journal ’88” (1988)
Symphony No. 2, “…from Enescu” (2006)

Adrienne Clostre (1921-2006)
Symphony for Strings (1949; 1962)

Gloria Coates (1933-2023)
Symphony No. 1, “Music on Open Strings” (1973)
Symphony No. 2, “Illuminatio in Tenebris” (1974; 1989)
Symphony No. 3, “Symphony for Strings/Symphony Nocturne” (1978)
Symphony No. 3 (Version 2), “Holographic Universe”, with violin solo (2006)
Symphony No. 4, “Chiaroscuro” (1984; 1990)
Symphony No. 5, “Drei mystische Gesänge” (1985)
Symphony No. 6, “Music in Microtones” (1987; 1994)
Symphony No. 7 (1990)
Symphony No. 8, “Indian Sounds” (1991)
Symphony No. 9, “Homage to Van Gogh” (1994)
Symphony No. 10, “Drones of Druids on Celtic Ruins” (1994)
Symphony No. 11, “Philomen and Baucis” (1998)
Symphony No. 12 (1998)
Symphony No. 13 (2000)
Symphony No. 14, “The Americans” (2002)
Symphony No. 15, “Homage to Mozart” (2005)
Symphony No. 16, “Time Frozen” (1993)
Symphony No. 17, “Fonte di Rimini” (2017)

Jane Antonia Cornish (1975-)
Symphony No. 1 (2008)

Jean Coulthard (1908-2000)
Symphony No. 1 (1953)
Symphony No. 2, “Choral Symphony, This Land” (1967)
Symphony No. 3, “Lyric” (1975)
Symphony No. 4, “Autumn”, for string orchestra (1984)

Vicki Lynn Curry (1949?-)
Symphony in two movements (1988)

Nancy Dalberg (1881-1949)
Symphony in C♯ minor (1917) [3 movements; later withdrew 1st movement and To orkesterstykker, op. 9 (1918) remained]

Jean Reynolds Davis (1927-2015)
Symphony No. 1, in one movement
Symphony No. 2

Yvonne Desportes (1907-1993)
Symphony No. 1, “Saint-Gindolph” (1958)
Symphony No. 2, “Monorythmie” (1964)
Symphony No. 3, “L’Éternel féminin” (1969)

Arline Diamond (1928-1985)
Symphony

Mary Dickenson-Auner (1880-1965)
Symphony No. 1, “Irish Symphony”, op. 16 (1941)
Symphony No. 2 (1948) [withdrawn]
Symphony No. 3, op. 41 (1953)
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5, “American”, op. 45 (1957)
Symphony for String Orchestra, op. 33 (1950)

Emma Lou Diemer (1927-)
Symphony No. 1 (1953)
Symphony No. 2 (1955, 1959) [on Amerindian themes]
Symphony No. 3, “Antique” (1961)

Johanna Doderer (1969-)
Symphony No. 1 (2007)
Symphony No. 2,”Bohinj” (2015)

Narcisa Donátová (1928-1981)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Sanja Drakulić (1963-)
Symphony 1991

Marjorie Eastwood Dudley (1891-1961)
Symphony in E♭ major, op. 12 (1938)

Lesia Dychko (1939-)
“Greeting for Life”, symphony for soprano, bass and chamber orchestra (1972)
“Wind of Revolution”, symphony (1976)
“You Begin from Your Eyes”, symphony-cantata (1994)

Sophie Carmen Eckhardt-Gramatté (1899-1974)
Symphony No. 1 in C major, E. 104 (1940)
Symphony No. 2, “Manitoba” (1970)

Ludmilla Efimtsova (1948-)
Symphony No. 1 (1980s)

Maija Einfelde (1939-)
Choral Symphony (2000)
Symphony (2003)

Irina Elcheva (1926-2013)
Symphony, “In memory of those killed in the siege of Leningrad” (1965)

Olga Pozzi Escot (1933-)
Symphony No. 1, for strings (1953) [withdrawn]
Symphony No. 2 (1955) [withdrawn]
Symphony No. 3 (1957) [withdrawn]
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5, “Sands” (1965)
Symphony No. 6

Elisenda Fábregas (1955-)
Symphony No. 1 for Symphonic Band (2013)

Amanda Lee Falkenberg (1976-)
The Moons Symphony (2019)

Eibhlis Farrell (1953-)
Sinfonia (1990)

Louise Farrenc (1804-1875)
Symphony No. 1 in C minor, op. 32 (1842)
Symphony No. 2 in D major, op. 35 (1845)
Symphony No. 3 in G minor, op. 36 (1847)

Lorraine Noel Finley (1899-1972)
Symphony in D (1963)

Anfisa Fiodorova (1953-2000)
Symphony

Elena Firsova (1950-)
Sinfonia da camera (1972)

Elena Fiştic (1963-)
Symphony No. 1, “Haiducească” (1986)
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3 (2006)

Tsippi Fleischer (1946-)
Symphony No. 1, “Salt Crystals”, op. 33 (1995)
Symphony No. 2, “The Train”, op. 48 (1999)
Symphony No. 3, “Regarding Beauty”, op. 49 (1999)
Symphony No. 4, “A Passing Shadow”, op. 51 (2000)
Symphony No. 5, “Israeli-Jewish Collage”, op. 54 (2003)
Symphony No. 6, “The Eyes, Mirror of the Soul”, op. 73 (2011)
Symphony No. 7, “Choral Symphony”, op. 77 (2015)

Bohdana Frolyak (1968-)
Symphony No. 1, “Orbis Terrarum” (1998)
Symphony No. 2 (2009)

Ilse Fromm-Michaels (1888-1986)
Symphony in C minor, op. 19 (1938)

Linda Frumker (1940-)
Symphony (1964)

Rina Furano (1989-)
Symphony No. 1 in F major (2014)
Symphony No. 2 in C major (2016)

Varvara Adrianovna Gaigerova (1903-1944)
Symphony No. 1 (1928)
Symphony No. 2 on Kalmuk Themes (1934)
Symphony No. 3 (1936)

Nancy Galbraith (1951-)
Wind Symphony No. 1 (1996)

Rachel Galinne (1949-)
Symphony No. 1 (1996)
Symphony No. 2 (1998)
Chamber Symphony (2005)

Stacy Garrop (1969-)
Mythology Symphony (2013)

Miriam Gideon (1906-1996)
Symphonia Brevis (1953)

Ruth Gipps (1921-1999)
Symphony No. 1 in F minor, op. 22 (1942)
Symphony No. 2 in B major (in one movement), op. 30 (1945)
Symphony No. 3, op. 57 (1965)
Symphony No. 4, op. 61 (1972)
Symphony No. 5, op. 64 (1982)

Julie Giroux (1961-)
Symphony No. 1, “Culloden” (2000)
Symphony No. 2, “A Symphony of Fables” (2006)
Symphony No. 3, “No Finer Calling” (2006)
Symphony No. 4, “Bookmarks from Japan” (2013)
Symphony No. 5, “Elements” (2018)
Symphony No. 6, “The Blue Marble” (2022)
Space Symphony (1986; 1991)

Janice Giteck (1946-)
Potlatch Symphony (2013)

Peggy Glanville-Hicks (1912-1990)
Sinfonia da Pacifica (1953)

Julia Gomelskaya (1964-2016)
Symphony No. 1, “SymPhobia” (2004)
Symphony No. 2, “Ukraine Forever” (2010)
Symphony No. 3, “Magnet” (2014)
Symphony No. 4, “Ra-Aeternae” (2016)

Ida Gotkovsky (1933-)
Symphony for Strings and Percussion (1957)
Symphony for Eighty Wind Instruments (1960)
Spring Symphony (1973)
Symphony for Organ and Wind Orchestra (1982)
Brillante Symphony for Wind Orchestra (1989)
Golden Symphony (1991) [15 saxophones]
Youth Symphony (1993)
Joyeuse Symphony for Wind Orchestra (2000)

Clémence de Grandval (1828-1907)
Symphony No. 1, “Le Matin”
Symphony No. 2, “Le Soir”
Symphony No. 3, “Amazones”
Callirhoé, ballet-symphony

Edith Greene (?-?) [England]
Symphony (1895)

Marina Gribinčika (1966-)
Symphony (1992)

Annie Grimson [later Wallis] (1870-1949)
Symphony (1887)— lost?

Sofia Gubaidulina (1931-)
Symphony (1958)
Stimmen… Verstummen…, a symphony in twelve movements (1986)

Louise Haenel de Cronenthall (1839-1896)
Symphony No. 1, op. 10 “La cinquantaine villageoise”
Symphony No. 2, op. 40 “Salut au printemps” (1860)
Symphony No. 3, op. 22? “La fantastique”
Symphony No. 4, “Apollonia”
Symphony No. 5, “Bonheur pastoral”

Margareta Hallin (1931-2020)
Sinfonia piccola, for chamber orchestra (2002)

Barbara Harbach (1946-)
Symphony No. 1, “Veneration for Orchestra” (2004)
Symphony No. 2, “One of Ours – A Cather Symphony” (2004)
Symphony No. 3, “A State Divided – a Missouri Symphony” (2012)
Symphony No. 4, “Jubilee Symphony” (2013)
Symphony No. 5, “Gateway Festival Symphony” (2013)
Symphony No. 6, “Night Soundings” (2013)
Symphony No. 7, “O Pioneers!” (2014)
Symphony No. 8, “The Scarlet Letter” (2014)
Symphony No. 9, “Celestial Symphony” (2014)
Symphony No. 10, “Symphony for Ferguson” (2015)
Symphony No. 11, “Retourner” (2017)

Rahilia Hasanova (1951-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3

Irina Hasnaș (1954-)
Symphony No. 1

Hanna Havrylets (1958-2022)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “In memoriam”, chamber symphony

Bernice Hensler (?-?)
Symphony in three movements (1945)
[student composition, Institute of American Music of the University of Rochester, Rochester, New York; active 1940-1946]

Mirrie Hill (1889-1986)
Symphony in A, “Arnhem Land” (1954)

Dulcie Holland (1913-2000)
Symphony for pleasure (1971)

Elizabeth Holloway (?-?)
Symphony No. 1 (1954)
[listed in The American Symphony by Neil Butterworth]

Betzy Holmberg (1860-1900)
Symphony No. 1 (1884)

Augusta Holmès (1847-1903)
Symphony No. 1, “Orlando furioso”
Symphony No. 2, “Lutèce”
Symphony No. 3, “Les Argonautes”

Adelaide Hooker [Marquand] (1903-1963)
Symphony in E (1930)

Katherine Hoover (1937-2018)
Sinfonia, op. 10 (1976)

Aline Hundt (1849-1872)
Symphony in G minor

Aida Isakova (1940-2012)
Symphony with Timpani for String Orchestra

Šušano Ishakbajeva (1957-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3

Jean Eichelberger Ivey (1923-2010)
Little Symphony
Festive Symphony
Symphony “Forms and Motion”
Short Symphony

Wang Jie (1980-)
Symphony No. 1 (2008)
Symphony No. 2 (2014)

Marta Jiráčková (1932-)
Symphony No. 1, “Nanda Devi”
Symphony No. 2, “Silbo”

Betsy Jolas (1926-)
Symphony for small orchestra

Milijana Jović (1950-)
Symphony for String Orchestra

Dalia Kairaitytė (1953-)
Symphony

Kikuko Kanai (1911-1986)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Leokadiya Kashperova (1872-1940)
Symphony in B minor, op. 4 (1905)

Elena Kats-Chernin (1957-)
Garden Symphony (2002)
River Symphony (2003)
Symphonia Eluvium (2011)

Minna Keal (1909-1999)
Symphony, op. 3 (1987)

Frida Kern (1891-1988)
Symphony No. 1, op. 46 (1943)

Merzie Khalitova (1956-)
Symphony No. 1, “Revival”
Symphony No. 2, for chamber orchestra
Symphony No. 3, “Dedication”
Symphony No. 4, for flute and string orchestra
Symphony No. 5, “Ametkhan”
Symphony No. 6, “Yashlyk sedasy”

Rusudan Khorava (1954)–
Chamber Symphony for string orchestra
Romantic Symphony for mezzo-soprano and orchestra

Makiko Kinoshita (1956-)
Sinfonia for brass

Antoinette Kirkwood (1930-2014)
Symphony No. 1, op. 8 (1953)

Zhivka Klinkova (1924-2002)
Symphony No. 1 (1963)
Symphony No. 2 (1974)
Football Symphony (1996)
Symphony “Hymn of Unified Europe” (1999)
Symphony in 7/8 Beat (2000)

Antonie Knoblochova (1905-?)
Symphony

Liudmila Knyazeva (1947-)
Symphony No. 1, “The Ascent”

Eloise Koelling (1908-1999)
Symphony in D minor (1956)

Luna Koen-Puđa (1919-2003)
Symphony (1966)

Celina Kohan de Scher (1931-2015)
Symphony No. 1 (1955)
Symphony No. 2 (1983)

Jitka Koželuhová (1966-)
Symphony (2008)

Ekaterina Kozhevnikova (1954-)
Symphony No. 1 (1977)
Symphony No. 2, “Sinfonia da Requiem” (1979)
Symphony No. 3 (2003; 2018)
Symphony No. 4, “Eros”

Agneta Krilova (1980-)
Symphony No. 1, “Polar Symphony”
Symphony No. 2 for Chamber Orchestra, “To the New World”

Grażyna Krzanowska (1952-)
Symphony with a Beat on the Timpani
A Little Choral Symphony

Mayako Kubo (1947-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “Reopening”

Hanna Kulenty (1961-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2 for orchestra and mixed choir
Symphony No. 3

Renata Kunkel (1954-)
Symphony

Ann Kuppens (1964-)
Sinfonia Bellicosa

Iryna Kyrylina (1953-2017)
Chamber Symphony, “Collapse”
Symphony

Eleni Lambiri (1889-1960)
Symphony in B minor

Libby Larsen (1950-)
Symphony No. 1, “Water Music”
Symphony No. 2, “Coming Forth Into Day”
Symphony No. 3, “Lyric”
Symphony No. 4, “String Symphony”
Symphony No.5, “Solo Symphony”
Symphony No. 6, “Forward”
Short Symphony, for Concert Band

Beatrice Laufer (1923-1996)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Luise Adolpha Le Beau (1850-1927)
Symphony in F major, op. 41 (~1894)

Mary Weldon Leahy (1926-?)
Symphony in one movement
Symphony for strings

Linda Leimane (1989-)
Chamber Symphony, “Guesstimations”

Helvi Leiviskä (1902-1982)
Symphony [unnumbered] (1923)
Symphony No. 1 in B♭ major, op. 23 (1947)
Symphony No. 2 in D minor, op. 27 (1954)
Symphony No. 3, op. 31 (1964/1971)
Sinfonia brevis, op. 30 (1962/1972)

Sabra Lindgren (1947-)
Symphony No. 1 in D major (1998)
Symphony No. 2 in C minor (2008)
Symphony No. 3, “The Big Sky Symphony” (2009)
Symphony No. 4, for strings, percussion, and keyboard (2012)
Symphony No. 5 in F (2013)
Symphony No. 6 (2015)
Symphony No. 7 (2016)
Symphony No. 8, “A Western Symphony” (2016)
Symphony No. 9 (2016)
Symphony No. 10 (2018)
Symphony No. 11 (2019)
Symphony No. 12 (2019)
Symphony No. 13 (2020)
Symphony No. 14 (2020)
Symphony No. 15 (2022)
String Symphony No. 1 in A minor (2010)
String Symphony No. 2 (2015)
String Symphony No. 3 (2016)
String Symphony No. 4 (2019)
String Symphony No. 5 (2022)

Ivana Loudová (1941-2017)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2 for alto solo, choir and large orchestra
Sinfonia Numerica for Chamber Orchestra

Phyllis Luckman (1927-)
Symphony for Massed Cellos

Enid Luff (1935-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Elisabeth Lutyens (1906-1983)
Symphonies, for solo piano, wind, harps and percussion

Elizabeth Maconchy (1907-1994)
Symphony No. 1 [withdrawn]
Symphony No. 2 [withdrawn]
Symphony for Double String Orchestra (1953)
Little Symphony

Ester Mägi (1922-2021)
Symphony (1968)

Nina Makarova (1908-1976)
Symphony in D minor

Ursula Mamlok (1923-2016)
Symphony No. 1 in E♭ (1956) [withdrawn]

Irina Manoukian (1948-2004)
Symphony No. 1 for string and percussion instruments
Symphony No. 2, “Ecce Homo”
Symphony No. 3, “Thirty-two variations on descending bass”

Myriam Marbe (1931-1997)
Symphony No. 1, “Ur Ariadne” for mezzo-soprano, saxophone, and orchestra
Sym-phonia for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble

Adabelle Gross Marcus (1929-1997)
Symphony to the Spheres

Tera de Marez Oyens (1932-1996)
Sinfonía testimonial: for choir, orchestra and tape
Squaw sachem symphony

Stephanie Martin (1962-)
Babel: a choral symphony

Maryna Marozava (1958-)
Symphony No. 1, “Black Tale”
Symphony No. 2, “At the Fair”
Symphony No. 3

Marianna Martines (1744-1812) [aka Marianne Martinez]
Symphony in C major

Paule Maurice (1910-1967)
Symphony

Emilie Mayer (1812-1883)
Symphony No. 1 in C minor (1847)
Symphony No. 2 in E minor (1847)
Symphony No. 3 in C major, “Military” (1850)
Symphony No. 4 in B minor (1851)
Symphony No. 5 in F minor (1852)
Symphony No. 6 in E major (1853)
Symphony No. 7 in F minor (1856)
Symphony No. 8 in F major (1857)

Missy Mazzoli (1980-)
Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres) (2014; 2016)

Jenny McLeod (1941-)
Little Symphony

Cindy McTee (1953-)
Symphony No. 1: Ballet for Orchestra

Margaret Shelton Meier (1936-)
Claremont Symphony

Margarita Leonor Dietel Merriman (1927-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Jelena Milenković-Živković (1944-)
Symphony

Zarrina Mirshakar (1947-)
Symphony No. 1 for strings

Darleen Cowles Mitchell (1942-)
Chamber Symphony [1965]

Ida Moberg (1859-1947)
Symphony in D minor (1905) [lost?]

Akiana Molina (1963-)
Sinfonía Herediana

Dorothy Rudd Moore (1940-)
Symphony No. 1

Valarie Morris (1949-)
Symphony of light and shadows

Johanna Müller-Hermann (1878-1941)
Symphony in D minor, with soloists and chorus

Florentine Mulsant (1962-)
Symphony No. 1, for strings
Symphony No. 2, “Exile”

Gráinne Mulvey (1966-)
Symphony No. 1

Thea Musgrave (1928-)
Sinfonia

Onutė Narbutaitė (1956-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3, “Tres Dei Matris Symphoniae”, for chorus and orchestra
Symphony No. 4, “riverbank – river – symphony”
Sinfonia col triangolo, for chamber orchestra

Polina Nazaykinskaya (1987-)
Symphony No. 1, “April Song”

Dika Newlin (1923-2006)
Symphony for chorus and orchestra
Chamber Symphony for 12 instruments

Tatyana Nikolayeva (1924-1993)
Symphony

Katharine Norman (1960-)
Symphony

Anne-Marie Ørbeck (1911-1996)
Symphony in D major

Eurydice Osterman (1950-)
Symphony No. 1, “Heritage Symphony”

Vivian Blythe Owen (1898-2000)
Symphony, op. 13 (1947)

Catharina Palmér (1963-)
Symphony No. 1, “Nuances” for mixed choir and orchestra

Natalia Raigorodsky Parris (1929-2018)
Symphony No. 1

Annelies van Parys (1975-)
Symphony No. 1, “Carillon” (2006)
Symphony No. 2, “Les Ponts” (2008)

Alla Pavlova (1952-)
Symphony No. 1 “Farewell, Russia” for chamber orchestra (1994)
Symphony No. 2 “For the New Millennium” (1998)
Symphony No. 3 (2000)
Symphony No. 4 (2002)
Symphony No. 5 (2006)
Symphony No. 6 (2008)
Symphony No. 7 (2011)
Symphony No. 8 (2011)
Symphony No. 9, “Violin Concerto” (2016)
Symphony No. 10, “Path to Golden Gate” (2017)
Symphony No. 11 (2021)

Dora Pejačević (1885-1923)
Symphony in F♯ minor

Barbara Pentland (1912-2000)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3, “Symphony for Ten Parts”
Symphony No. 4

Julia Perry (1924-1979)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5, “Integration”
Symphony No. 6
Symphony No. 7, “U.S.A.”
Symphony No. 8
Symphony No. 9
Symphony No. 10, “Soul”
Symphony No. 11
Symphony No. 12, “Simple Symphony”
Symphony No. 13

Märta Peterson-Serafinowitsch (1912-)
Symphony No. 1

Carmen Petra-Basacopol (1926-)
Symphony

Elena Petrová (1929-2002)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3

Alexandra Pierce (1934-2021)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “Dances on the Face of the Deep”

Zhanna Pliyeva (1948-2023)
Symphony No. 1 (1976)
Symphony No. 2 (1976)
Symphony No. 3 (1978)
Symphony No. 4 (1991)
Symphony No. 5 (1994)
Symphony No. 6
Symphony No. 7

Victoria Polevá (1962-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “Offertory to Anton Bruckner”
Symphony No. 3, “White interment”

Claire Polin (1926-1995)
Symphony No. 1 in two movements
Symphony No. 2

Oliveria Prescott (1842-1919)
Symphony No.1 in B♭ “Alkestis” (1876)
Symphony No.2 in D minor

Florence Price (1887-1953)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4

Dorothy Priesing (1910-1999)
Symphony (in one movement)

María Teresa Prieto (1896-1982)
Symphony No. 1, “Asturiana” (1942)
Symphony No. 2, “Sinfonía breve” (1945)
Symphony No. 3, “Sinfonía de la danza prima” (1951)

Tatiana Probst (1987-)
Symphony No. 1, “Exorde”

Grażyna Pstrokońska-Nawratil (1947-)
Ocean Symphony

Marta Ptaszyńska (1943-)
Sinfonia Wratislavia

Ivy Priaulx Rainier (1903-1986)
Sinfonia da camera, for strings

Shulamit Ran (1949-)
Symphony

Santa Ratniece (1977-)
Chamber symphony, “Shant Nadi”

Weronika Ratusińska-Zamuszko (1977-)
Symphony (2008)

Elizabeth Raum (1945-)
Symphony of Youth

Sally Johnston Reid (1948-2019)
Wasatch Symphony, for wind band

Daiva Rokaitė-Dženkaitienė (1972-2010)
Little Symphony
Sky Stone Symphony

Doina Rotaru (1951-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3, “Spirit of Elements”

Dilorom Saidaminova (1943-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Alessandra Salvati (1968-)
Sinfonia

Rhian Samuel (1944-)
Elegy-Symphony

Virginia Samuel (1957-)
Symphony (1988)

Amada Santos-Ocampo (1925-2009)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2

Elena Šataitė (1992-)
Eremos (Little Symphony)

Eglė Sausanavičiūtė (1963-)
Symphony
Somnium Simfonie
Space Symphony

Heather Schmidt (1974-)
Symphony No. 1, “Manufactured Landscapes”

Sara Opal Search (1890-1961)
Symphony No. 1 in C minor for strings (1940)
Symphony No. 2 in C minor (1941)

Susie Self (1957-)
Symphony No. 1, “Hokusai Says”
Symphony No. 2, “Memories, Dreams, Reflections”
Symphony No. 3, “The Pacific”
Symphony No. 4, “The Island”

Johanna Senfter (1879-1961)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5
Symphony No. 6
Symphony No. 7
Symphony No. 8
Symphony No. 9

Raminta Šerkšnytė (1975-)
Iceberg Symphony

Shakhida Shaimardanova (1938-)
Symphony in C major in One Movement

Masguda Shamsutdinova (1955-)
Symphony No. 1, “Tartar Steppe (Dastan)”
Symphony No. 2, “Ibn-Fadlan”
Symphony No. 3, “Genghis-Khan”

Elisabed Shaverzashvili (1940-2018)
Symphony in three movements
Choral Symphony

Verdina Shlonsky (1905-1990)
Symphony

Taisiya Shutenko (1905-1975)
Carmelite Symphony

Tamara Sidorenko-Malyukova (1919-2005)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3

Lena Sierova (1983-)
Symphony Chton

Arlene Sierra (1970-)
Nature Symphony (2017)
Bird Symphony (2021)

Elżbieta Sikora (1943-)
Symphony No. 1, “Shadows”

Alice Mary Smith (1839-1884) [aka Alice Mary Meadows White]
Symphony No. 1 in C minor (1863)
Symphony No. 2 in A minor (1876)
Symphony No. 3 in G major [existence is disputed]

Julia Frances Smith (1905-1989)
Folkways Symphony (1947-48)

Ethel Smyth (1858-1944)
Symphony, “The Prison”

Charlotte Sohy (1887-1955)
Symphony in C♯ minor, “Great War” (1917)

Ann Southam (1937-2010)
Chamber Symphony

Mihaela Stănculescu-Vosganian (1961-)
Symphony No. 1, for Three Groups of Instruments and String Orchestra
Symphony No. 2, for Organ, Percussion and String Orchestra, “Parallel Times”
Sax Symphony-Concerto

Helen Camille Stanley (1930-)
Symphony No. 1 (1954)

Carolyn Steinberg (1956-)
Chamber Symphony (1990)

Rita Strohl (1865-1941)
[born Aimée Marie Marguerite Mercédès Larousse La Villette]
Symphonie de la forêt (1901)
Symphonie de la mer (1902)

Dana Suesse (1909-1987)
Antique Symphony (1946)

Margaret Sutherland (1897-1984)
Symphony in F♯

Natela Svanidze (1926-2017)
Symphony for piano, string and percussion instruments
Symphony-Ballet
Symphony No. 2

Åsa Svensson (1970?-)
Symphony No. 1 (1993)

Edith Swepstone (1862-1942)
Symphony in G minor

Lubava Sydorenko (1979-)
“Ab initio”, symphony for large orchestra and solo violin

Diana Syrse (1984-)
Symphony No. 1, “Nach der Tragödie”

Andrea Tarrodi (1981-)
Symphony in Fire, Water, Earth & Air (2021)

Cornelia Tăutu (1938-2019)
Symphony No. 1, “1907”

Helen Taylor (1915-1950)
Symphony

Zlata Tcaci (1928-2006)
Symphony “Panopticum”, for strings, xylophone, and timpani

Livia Teodorescu-Ciocănea (1959-)
Archimedes Symphony

Alicia Terzian (1934-)
Symphony No. 1

Shirley J. Thompson (1958-)
New Nation Rising, A 21st Century Symphony

Anna Thorvaldsdottir (1977-)
AIŌN, symphony (2018)

Alena Tomlenova (1963-)
Symphony No. 1, poems by A. S. Pushkin
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5
Symphony No. 6

Julia Tsenova (1948-2010)
Symphony for piano and orchestra (1972)

Karmella Tsepkolenko (1955-)
Symphony No. 1 “Symphonic Poem”
Symphony No. 2 “Symphonic Diptych”
Symphony No. 3 “Memorial Symphony”
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5

Anitra Tumševica (1971-)
Chamber symphony No. 1, “Die Stimme” (The Voice)
Chamber Symphony No. 2, “Signs”

Stefania Turkewich (1898-1977)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Space Symphony

Agnes Tyrrell (1846-1883)
Symphony in C major

Julia Usher (1945-)
Camulodunum Sinfonia

Galina Ustvolskaya (1919-2006)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “True and Eternal Bliss!”
Symphony No. 3, “Jesus Messiah, Save Us!”
Symphony No. 4, “Prayer”
Symphony No. 5, “Amen”

Nomeda Valančiūtė (1961-)
Little Symphony

Mary Jeanne Van Appledorn (1927-2014)
Symphony No.1
Symphony No. 2
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4 (1985-87)

Lucie Vellère (1896-1966)
Petite Symphony, for string orchestra

Mari Vihmand (1967-)
Symphony

Anastasia Vinogradova (1994-)
Symphony No. 1, “In Memoriam”
Symphony No. 2, “Metamorphosis”
Symphony No. 3, “Light Symphony”
Symphony No. 4
Symphony No. 5, “Collage”

Sláva Vorlová (1894-1973)
Symphony

Errollyn Wallen (1958-)
Spirit Symphony – Speed-Dating for Two Orchestras
Spirit Symphony [version for one orchestra]
Carbon 12: A Choral Symphony

Harriet Ware (1877-1962)
New York Symphony (1910)

Elinor Remick Warren (1900-1991)
Symphony in One Movement (1970)
The Legend of King Arthur, A Choral Symphony, for baritone, tenor, choir and orchestra

Meira Warshauer (1949-)
Symphony No. 1, “Living, Breathing Earth”

Norma Wendelburg (1918-2016)
Symphony No. 1 (1967)

Ruth White (1925-2013)
Shofar Symphony (1965)

Gillian Whitehead (1942-)
Sinfonia

Margaret Lucy Wilkins (1939-)
Symphony

Grace Williams (1906-1977)
Sinfonia concertante
Symphony No. 1, “Symphonic Impressions”
Symphony No. 2

Regina Hansen Willman (1914-1965)
Anchorage Symphony

Ruth Shaw Wylie (1916-1989)
Symphony No. 1, op. 6, “Archaic” (1943)
Symphony No. 2, op. 11 (1948)

Alla Zahaikevych (1966-)
Symphony on the poetry of Vladimir Mayakovsky, for baritone and orchestra

Jeanne Zaidel-Rudolph (1948-)
Construction Symphony, for youth orchestra
Sefirot Symphony, for woodwind, brass, percussion and harp

Judith Lang Zaimont (1945-)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2, “Remember Me”
Symphony No. 3
Symphony No. 4 “Pure, Cool (Water)”

Isadora Žebeljan (1967-2020)
Symphony in Three Movements, “Escenas Picaras”

Ruth Zechlin (1926-2007)
Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 2
Chamber Symphony No. 1
Symphony No. 3
Chamber Symphony No. 2

Gaziza Zhubanova (1927-1993)
Symphony No. 1, “Energy”
Symphony No. 2, “Island of Women”
Symphony No. 3, “Sarozek Metaphors”

Lidia Zielińska (1953-)
Little Atrophic Symphony
Sinfonia Concertante for Small Sound Devices, Small Percussion, and Large Orchestra

Diana Ziu (?-)
Symphony No. 1, “Apotheosis of the New Century”

Mirjana Živković (1935-2020)
Sinfonia polifonica

Agata Zubel (1978-)
Symphony No. 1 (2002)
Symphony No. 2, for 77 performers (2005)
Symphony No. 3, for a double-bell trumpet and orchestra (2010)

Ellen Taaffe Zwilich (1939-)
Chamber Symphony (1979)
Symphony No. 1, “Three Movements for Orchestra” (1982)
Symphony No. 2, “Cello Symphony” (1985)
Symphony No. 3 (1992)
Symphony No. 4, “The Gardens” (1999)
Symphony No. 5, “Concerto for Orchestra” (2008)