The Madrid Symphony Orchestra was revived in 1981 as the result of an agreement with the Spanish Ministry for Cultural Affairs, when it became the resident orchestra of La Zarzuela National Opera House and a self-governing body. This heralded a new era in Spanish orchestral life, with the orchestra able to pioneer modern criteria in staff training, management and organization. There is no resident conductor, artistic matters being handled instead by a committee chosen from and by the players. Administration is in the hands of officials also elected by the orchestra. The Madrid Symphony Orchestra is involved in a varied musical repertoire, exploring both the past and the contemporary. It is in direct line of descent from the legendary orchestra founded in 1904 under the orders of Cordelás and directed for 34 years by Enrique Fernández Arbós, and is sometimes still popularly referred to as the “Orquesta Arbós”.