The MSO currently performs in the Salle Wilfrid-Pelletier at the downtown Place des Arts complex, where the new venue will also be built. The Pelletier has long been criticized for poor acoustics and amenities; CBC News quotes Le Devoir as saying the new hall will have better acoustics and a seating capacity of between 1,800 to 2,200, which will allow the orchestra to expand its audience.

The MSO's 2006-07 season, which opens on September 6, will be the first under music director Kent Nagano. It features a survey of Beethoven's symphonies, performances by pianists Nikolai Lugansky and Lang Lang and a return visit by Valery Gergiev.

The orchestra also recently appointed former violinist Jean-Fran‹ois Rivest to the post of resident conductor.