Glenn Kruspe founded the orchestra in 1945 to accompany the Grand Philharmonic Choir in a concert, and served as its first music director from 1945 to 1960.
During Armenian's tenure, a sister ensemble to the KUW, the Canadian Chamber Ensemble (CCE), was founded, formed mainly from the principal musicians of the KWS and included flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, two horns, two trumpets, trombone, tuba, percussion, two violins, viola, cello and bass.
The CCE was founded by conductor and was the first major Canadian ensemble to perform in Eastern Europe after the fall of the Berlin wall.
However, on 27 November 2003, the KWS board dismissed Fischer-Dieskau unfoundedly from his post about the dispute of a planned orchestra trip abroad.
Out of consideration for the colleagues who had been voted out of office, a newly elected board set conditions for re-employment that proved unacceptable to Fischer-Dieskau.
New programming initiatives during his tenure have included the 'Intersections' series, and collaborations with composers Mason Bates, Gabriela Lena Frank, Nicole Lizeé and Nico Muhly, authors Daniel Handler and Daniel Levitin, and rock musicians Dan Deacon and Richard Reed Parry.
The Symphony blamed its demise on the "an unprecedented rise in costs following the global pandemic" and claimed that it would require $2 million in order to proceed with the season.
"[13] In October 2024, it was announced that the bankruptcy was "formally annulled by the approval by the Superior Court of Ontario of a proposal made to creditors.