美国国家交响乐团在国内和国际上有着举足轻重的地位，它经常在美国的正式场合，总统就职典礼和法定节日庆祝活动时进行演出。美国国家交响乐团经常出访各国，并为其首脑演出，因此在国际上的地位也很重要。
该乐团与一九三一年正式成立，在历史上它一向致力于提供优秀的音乐演出。一九八六年国家交响乐团成为约翰•F•肯尼迪表演艺术中心的下属单位，该中心是全国表演艺术的重要单位，自从一九七一年成立以来，该中心一直举办音乐季演出。交响乐团有100名音乐家，每周都举办演出，每年大约举办一百七十五场音乐会。这其中包括古典音乐会，流行音乐会以及美国最有影响力的教育活动。
国家交响乐团为美国艺术资源的发展提供了强有力的保证。通过为筹备新乐团而设立的约翰和尤恩•海兴格尔基金会的资助，交响乐团出版了大约六十部著作，包括一些经典性的内容，总的来看，这些著作对今日美国作曲的各个流派的影响还是非常大的。国家交响乐团特别注重对年轻指挥的培养，它于 2000 年创建了国家指挥学院，学院的院长是音乐指挥莱昂纳德•斯拉特金，他也是这所学院的创立者。
另一个重要的项目是约翰•F•肯尼迪表演艺术中心的国家交响乐团的演出场地的建设。目前乐团在美国的十六个州都有演出场地。该项目让某些州得到古典交响乐的全部要素，研究音乐创作上的各种变化，并且将各州的优秀音乐人才推荐给国家表演艺术中心，其方法是人才交流和培训项目。
自成立以来，国家交响乐团就通过巡回演出，广播和其他特别项目为国家做出贡献。
The National Symphony Orchestra regularly participates in events of national and international importance, including performances for state occasions, presidential inaugurations and official holiday celebrations. Through its tours of four continents and performances for heads of state, the National Symphony also fills an important international role.
Officially founded in 1931, throughout its history the Orchestra has been committed to both artistic excellence and music education. In 1986 the National Symphony became the artistic affiliate of The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the nation’s center for the performing arts, where it has presented a concert season annually since the Center opened in 1971. The Orchestra itself numbers 100 musicians, presenting a 52-week season of approximately 175 concerts each year. These include classical subscription series, pops concerts, and one of the country’s most extensive educational programs.
The National Symphony Orchestra has a strong commitment to the development of America’s artistic resources. Through the John and June Hechinger Commissioning Fund for New Orchestral Works, the Orchestra has commissioned more than 60 works, including cycles of fanfares and encores, which, taken as a whole, are representative of the diverse influences in American composition today. The National Symphony has long been distinguished for its nurturing of young American conductors; that commitment has escalated with the creation in 2000 of the National Conducting Institute, of which Music Director Leonard Slatkin is founder and director.
Another important project is the National Symphony Orchestra American Residencies for the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, which has so far taken the NSO to 16 states. This venture encompasses sharing all elements of classical symphonic music with a specific state, exploring its diversity of musical influences, and giving the state a musical voice in the nation’s center for the performing arts through exchanges, training programs, and commissions.
Throughout its history, the National Symphony Orchestra has served the nation through tours, broadcasts, and other special projects.
