We prove a noncommutative analogue of the fact that every symmetric analytic function of $(z,w)$ in the bidisc $\D^2$ can be expressed as an analytic function of the variables $z+w$ and $zw$. We construct an analytic nc-map $S$ from the biball to an infinite-dimensional nc-domain $Ω$ with the property that, for every bounded symmetric function $\ph$ of two noncommuting variables that is analytic on the biball, there exists a bounded analytic nc-function $Φ$ on $Ω$ such that $\ph=Φ\circ S$. We also establish a realization formula for $Φ$, and hence for $\ph$, in terms of operators on Hilbert space.

18 pages