CSO Audio Program Notes

Lahav Shani conducts Tchaikovsky’s Pathétique, a symphony that the composer premiered less than a week before his death and was later nicknamed for the passion and suffering it expresses. Daniil Trifonov takes the spotlight in a piano concerto composed for him by former CSO Mead Composer-in-Residence Mason Bates, which “shows off the pianist’s virtuosity first and foremost, but also captures a lis...

Grammy Award-winning violinist Joshua Bell presents The Elements, a suite of five works for violin and orchestra, commissioned by Bell and written by leading American composers Kevin Puts (Earth), Edgar Meyer (Water), Jake Heggie (Fire), Jennifer Higdon (Air), and CSO Mead Composer-in-Residence Jessie Montgomery (Space). Conductor Juraj Valčuha frames the program with Weber’s Oberon Overture and S...

Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet brings his customary joie de vivre to Saint-Saëns’ Egyptian Concerto, inspired by a trip down the Nile in 1896. Conductor Stéphane Denève unpacks the French fascination with Spanish culture in Debussy’s sultry Ibéria and Ravel’s ever-popular Boléro, with its sensuously hypnotic theme building to a volcanic climax. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/cso-classical/rav...

Conductor Manfred Honeck leads the CSO in two captivating works. Principal Percussion Cynthia Yeh takes the spotlight in the premiere of a new concerto by Jessie Montgomery, the CSO’s Mead Composer-in-Residence. Bruckner’s Seventh Symphony awes with its breadth, drama and rapturous intensity. This enthralling score includes a radiant tribute to Bruckner’s idol, Richard Wagner, and a boisterous Aus...

In his Second Symphony, Mahler constructs a universe all his own, exploring themes of death and afterlife using a massive orchestra, offstage brass and percussion, chorus and vocal soloists. Estonian conductor Neeme Järvi — whose music-making is “as dynamic and exhilarating as ever” (Chicago Classical Review) — guides the CSO from the great, tragic opening march, through pastoral dances and gentle...

Martin Helmchen, “who brings both freshness and expressive depth to everything he plays” (Chicago Classical Review), takes on Beethoven’s First Piano Concerto, a work of youthful bravura and pensive elegance. To open the program, Kazuki Yamada conducts Takemitsu’s shimmering How slow the Wind and Franck’s D Minor Symphony, featuring a mix of soaring lyricism and brooding intensity. Learn more: cso...

The versatile Nikolaj Szeps-Znaider leads the CSO as soloist in Mozart’s richly melodic Violin Concerto No. 2 and Kreisler’s wistful Liebesleid. Trading violin bow for baton, Szeps-Znaider conducts Stravinsky’s Pulcinella Suite, a neoclassical gem that shines a spotlight on the orchestra’s principal players, and Mozart’s Prague Symphony, a work of grand gestures and profound, melodious depth. Lear...

Elim Chan leads Rimsky-Korsakov’s sumptuous symphonic suite Sheherazade, inspired by the legendary heroine and tales of One Thousand and One Nights. Paul Jacobs, “a virtuoso of dazzling technical acumen” (The New York Times), performs Barber’s Toccata festiva, an exuberant showcase for organ containing echoes of J.S. Bach. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/cso-classical/sheherazade

Two mighty orchestras present a rousing, jazz-meets-classical event. Discover selections from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, alternating between the original orchestral version performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and imaginative new jazz arrangements presented by the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. Both ensembles join forces for a selection from Wynton Marsalis’ Swing Symphony, which The...

Tugan Sokhiev conducts Tchaikovsky’s youthful First Symphony, nicknamed Winter Dreams for its cozy evocation of Russian winters. Chopin’s exuberant Piano Concerto No. 1 features Russian pianist Yulianna Avdeeva, described by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as “a one-woman powerhouse” who “stole the show.” Andrzej Panufnik’s Heroic Overture, composed in 1952, is a tribute to the courageous spirit of th...

The 19th century’s most enduring oratorio, Mendelssohn’s Elijah, sung here in English, depicts the story of the biblical prophet Elijah, complete with his ascent to heaven on a flaming chariot. James Conlon leads the assembled forces, including Chicago favorite Lucas Meachem in the mighty title role and the Chicago Symphony Chorus performing the work’s pensive and ecstatic ensembles. Learn more: c...

Sol Gabetta, whose “enthusiastic music-making and animated style are completely infectious” (Classical Voice), makes her CSO debut in Shostakovich’s captivating Cello Concerto No. 1 — a riveting journey through themes of defiance, sorrow and triumph. Electrifying conductor Klaus Mäkelä frames the program with Shostakovich’s Tenth Symphony, a searing portrait of the composer’s tormented life in Sta...

Be transported to Zimmermann’s Coffee House, the Leipzig café where J.S. Bach introduced many of his instrumental works. CSO Concertmaster Robert Chen leads the dazzling Third Brandenburg Concerto, kaleidoscopic Violin Concerto in E Major and buoyant and graceful Orchestral Suite No. 1. Chen also teams up with Principal Oboe William Welter in Bach’s exquisite Concerto for Oboe and Violin. Learn mo...

Susanna Mälkki conducts a thought-provoking program anchored by Gustav Mahler’s Fourth Symphony. This celestial score, which includes a cryptic dance of death, is announced with sleigh bells and a rustic melody that ends with a child’s view of heaven, delivered here by soprano Ying Fang. Principal Flute Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson is the soloist in a newly commissioned concerto written for him by th...

Strauss’ Also sprach Zarathustra — with its iconic opening popularized in 2001: A Space Odyssey — sets the tone for a program of dazzling, otherworldly pieces. Bartók’s pantomime ballet, The Miraculous Mandarin, is a lurid, supernatural tale rendered in arresting colors. Czech violinist Josef Špaček takes on Martinů’s tuneful and vivacious Violin Concerto No. 1. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23...

Experience the “brilliant and incisive” (Chicago Tribune) Gil Shaham in Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto, ever popular for its mix of vigor and finesse. Richard Strauss’ tone poem explores the ultimate mystery of death and what might lie beyond. Lutosławski’s 1954 Concerto for Orchestra is a symphonic showpiece that draws on Polish folk songs and Baroque forms. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/...

Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony is treasured by generations of music fans for its whirling dance rhythms and majestic Allegretto movement. It finds an admirable interpreter in Czech conductor Petr Popelka, who “lets the music glow without overshadowing details” (Der Standard). Composed in his youth, Schubert's exuberant Sixth Symphony draws inspiration from Beethoven. Conductor Herbert Blomstedt has...

With his Ninth Symphony, Shostakovich delivered a tragicomic work with nods to Haydn and circus tunes. Uzbek pianist Behzod Abduraimov makes his debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in Tchaikovsky’s thrilling First Piano Concerto. Mussorgsky’s radiant Khovanshchina prelude and Saariaho’s ethereal Winter Sky round out the program. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/cso-classical/tchaikovsk...

Sheku Kanneh-Mason, hailed by The New Yorker as “a cellist of blazing sensitivity,” makes his CSO debut in Elgar’s rhapsodic Cello Concerto. Paavo Järvi conducts Nielsen’s Fifth Symphony, a visceral, dramatic work exploring humanity’s potential for conflict, born in the aftermath of World War I. Beethoven’s jubilant hymn to liberty opens the program. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/cso-clas...

Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto is a landmark of his dark and restless middle period, here featuring Seong-Jin Cho, whose 2018 Chicago debut offered “about as thrilling a display of sheer powerhouse keyboard bravura as one is ever likely to encounter” (Chicago Classical Review). Gemma New conducts the program, which closes with Mendelssohn’s Scottish Symphony, evoking highland mists, warring clan...

Experience the power of nearly 100 voices in magnificent harmony. From “The Trumpet Shall Sound” to the rousing “Hallelujah” Chorus, Handel’s Messiah is packed with regal choral passages, exultant arias and glittering instrumental fireworks. The award-winning Chicago Symphony Chorus and four world-class soloists join Sir Andrew Davis in this must-see holiday favorite. Learn more: cso.org/performan...

When Renaud Capuçon and Semyon Bychkov last appeared together with the CSO, sparks flew. The French violinist “made you aware of a searching musical intellect supported by a superb technical arsenal” (Chicago Tribune). The parties reunite in Saint-Saëns’ brilliant Third Violin Concerto. Framing the program are Dvořák’s boisterous portrait of a street carnival and Brahms’ noble and heart-rending Fo...

CSO Artist-in-Residence Hilary Hahn illuminates Brahms’ Violin Concerto, with its ardent beauty and fiery finale. Mikko Franck conducts Wagner’s ecstatic Prelude to Tristan und Isolde before concluding with Sibelius’ Seventh Symphony, an awesome, “time-bending journey” (The Guardian), and the Finnish composer’s crowning symphonic achievement. Learn more: cso.org/performances/23-24/cso-classical/hi...

Michael Tilson Thomas lends his fresh insights to a compelling Austro-Germanic program. It includes Mozart’s whirling Six German Dances as well as his expressive and intimate Piano Concerto No. 23, which features Orion Weiss, acclaimed for his “limpid touch, clean runs and purling legato phrasing” (Chicago Tribune). Schoenberg’s lavishly imaginative orchestration of Brahms’ Piano Quartet No. 1 com...

A panorama of ancient pagan rituals, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring put modernism squarely on the map. Experience the swaggering and suspenseful ballet score that drove Parisian audiences to riot at its 1913 premiere. Leonidas Kavakos brings an “intense, silken, mercurial” sound (The Guardian) to his rendition of Szymanowski’s folk-inspired Second Violin Concerto. Mussorgsky’s fiery depiction of...