The Chicago Symphony Orchestra is consistently hailed as one of the world’s leading orchestras.
Founded in 1891 by its first music director, Theodore Thomas, the CSO’s other distinguished music directors include Frederick Stock, Désiré Defauw, Artur Rodzinski, Rafael Kubelík, Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon, Sir Georg Solti, Daniel Barenboim, and Riccardo Muti, now music director emeritus for life. In April 2024, Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä was announced as the Orchestra's eleventh music director and will begin an initial five-year tenure as Zell Music Director in September 2027. Jessie Montgomery is the CSO’s current Mead Composers-in-Residence, and Hilary Hahn is the CSO’s Artist-in-Residence.
The musicians of the CSO command a vast repertoire and annually perform more than 150 concerts, most at Symphony Center in Chicago, and, since 1936, at the Ravinia Festival in the summer. The CSO also tours nationally and internationally. Since its first tour to Canada in 1892, the Orchestra has performed in 29 countries on five continents on 64 international tours.
Since 1916, recording has been significant in establishing the Orchestra’s international reputation with recordings by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus earning a total of 65 Grammy awards from the Recording Academy. Its independent label, CSO Resound, was launched in 2007. The 2010 release of Verdi’s Messa da Requiem, with the CSO and Chicago Symphony Chorus conducted by Muti, was recognized with two Grammy awards. Listeners around the world can hear the CSO in weekly airings of the CSO Radio Broadcast Series, which is syndicated on the WFMT Radio Network and online at CSO.org/Radio.
