A year of triumphs, from the Mäkelä appointment to a transformational gift

In a year of triumphs, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association made headlines on many fronts. In April, the Board of Trustees appointed Finnish conductor Klaus Mäkelä as the CSO’s next music director, beginning in September 2027. Truly the maestro of the moment, Mäkelä, who holds posts in Amsterdam, Oslo and Paris, has been courted by orchestras worldwide.

Through the SEMPRE ALWAYS capital campaign, the CSOA announced Dec. 10 that it has received $50 million from Helen and Sam Zell on behalf of the Zell Family Foundation. The Zell gift brings the total raised so far by the campaign to $215 million.

Violinist Gabriela Lara became the first CSO Fellow to win an appointment to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, effective Jan. 27.

The CSO completed its 35th European tour in January. Leading the CSO on the tour was Riccardo Muti, Music Director Emeritus for Life. 

Affiliated artists Jessie Montgomery, the CSO’s Mead Composer-in-Residence, and the CSO’s Artist-in-Residence Hilary Hahn concluded their respective tenures in June 2024, and pianist Daniil Trifonov began his term this fall as the CSO’s current Artist-in-Residence with a recital on the Symphony Center Presents Piano series this November.

The year brought world premieres of works by Montgomery (her percussion concerto Procession), Lowell Liebermann (his Flute Concerto No. 2, a CSO commission) and Osvaldo Golijov (his Megalopolis Suite, a CSO commission, based on his score for Francis Ford Coppola’s epic film). 

In addition, the year saw the Orchestra Hall debuts of pianists (and brothers) Arthur and Lucas Jussen, cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason, the Gateways Festival Orchestra, pianist Bruce Liu, cellist Sol Gabetta, composer-conductor-pianist Joe Hisaishi (in three sold-out concerts), violist Antoine Tamestit and conductor Dima Slobodeniouk.

Those are just a few of the highlights. Here are images of these many memorable moments (and a few more), captured by photographers Todd Rosenberg, Anne Ryan, Nuccio DiNuccio and others.

Riccardo Muti and the CSO tour Europe

As part of the 2023/24 Season, Riccardo Muti, CSO Music Director Emeritus for Life, and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra embarked on a three-week European tour — the CSO’s first trip to the Continent since 2020. From Jan. 11 to 29, Muti and the CSO traveled to 11 cities, including Brussels, Milan, Paris, Rome and Vienna, with concerts at Europe’s most celebrated music venues, such as the Musikverein and Teatro alla Scala. “Any time CSO music director emeritus Riccardo Muti returns to La Scala [where he was music director from 1986 to 2005] is big news,” wrote Hannah Edgar for the Chicago Tribune. "On Jan. 27, it also made for incandescent music, with the Muti-CSO team playing Aus Italien and the Firebird Suite with supple virtuosity."

The CSO’s Latino Alliance celebrates its 10th anniversary

Celebrating a decade of success, the CSO’s Latino Alliance gathered Jan. 26 at Instituto Cervantes. “Your presence and positive energy while toasting a decade of ¡Nuestras noches! contributed to an amazing atmosphere that will be cherished forever,” said Ramiro J. Atristaín-Carrión, co-chairman emeritus of the Latino Alliance. "We sincerely applaud the string quartet, a talented ensemble of young Latino musicians from the Civic Orchestra of Chicago. The highlight was undeniably when they performed Son Guatemalteco, a work by our very own advisory board member Xavier Beteta. The beautiful performance added a special note to the experience. Also, the Brenden Perez Trio brought sheer joy with its mariachi fusion, whose cherished songs evoked memories of childhood. We express gratitude for the esteemed presence of the consuls from Mexico and Argentina, as well as leaders of other Latino cultural and professional groups, and of course, Instituto Cervantes, for allowing us to use its splendid venue. We look forward to future collaborations. Your support has truly made our event memorable and impactful."

Daniil Trifonov named CSO Artist-in-Residence for 2024/25 

As part of the 2024/25 Season announcement, the CSOA revealed that pianist Daniil Trifonov, hailed by the Times of London as “without question the most astounding pianist of our age,” would become the next CSO Artist-in-Residence. Opening his fall 2024 residency, Trifonov appeared in a solo recital and an after-concert artist Q&A on Nov. 17, as part of the SCP Piano series.  He also conducted a master class Nov. 18 with three college-level pianists at the DePaul University School of Music. He will join violinist Leonidas Kavakos in an SCP Chamber Music concert on March 9, followed by a conversation with the artists. During his spring 2025 residency, Trifonov will lead a master class on April 30 at Symphony Center with the four piano finalists of the 2025 Crain-Maling Foundation CSO Young Artists Competition. His term will culminate in a program that includes performances of Brahms’ Piano Concerto No. 2 with Klaus Mäkelä on May 1-4.

12 months of milestones for the Negaunee Music Institute 

The Negaunee Music Institute, which connects Chicago and the world to the resources of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, presents more than 30 public concerts each season. Under its purview are the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, CSO for Kids and Once Upon a Symphony concerts, the Notes for Peace program (an initiative that supports parents who have lost children to gun violence), the Percussion Scholarship Program, the Youth in Music Festival and workshops for young instrumentalists, public school students/teachers and senior citizens. Among its milestones in 2024 were the 100th song composed through the Notes for Peace program; the Second Young Composers Initiative; the Crain-Maling Young Artist competition, won by steelpan virtuoso Jaden Teague-Núñez, 16, of DeKalb High School; a Civic collaboration with the award-winning new-music ensemble Eighth Blackbird; a Civic collaboration with the Chicago Refugee Coalition, dedicated to compassionate poverty relief and community empowerment.

In addition, the locally based Negaunee Foundation made a $21-million gift in March to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association. The gift builds on a multi-decade history of giving by the Negaunee Foundation, focused on educational and community programs and strengthening the CSOA’s endowment to ensure long-term financial stability for the CSOA’s many programs. In 2014, the Negaunee Foundation made a $15 million gift to endow the CSOA’s Institute for Learning, Access and Training, which was renamed the Negaunee Music Institute.

Community concert at the Apostolic Church of God on Feb. 16

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, under guest conductor Paavo Järvi, returned to Apostolic Church of God in the Woodlawn neighborhood on the South Side for a free community concert. Sheku Kanneh-Mason, hailed by the New Yorker magazine as “a cellist of blazing sensitivity,” performed Elgar’s rhapsodic Cello Concerto. Also on the program were Smetana’s The Moldau, which depicts the river’s powerful currents rolling through the idyllic Czech countryside, and Beethoven’s Leonore Overture No. 2, the composer’s jubilant hymn to liberty.

Premiere of Liebermann’s Flute Concerto No. 2, March 21-24

American composer Lowell Liebermann is known for his flute compositions; his Flute Sonata has been a repertoire staple for more than three decades, with 25 recordings to date. His first Flute Concerto, premiered by James Galway in 1987, quickly became equally popular. The world premiere of Liebermann’s Flute Concerto No. 2, a CSO commission, “featured a bravura performance by CSO Principal Flute Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson,” wrote Hedy Weiss for WTTW-Channel 11. "There was a grandeur and romanticism to the piece as it developed, with the fast and fluid sound of Höskuldsson’s flute generating a lush orchestral response. Percussionist Cynthia Yeh worked her usual magic on a wide variety of instruments with others to create a wonderful layering of sound. And then came the work’s third movement (“Animato”), with plucks on the bass strings, the building of sound from all parts of the orchestra and the dreamy subtlety, rippling sound, virtuosic speed and flawless beauty of Höskuldsson’s flute, plus a blast from the timpani."

Klaus Mäkelä is appointed as the CSO’s next music director

Klaus Mäkelä was named Zell Music Director Designate of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on April 2. That week, on April 4-6, Mäkelä also led the CSO in a program of Sauli Zinovjev’s Batteria (in its U.S. premiere) and two works by Shostakovich: the First Cello Concerto with Sol Gabetta (in her CSO debut), followed by the composer’s Symphony No. 10. This season, Mäkelä will return for two weeks in the spring. He will begin his term as Zell Music Director in September 2027. In a year-end wrap-up article in the Chicago Tribune, Hannah Edgar wrote: “Klaus Mäkelä is life-affirming on the podium, equally fluent in new work and warhorses, a gifted rehearser and is a sunny, charismatic advocate for the art form. And he’s only getting better, as proved by a very Shostakovich — and very electrifying — concert in the spring.”

The Gateways Festival Orchestra, April 19

Consisting of some of the finest classical musicians in the country and based in Rochester, New York, the Gateways Festival Orchestra concluded its weeklong Chicago residency with an SCP Featured Concert, conducted by Anthony Parnther, on April 19. Joining Gateways on the program was Take 6, the Grammy Award-winning a cappella group that music icon Quincy Jones once called the “baddest vocal cats on the planet.” The program showcased works by African-American composers, including Chicago native Margaret Bonds (1913–1972), whose Montgomery Variations was inspired by the civil-rights activism of the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Afterward, the CSO African American Network hosted a celebratory reception in Grainger Ballroom.

The CSO and Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra, April 25-27

Two mighty orchestras delivered a rousing, jazz-meets-classical event, conducted by Giancarlo Guerrero. The concert alternated between selections from Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet, with the original orchestral version performed by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and then in imaginative new jazz arrangements performed by the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. Both ensembles joined forces for a selection from Marsalis’ Swing Symphony, which the Telegraph of London has called “a journey through jazz history and the sounds of America itself."

Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony, May 23-25 

Under guest conductor Neeme Järvi, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus delivered "a detailed, commanding account of Mahler’s vast Resurrection Symphony, a grand canvas for large orchestra and chorus with solo soprano and mezzo-soprano," wrote Lawrence B. Johnson for Chicago on the Aisle. "The work’s five movements, an 80-minute sprawl, tries the endurance and concentration of everyone on stage. And the huge finale, Mahler’s dramatically fraught but spiritually profound consummation, becomes the ultimate test. The Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection) is an existential tapestry, and the CSO’s performance with Järvi captured its panoply of human imagery: joy, anxiety, optimism, pain and as countless billions have shared with Mahler, a vision of transmigration. The torrential outpouring of thanks from the packed house offered compelling testimony to the potency of art, the Chicago Symphony’s artistic splendor and the perdurable mastery of an interpretive artist whose spark belies, or perhaps bespeaks, his 87 years."

Hilary Hahn wraps up term as CSO Artist-in-Residence

In May, violinist Hilary Hahn concluded her three-year term as Artist-in-Residence with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Hahn’s duties as AiR included mentoring young artists, experimenting with unconventional concert structures (such as her Bring Your Own Baby events), performing with the orchestra and connecting with the larger community. The CSO and Hahn share a longstanding connection; she made her Symphony Center debut in 2002. Meanwhile, Hahn was unable to perform her scheduled concerts with the CSO in September due to a double pinched nerve. American violinist Benjamin Beilman stepped in to replace her. 

Premiere of Jessie Montgomery’s Procession, May 30-June 1 

Wrapping up her three-year term as CSO Mead Composer-in-Residence, Jessie Montgomery saw the world premiere of her Procession, a percussion concerto. Its debut performances May 30-June 1 featured CSO Principal Percussion Cynthia Yeh, with the CSO led by guest conductor Manfred Honeck. Also on program, in this Bruckner bicentennial year, was the composer’s Seventh Symphony. "A serious piece of theater, Procession offered the bewildering exhilaration of a high-sugar day at the summer fair with a parade forming, attention-seeking barkers competing for attention and serious trouble brewing," wrote Nancy Malitz for Classical Voice America. "The focus was slowly and surely drawn toward a more serious collective purpose, much of it at the insistence of the percussionist on the move. Procession was a hit out of the gate — a 20-minute athletic event for the soloist in five movements, with percussion arrays in two huge setups that included the African djembe, bass drum, vibraphone and glockenspiel and a full orchestra led expertly by Honeck. The Austrian maestro paired Montgomery’s new piece with an elegant reading of Bruckner’s Symphony No. 7, making masterful use of orchestra’s capability for both high-impact virtuosity and rare finesse, a legacy of Muti’s tenure."

Joe Hisaishi conducts the CSO in three sold-out concerts

In his Symphony Center debut, composer-conductor-pianist Joe Hisaishi led the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in three sold-out concerts June 27-29, featuring works from his extensive catalog. One of the most celebrated composers of his time, Hisaishi has written the music for 10 Hayao Miyazaki films, starting with “Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind” (1984), and also has composed the scores for director Takeshi Kitano’s movies. There was a palpable energy in Orchestra Hall as Hisaishi took to the podium and piano to conduct and perform selections from his scores of Studio Ghibli films such as “Princess Mononoke” (1997) and “Howl’s Moving Castle” (2004), as well as his latest orchestral work, his Third Symphony.

Symphony Ball concert with Lang Lang on Sept. 21

The first week of the 134th season of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was anchored by a Symphony Ball concert featuring megastar pianist Lang Lang in Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto No. 2. It begins with echoes of Bach and ends with a tarantella, a wild Italian folk dance. Kaleidoscopic works by Berlioz and Stravinsky framed the program, led by Andres Orozco-Estrada.

Symphony Ball raises funds to support the multifaceted work of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association — not only its industry-leading artistic programs, but also its educational and community-engagement initiatives that nurture tens of thousands of people in Chicago and around the world annually

Lila Downs in a Día de los Muertos tribute, Oct. 27

Singer-songwriter Lila Downs, a Symphony Center favorite, performed for a sold-out house in an SCP Special Concert on Oct. 27 and “what a performance she delivered!” wrote Ramiro J. Atristaín-Carrión, co-chairman emeritus of the CSO Latino Alliance. Honoring Día de los Muertos, “the evening was a vibrant celebration of Mexican sounds, folklore and joyous rhythms that filled Orchestra Hall to the brim with people of all ages. Anyone seeing her live for the first time likely walked out with a newfound love for Mexican culture. As usual, her songs, which defy conventional categories, carried a profound resonance, blending classical and Mexican instrumentation.” In her fusion of styles, Downs weaves elements from Mexican and Latin American folkloric genres, soul, jazz, blues, rap and even klezmer into “something uniquely her own. After the concert, the spirit of celebration was still alive as Latino Alliance families and friends, many in groups, gathered in Symphony Center’s Rotunda. The evening opened with a lively mariachi serenade in the Rotunda, creating a true Día de los Muertos celebration and honoring those we’ve lost in the CSO family. It’s moments like these that underscore the strong community spirit we have here at Symphony Center, with people coming together to celebrate and enjoy our Chicago Symphony Orchestra. What a fantastic night!”

Premiere of Osvaldo Golijov’s Megalopolis Suite on Nov. 7-9

Riccardo Muti, CSO Music Director Emeritus for Life, wrapped up his fall residency with the first performances of a CSO commission, a suite drawn by former CSO composer-in-residence Osvaldo Golijov from his score for director Francis Ford Coppola’s film “Megalopolis” (2024). The Golijov work had its world premiere Nov. 7 in a run-out concert at the Krannert Center in Champaign-Urbana. Attending the Orchestra Hall performances Nov. 8-9 were Golijov and Coppola, who, as it turns out, is a distant cousin of Muti’s. After the Nov. 8 performance, Golijov joined Muti onstage to share in the ovation; then Muti turned the spotlight over to his relative; the maestro called him ”one of the greatest film directors of all time” as Cugino Coppola beamed from his box seat. According to John von Rhein in the Chicago Classical Review, “a premiere as splendid” as this one’s "could convince you the Megalopolis Suite has legs enough to make it as a concert piece independent of the film."

Berlin Philharmonic in Bruckner’s Fifth on Nov. 26

"When the Berlin Philharmonic and Kirill Petrenko, its chief conductor, go deep on a single symphony — as they did this year with Bruckner’s Fifth [in an SCP Orchestras concert Nov. 26], as they did here two years ago with Mahler’s Seventh — the revelations come fast and furious," wrote Hannah Edgar for the Chicago Tribune. "There are many ways to ’do’ a Bruckner symphony, but one of the first decisions an interpreter must make is whether to sand out its breaks or lean into the non sequiturs. Petrenko went for option two. His Bruckner, like his Mahler, was a group discussion, not a monologue. More than any other ensemble in the biz, the Berlin Philharmonic looks as much to one another for musical cues as to Petrenko. The Berlin Phil doesn’t just play like they love music, which is rarer than one would hope. They play like they love each other, which is somehow rarer still."

Zell Foundation donates $50 million to the CSOA

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association received a $50-million gift from Helen and Sam Zell on behalf of the Zell Family Foundation. The donation was announced Dec. 10 and is one of nearly 200 made to the CSOA’s SEMPRE ALWAYS capital campaign, chaired by Helen Zell. The Zells’ gift brings the total raised so far by the campaign to $215 million. “As an avid supporter of the arts, I understand the importance of philanthropy in filling the gap between earned revenue and operating expenses,” said Helen Zell, chair of the CSOA’s Board of Trustees from to 2015 to 2021. “The generosity of donors will ensure the long-term sustainability of our great cultural institutions that add vitality and beauty to our lives and communities. ... I’ve been a champion of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for many years, and I think about this gift as an investment in preserving the CSO’s future.”

Gabriela Lara, former CSO Fellow, is appointed to the CSO

Gabriela Lara, a native of Venezuela, became the first CSO Fellow to be named as a member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. On Dec. 4, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association announced Lara’s appointment to the CSO’s first violin section, effective Jan. 27. After participating in preliminary auditions for a violin-section opening, she won the final audition in October, becoming the first CSO musician appointed by Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä. The CSO Fellowship program gives young players the opportunity to perform in a major symphony orchestra setting, with the goal of becoming better equipped to win auditions with top U.S. orchestras. For now, Lara is trying to get used to the “mind-blowing idea“ that she starts her dream job in January. “It still hasn’t set in, but I’m very excited,” she said. “I’m just looking forward to making music at the highest standard.”

Orchestra Hall debut of conductor Dima Slobodeniouk, Dec. 5-7

An edgy 20th-century concerto (Lutosławski’s Cello Concerto, with Johannes Moser) and a rarity by a popular Russian composer (Rachmaninov’s Symphony No. 1) delivered “one of the most compelling CSO concerts of the year,” wrote Lawrence A. Johnson in the Chicago Classical Review. "Much of the credit for the night’s success goes to conductor Dima Slobodeniouk, who made a most impressive CSO subscription debut (he had previously led the CSO at Ravinia). Slobodeniouk and the orchestra were equal partners, the attentive conductor making every element of Lutosławski’s multifaceted score come across with powerful impact and drawing some of the most roiling and intense playing from the orchestra heard all year."