CSOradio
CSOtv
CSOradio
Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra perform a program of works by Berlioz and Beethoven under the elegant, illuminated arches of Hill Auditorium, which was inaugurated with a concert by the Orchestra in 1913.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä traveled to Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the campus of the University of Michigan on February 23 for the first stop on a four-city 2026 U.S. tour, their first together. The performance presented by the University Musical Society at Hill Auditorium, the CSO’s 206th appearance at the historic concert hall, featured Berlioz’s Symphonie fantastique and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7 followed by an encore and fan favorite, “The Victors,” in an orchestration by CSO viola and University of Michigan alumnus Max Raimi.
Load out for the CSO’s 2026 U.S. Tour to Ann Arbor and the East Coast comes with a little something extra as stage technician Blair Carlson takes a moment to enjoy the snow in Chicago.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
CSO viola Paolo Dara, who joined the Orchestra in January 2026, boards the early morning bus to the airport for the CSO’s trip to Ann Arbor for the first of four concerts on the 2026 U.S. tour with Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Director of Tour and Media Operations Jiwon Sun has boarding passes ready to go for CSO viola Catherine Brubaker and CSO trumpet John Hagstrom on the travel day to Ann Arbor.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Principal Clarinet Stephen Williamson and Principal Oboe William Welter talk on the moving walkway before the Orchestra’s flight to Michigan from Midway Airport.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
CSO moms are on the move as CSO violin Gina DiBello and CSO flute Emma Gerstein keep their family in motion on the first travel day of the 2026 tour to Ann Arbor and the East coast.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
CSO violins and sisters Lei and Qing Hou make a stop at Ann Arbor’s famous Zingerman’s Deli to get essential and delicious snacks for the first day of the tour.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Historic Hill Auditorium on the campus of the University of Michigan was the first stop on the CSO’s 2026 U.S. tour with Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä for a February 23, 2026, concert presented by the University Musical Society. The CSO first appeared under the auspices of the University Musical Society during the Orchestra’s second season in 1892.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
CSO viola and University of Michigan alumnus Youming Chen shows off his Michigan pride when warming up on stage at Hill Auditorium.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Assistant Principal Cello Kenneth Olsen warms up onstage at University of Michigan’s Hill Auditorium before the CSO’s concert with Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä presented by the University Musical Society.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä acknowledges enthusiastic applause from the audience following the CSO’s performance of works by Berlioz and Beethoven. The February 23, 2026, tour concert marked the Orchestra’s first return to Hill Auditorium since 2015 and its 206th performance in Ann Arbor.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä accepts flowers from an audience member following his performance with the CSO to kick off a four-city U.S. tour to Ann Arbor and the East Coast.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
Zell Music Director Designate Klaus Mäkelä acknowledges the bassoon section for their contributions to the performance of Berlioz's Symphonie fantastique as CSO viola and University of Michigan alumnus Max Raimi looks on. The Orchestra performed Raimi's arrangement of the Michigan fight song, “The Victors,” as an encore in Ann Arbor.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
That’s a wrap! Principal Bass Alexander Hanna does his own heavy lifting as load out begins following the concert in Hill Auditorium at the University of Michigan.
Todd Rosenberg Photography
