The widely celebrated 100th anniversary of the birth of Leonard Bernstein is now in the midst of a grand-scale finale as the Ravinia Festival moves through its second summer of programs devoted to all aspects of his legacy.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Despite the dire warnings about “the demise of the audience for classical music,” there is a significant audience in Chicago that values this incomparable art form. Two recent, radically different CSO concerts are prime examples.
The unlikely combination of Vivaldi, Beethoven and Gershwin with two contemporary works was full of delightful surprises and unexpected revelations.
Hilary Hahn’s bravura handling of a fire-breathing passage in Sibelius’ “Violin Concerto in D Minor” brings forth a “Wow!” from what was certainly an adult man in the audience at Symphony Center.
A concert by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra featuring the transcendent Mitsuko Uchida. A visit by Maestro Riccardo Muti and several master musicians to a juvenile detention center. And a virtuosic chamber concert.
At the Symphony Center, a palpable sense of relief and joy as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra marked its return to the stage after a bruising seven-week strike.
How do you bring the music back to the stage of Symphony Center in the wake of an agonizing seven-week strike by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra? With two of the world’s most formidable virtuosos.
The Chicago Federation of Musicians says the five-year deal includes a 13.2% increase in salary and protects retirement benefits. The union says musicians unanimously supported it Saturday.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel said in a statement that Chicago Symphony Orchestra management and striking musicians “have reached an agreement in principle to bring the music back to the symphony center.”
Both striking musicians and management of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra have welcomed an offer by Mayor Rahm Emanuel to help end a nearly two-month work stoppage over pensions and wages.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra may cancel more concerts after striking musicians rejected what it calls its last, best and final offer on a new contract.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra said in a Wednesday statement that it and the Chicago Federation of Musicians have “mutually agreed” to continue negotiations Friday.
Instead of being in rehearsal Tuesday morning with their superstar conductor Riccardo Muti, most of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s 106 musicians joined forces with him on the sidewalk outside the concert hall.
While saying their negotiations have been “respectful and cordial,” the musicians of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and their management dug in Monday in what could be a prolonged strike.
The CSO’s current program features two radically different pieces: American composer William Schuman’s haunting “Symphony No. 9” and Mozart’s glorious “Requiem in D Minor.”
A wide array of concerts designed “to explore (Ludwig van Beethoven’s) individuality, power and genius” highlight the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s 2019-2020 season.
