Chicago Symphony Orchestra Announces 2014-2015 Season - Tchaikovsky, Scriabin & More!

Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) Music Director Riccardo Muti and Deborah F. Rutter, president of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (CSOA), announce the programming for the CSO and Symphony Center Presents (SCP) 2014/15 season-the Orchestra's 124th season and Maestro Muti's fifth season as music director. Next season, Maestro Muti leads ten weeks of subscription concerts in four residencies with the Orchestra in Chicago, with appearances in September/October, January, February/March and June. In addition, he leads the Orchestra on a three- week tour of Europe in October and November, and in three performances at Carnegie Hall in January.

The wide range of programs conceived by Maestro Muti for the upcoming season highlights his rewarding relationship with the musicians of the CSO, at the same time supporting his commitment to bringing live music to the broadest possible audience as part of the CSO's Citizen Musician Initiative. He and the Orchestra continue to collaborate with some of today's most visionary artists to present dynamic programming that balances both well-known and less familiar repertoire.

Among Maestro Muti's programming for the 2014/15 season is a spotlight on two venerable Russian composers. By juxtaposing the symphonic works of Tchaikovsky and Scriabin, Maestro Muti explores the contrasts between these two composers who share a common heritage while owning distinctive styles. Maestro Muti has long been a passionate champion of Scriabin's music and is dedicated to performing not only his most famous works, but also scores that may be less recognizable to audiences.

A season-long focus on French composers traverses two centuries of Gallic culture from Berlioz to Boulez, whose 90th birthday is celebrated during this season. A three-week festival in May, entitled Reveries and Passions and led by Esa-Pekka Salonen, serves as a highlight, with a specific emphasis on 20th century French dramatic and operatic works.

The Austro-Germanic tradition, which lies at the heart of Western classical music, is represented throughout the 2014/15 season by masterworks of the core orchestral repertoire, including works by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert, Brahms, Bruckner and Mahler.

The season also features the world premieres of commissioned works by Mason Bates and Anna Clyne in the culmination of their five years as Mead Composers-in-Residence.

Other highlights of the Orchestra's 2014/15 season include:

? A season-opening performance of Beethoven's Symphony No. 9, with soprano Camilla Nylund, mezzo-soprano Ekaterina Gubanova, tenor Christopher Ventris and bass-baritone Eric Owens, conducted by Maestro Muti

? A European tour in October and November that finds the CSO making its debut in Warsaw, Poland, along with a return visit to Paris, an unprecedented weeklong residency in Vienna and performances in additional cities to be announced at a later date

? Maestro Muti and the Orchestra and Chorus' return to New York's Carnegie Hall, for three programs on January 30, 31 and February 1, featuring guest pianist Yefim Bronfman performing Brahms' Piano Concerto No. 2, and Prokofiev's Alexander Nevsky, with the Chicago Symphony Chorus and mezzo-soprano Alisa Kolosova. Kolosova and the CSO are joined by tenor Sergey Skorokhodov for Scriabin's Symphony No. 1.

? Explorations of the works of Boulez, Brahms and Ravel in the CSO's innovative, multimedia Beyond the Score series

The programs of Symphony Center Presents and the Institute for Learning, Access and Training complement the CSO's subscription programs and demonstrate Maestro Muti's and the CSOA's commitment to supporting young musicians and to serving the greater Chicago community through music.

The diverse initiatives of the Institute all contribute to these efforts, while the numerous SCP series bring a wide range of today's leading artists and ensembles from all genres of music to Chicago. Highlights this season include CSO Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant Yo-Yo Ma collaborating with musicians of the CSO, as well as bringing his international consortium of musicians, the Silk Road Ensemble, in its 15th anniversary, to the Symphony Center stage.

The SCP Chamber Music, Orchestra and Piano series further expand the broad spectrum of talent from around the world that comes to Chicago to perform in Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center. The SCP Jazz series enters its third decade in 2014/15; programming details will be announced in April.

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