Riccardo Muti & the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Pre-Concert Talk at 6:30 pm

Riccardo Muti, Music Director Emeritus for Life

Sponsored by Sallie & Allan Bulley, the Dean L. & Rosemarie Buntrock Foundation, John & *Katherine Fox, Mr. & Mrs. Joseph H. Stein, Jr., and Sheila Stone

Johannes Brahms: Symphony No. 4
Igor Stravinsky: Divertimento from The Fairy’s Kiss
Maurice Ravel: Bolero

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra, led by its Music Director Emeritus for Life Riccardo Muti, starts off the season. Known for his commanding presence and uncompromising artistry, Muti has shaped the CSO into an orchestra of breathtaking precision and depth.

Their program spans three giants of orchestral imagination. Stravinsky’s Divertimento from The Fairy’s Kiss sparkles with wit and color, reimagining Tchaikovsky’s music through a modern lens. Opening the program is Brahms’  Symphony No. 4, his final symphony and one of the true monuments of the Romantic era, culminating in a powerful finale built on a theme inspired by Bach. The evening ends with Ravel’s Boléro, whose slow, inexorable crescendo remains one of the most thrilling moments in all of classical music.

This concert promises a night of brilliance, intensity, and sheer orchestral power — an unforgettable start to the 2026 season.