In Monday’s (6/23) Chicago Tribune, John von Rhein interviews Riccardo Muti, the music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. “Both La Scala and Vienna, two of the world’s preeminent opera companies, have standing invitations out to Muti … Plenty of major orchestras would love to engage him as well. But, as the Italian baton supremo approaches his 74th birthday in July, he is almost entirely restricting his conducting to the three orchestras he considers the finest in the world—the Vienna Philharmonic, the Berlin Philharmonic and, of course, the CSO, where his contract runs through August 2020. … Muti offered few specifics when asked about his overall artistic plan for his remaining five seasons with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. He was more vocal about challenging the institution to develop its presence in the community, on the world stage and in the electronic media. … He also believes Chicago’s elected officials should do a better job of getting behind the orchestra as a world-class shining jewel in Chicago’s civic and cultural crown. (The maestro saluted another such jewel when he proudly held up a Blackhawks T-shirt at his final concerts of the season last week.)”
Posted June 25, 2015
