Riccardo Muti, the former conductor and current music director emeritus for life of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, showcased the ensemble's power and finesse in a two-night engagement at Carnegie Hall. Under Muti's direction, the orchestra delivered strong yet nimble performances of works by Tchaikovsky, Mussorgsky, Mendelssohn, Strauss, and Glass. The orchestra's cohesion and technical mastery were evident, with tasteful instrumental solos and a balance of ardor and neatness. While the soloist in Tchaikovsky's Violin Concerto had a subpar showing, Muti's interpretation and the orchestra's plush power shone through. The encores, drawn from Italian opera, provided a showcase for Muti's specialty and allowed the ensemble to revel in their performance.
Riccardo Muti will become the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's music director emeritus for life starting next season. Muti repeats the Beethoven on Saturday night and Sunday, then closes his tenure Tuesday night with a free concert in Millennium Park. Muti’s career has included lengthy tenures with Italy’s Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, the Philadelphia Orchestra, and Milan’s Teatro alla Scala. He is just the fifth CSO music director in seven decades, following Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon, Georg Solti, and Daniel Barenboim.
Riccardo Muti, the music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, will end his 13-year tenure leading Beethoven’s “Missa Solemnis” in June 2023. However, since his successor has not yet been named, he will be continuing as a kind of shadow music director next season, and possibly longer. Muti's time in Chicago has been widely reckoned an enormous success, taking the great Chicago Symphony Orchestra and making it even greater. His departure is a milestone as the generation of leaders born before the end of World War II passes.
