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A MENDELSSOHN Violin Concerto in E Minor, Op. 64 INTERMISSION MAHLER Symphony No. 7 James Conlon conductor Sarah Chang violin B MAHLER Symphony No. 8 in E-flat Major, (Symphony of a Thousand) James Conlon conductor [Redacted] Symphony Chorus Chicago Children’s Choir Milwaukee Symphony Chorus C BRAHMS Piano Concerto No. 1 in D Minor, Op. 15 INTERMISSION DVORÁK Symphony No. 7 in D Minor, Op. 70 James Conlon conductor Jorge Federico Osorio piano Monday off Tuesday 11-1:30 rehearsal Wednesday 2:30-5 rehearsal 8 concert (A) Thursday 11-1:30 2:30-5 rehearsals Friday off Saturday 2-4:30 rehearsal 7:30 concert (B) Sunday 12-3 rehearsal 5 concert (C) Last week ran the gamut. Haitink and Lang Lang – it’s hard to think of them as part of the same profession. Haitink’s Mahler 6, excellent as it was, served more to bring to mind the sort of performances we used to give here regularly. Kudos to Andrew Patner for making the same point with more eloquence. Apparently the Gala concert went beautifully,...

I have a much uglier word for it, Sir: Misappropriation. - Waylon Smithers Here’s an interesting excerpt from our contract. Section 25.18 CSO Name. (a) The designation “Chicago Symphony”, “Chicago Symphony Orchestra”, “Members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra”, “CSO”, or any similar designation may not be used by any Member or Members unless in connection with an event under the auspices of the Association or any subcontractor of the Association or unless to identify a recognized ensemble existing as of September 17, 1979, which has been using such designation. Any unauthorized use will be resisted by the Association. I wonder if anyone on our players’ committee has seen this:

A Mahler Symphony No. 6 in A Minor Bernard Haitink conductor B Gala Benefit Evening Schreker Intermezzo R. Strauss Morgen, Op. 27, No. 4 R. Strauss Ständchen from Sechs Lieder Op. 17 R. Strauss Zueignung, Op. 10, No. 1 Canteloube Three selections from Chants d’Auvergne Canteloube Bailero Canteloube La Delaissado Canteloube Lo Fiolaire Puccini Two selections from La bohème Puccini Si, mi chiamano Mimì Puccini Donde lieta usci Cilea “Io son l’umile ancella” from Adriana Lecouvreur Kiri Te Kanawa soprano James Conlon conductor C Schreker Chamber Symphony Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue Chopin Andante Spianato in G Major, Op. 22 Chopin Grand Polonaise in E-flat Major, Op. 22 Rachmaninoff Piano Concerto No. 2 in C Minor, Op. 18 Lang Lang piano James Conlon conductor Monday off Tuesday 11-1:30 rehearsal Wednesday 2:30-5 rehearsal 8 concert (A) Thursday 11-1:30 rehearsal Friday off Saturday 1:30-4 rehearsal 7 concert (B) Sunday 12:30-3 5 concert (C) Beethoven 7 (last week) and Mahler 6 (this week) ...

program A SMITH The Star-Spangled Banner ENESCU Romanian Rhapsody in A Major, Op. 11, No. 1 SIBELIUS Violin Concerto in D Minor, Op. 47 INTERMISSION BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92 Leonard Slatkin conductor Joshua Bell violin program B RACHMANINOV Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14 RACHMANINOV Symphonic Dances, Op. 45 INTERMISSION RACHMANINOV Piano Concerto No. 3 in D Minor, Op. 30 Leonard Slatkin conductor Denis Matsuev piano Monday off Tuesday 11-1:30 2:30-5 rehearsals Wednesday 2:30-5 rehearsal 8 concert (A) Thursday 2:30-5 rehearsal 8 concert (B) Friday off Saturday off Sunday off This is where the pro forma statement about how nice it is to be back belongs. Welz Kaufman’s welcoming remarks to the orchestra were brief enough that anyone blinking (or stifling a yawn) surely missed them. He left the official pleasantries to the chairperson of the Ravinia board who greeted us graciously. The usual offering of cake prompted the usual grumbling about the quality of the cake. ...

as ye sow… HINDEMITH Overture to Neues vom Tage HINDEMITH Trauermusik FRIEDMAN Sacred Heart: Explosion INTERMISSION BERLIOZ Harold in Italy Leonard Slatkin, conductor Pinchas Zukerman, viola All-Access Chamber Series Eugene Izotov, oboe John Bruce Yeh, clarinet Albert Igolnikov, violin Paul Phillips Jr., violin Robert Swan, viola John Sharp, cello Michael Hovnanian, bass Mozart Oboe Quartet Prokofiev Quintet, Op. 39 Brahms Clarinet Quintet Dvorak Slavonic Dance in E Minor, Op. 72, No. 2 Monday off Tuesday 10-12:30 rehearsal 1:30-3:30 Prokofiev quintet rehearsal Wednesday 10-12:30 1:30-3:30 rehearsals Thursday 10-12:30 rehearsal 8 concert Friday 1:30 concert 3:30-6 Prokofiev quintet rehearsal Saturday 2 All-Access Chamber Series concert 8 concert Sunday 3 concert 7:30 Ars Viva Benefit (Week 38 was last week. I’m now on vacation.) After Sunday the orchestra is on vacation until the Ravinia summer season begins in July. Usually we have our main vacation after Ravinia, in August and Septem...

Oy Vey! DVORÁK Symphony No. 8 INTERMISSION OLIVER Federal Street (Great God, we sing that mighty hand) HATTON Duke Street (O God, beneath thy guiding hand) ROOT Shining Shore TRADITIONAL Good Night, Ladies BISHOP Home, Sweet Home IVES New England Holidays [redacted] Symphony Chorus Michael Tilson Thomas, conductor Monday 2-4:30 Trout Quintet rehearsal Tuesday 10-12:30 rehearsal 12:30-2:30 Prokofiev Quintet rehearsal 7:30 concert (Rameau/Vivaldi) Wednesday 12-2:30 3:30-5:30 rehearsals Thursday 10-12:30 rehearsal 8 concert Friday 9:30-11:30 In-school concerts 1:30 concert 7:30 Trout Quintet concert Saturday 8 concert Sunday 7:30 Ars Viva Benefit rehearsal This week = last week. I’m behind again. We had one of the quirkier podium performances this week. In rehearsals the ratio of talk to useful information conveyed threatened to fall into the red zone. To make matters worse, although more entertaining, the Maestro’s score for the Ives didn’t seem to match the set of parts the players were...

Bicket’s charge VIVALDI Piccolo Concerto in C Major RAMEAU Suite from Les Boréades INTERMISSION VIVALDI The Four Seasons Harry Bicket, conductor Jennifer Gunn, piccolo Yuan-Qing Yu, violin Monday off Tuesday 10-12:30 rehearsal Wednesday 10-12 1-3:30 rehearsal Thursday 10-12:30 rehearsal 8 concert Friday 8 concert Saturday 8 concert Sunday 3 concert (Beyond the Score) The Vivaldi/Rameau program is repeated on Tuesday the 27th so, yes, we play the Four Seasons five times in a one-week span. It really feels more like seven since by the end of a Beyond the Score concert I feel as if I’ve run through the piece three times in a row. Any so-called baroque music specialist taking the podium at our concert hall is working behind enemy lines. The best ones drop in, stir up as little hostility as possible while accomplishing a limited mission and try to get the heck out unscathed. To that end, Bicket did an admirable job of coaxing an old dog to do a few new tricks. He came across as a fine music...