The Chicago Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1891 by Theodore Thomas and he was its conductor until his death in 1905. His successors have been Frederick Stock (until 1942), Desire Defauw, Artur Rodzinski, Rafael Kubelik, Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon, Sir Georg Solti and Daniel Barenboim (until 2006). The orchestra has its own concert hall which was completed in 1904 and which now forms part of the Symphony Center Complex in Chicago.
The many distinguished guest conductors which the CSO has seen include Richard Strauss, Arnold Schoenberg, Sergei Prokofiev, Sergei Rachmaninov, Maurice Ravel, Edward Elgar and Aaron Copland. More recent guest conductors include John Williams, Andre Previn, Michael Tilson Thomas, Leonard Bernstein, Claudio Abbado and Pierre Boulez.
Listening to the Orchestra and chorus perform the score for Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring while we watch the film on a huge screen on the lawn at Ravinia Park. Yeah, this is a pretty... more
Listening to the Orchestra and chorus perform the score for Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring while we watch the film on a huge screen on the lawn at Ravinia Park. Yeah, this is a pretty good night.