The Chicago Symphony Orchestra on Tuesday announced its 2022-2023 season, a season filled with milestones and milestone performances.
Most prominent, the CSOs 132nd season will mark the conclusion of the tenure of Zell Music Director Riccardo Muti, marking the end of his 13-year artistic affiliation with the orchestra. Programming for the CSO season will feature the symphonies of Schubert and Tchaikovsky, and Prokofiev’s Fifth Symphony, which Muti will conduct for the first time with the orchestra, and Rachmaninov’s Second Symphony, which he performs for the first time. Other highlights include the U.S. premiere of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s “Solemn Prayer”; and Mussorgsky’s “Pictures from an Exhibition,” which Muti conducted for his CSO podium debut at Ravinia in 1973.
The season concludes with Muti conducting the CSO, Chicago Symphony Chorus and soloists for Beethoven’s Missa solemnis (June 23-25, 2023).
Other season highlights include the annual CSO at the Movies series, featuring screenings of critically acclaimed films with the orchestra performing the score live. The lineup includes: “Amadeus” (Oct. 13-16), Constantine Kitsopoulos, conductor; “The Princess Bride” (Nov. 25-27), with a new score arranged by Dire Straits frontman/guitarist Mark Knopfler; “An Evening with John Williams,” with John Williams conducting (March 24, 2023); and “Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens” (June 29, 2023), with David Newman, conducting.
As part of the season’s Symphony Center Presents Jazz series, highlights include the Oct. 18 arrival of Chucho Valdes presenting his four-movement suite La Creación (The Creation), for big band, Afro-Cuban percussion and vocals.
The Joffrey Ballet returns to Symphony Center for a program (Nov. 10-12) with the CSO conducted by Harry Bicket, and featuring two world premiere commissions: Cathy Marston’s ballet set to Wagner’s Siegfried Idyll, and Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s work set to Rameau’s Suite from Platée).
The Symphony Center Presents Orchestras series opens Nov. 16 with the Berliner Berliner Philharmoniker performing Mahler’s Symphony No. 7. conducted by Kirill Petrenko.
The CSO MusicNOW series returns with four concerts curated by Mead Composer-in-Residence Jessie Montgomery (Oct. 24 and Nov. 21, 2022; and Feb. 20 and April 24, 2023).
The season’s chamber music series will include the Emerson String Quartet, joined by pianist Emmanuel Ax, making its final Chicago concert appearance on June 4, 2023.
And the annual holiday programming will include the classical music vocal ensemble Chanticleer in concert at the Fourth Presbyterian Church (126 E. Chestnut, Dec. 6-7); and the Chicago Symphony Chorus, members of the CSO and conductor Alastair Willis for the family-friendly musical offering “Merry, Merry Chicago!” (Dec. 16-17 and 20-23).
For ticket information call (312) 294-3000 or email patronservices@cso.org.
The complete season lineup is available at cso.org.
