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{{Short description|Orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois}}
{{More footnotes needed|date=July 2024}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=December 2024}}
{{Infobox orchestra
| name                = Chicago Symphony Orchestra
| type                = Orchestra
| short_name          = 
| image               = Chicago Symphony Orchestra 2005.jpg
| caption             = The Orchestra performs in Orchestra Hall at the Chicago Symphony Center
| former_name         = 
| founded             = {{Start date and age|1891}}
| later_name          = 
| location            = [[Chicago]], Illinois, US
| concert_hall        = [[Symphony Center]]
| music_director = [[Klaus Mäkelä]] (designate, effective 2027)
| website             = {{URL|www.cso.org}}
| logo                = Wiki-CSO logo2024 stacked-whitebg.png
}}

The '''Chicago Symphony Orchestra''' ('''CSO''') is an American symphony orchestra based in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by [[Theodore Thomas (conductor)|Theodore Thomas]] in 1891, the ensemble has been based in the [[Symphony Center]] since 1904 and plays a summer season at the [[Ravinia Festival]]. [[Klaus Mäkelä]] was named music director-designate in 2024, with his first contractual season to begin in 2027. The orchestra's most recent music director is [[Riccardo Muti]], whose tenure spanned the seasons from 2010 to 2023, and he continues to perform on occasion as director-emeritus. The CSO is one of the American orchestras commonly referred to as the "[[Big Five (orchestras)|Big Five]]".<ref name="walsh">{{cite news |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,923579,00.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080131191106/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,923579,00.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=January 31, 2008 | title=Which U.S. Orchestras are Best? | first=Michael| last=Walsh| magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date=April 25, 1983| access-date=September 18, 2013}}</ref>

==History==
[[File:Theodore thomas.jpg|thumb|right|240px|Theodore Thomas, founding father and first conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.]]
In 1890, Charles Norman Fay, a Chicago businessman, invited [[Theodore Thomas (conductor)|Theodore Thomas]] to establish an orchestra in Chicago. Under the name "Chicago Orchestra", the orchestra played its first concert October 16, 1891, at the [[Auditorium Theater]]. It is one of the oldest orchestras in the United States, along with the [[New York Philharmonic]], the [[Boston Symphony Orchestra]] and the [[Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra]].

[[Symphony Center|Orchestra Hall]], now a component of the Symphony Center complex, was designed by Chicago architect [[Daniel H. Burnham]] and completed in 1904. Thomas served as music director for thirteen years until his death shortly after Orchestra Hall was dedicated on December 14, 1904. The orchestra was renamed "Theodore Thomas Orchestra" in 1905, and today, Orchestra Hall still has "Theodore Thomas Orchestra Hall" inscribed on its façade.

In 1905, [[Frederick Stock]] became music director, a post he held until his death in 1942. The orchestra was renamed the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1913.

Subsequent music directors have included [[Désiré Defauw]], [[Artur Rodziński]], [[Rafael Kubelík]], [[Fritz Reiner]], [[Jean Martinon]], [[Georg Solti]], and [[Daniel Barenboim]]. Reiner's work with the orchestra included a series of television appearances, the first in its history. He also planned but was unable to bring to fruition its first tour outside the United States.<ref>{{cite book | last=Morgan | first=Kenneth | title=Fritz Reiner: Maestro & Martinet | location=Urbana, Illinois | publisher=University of Illinois Press | year=2005 | pages=x-xi, 160 | isbn=0-252-02935-6 | url=https://archive.org/details/fritzreinermaest00morg }}</ref>  Later, Solti thought it was essential to raise the orchestra's international profile. Solti led the Chicago Symphony in a European tour in 1971, playing in ten countries. It was the first time in its 80-year history that the orchestra had played outside of North America.<ref name=prov>Greenfield, Edward. "The great provincials", ''The Guardian'', October 4, 1971, p. 8</ref>  The orchestra received plaudits from European critics,<ref>[https://archive.today/20130131142706/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagodefender/access/884351992.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Oct+6,+1971&author=&pub=Chicago+Daily+Defender+(Daily+Edition)+(1960-1973)&edition=&startpage=20&desc=Symphony+returns+prepares+for+71-72+season "Symphony returns"], ''[[Chicago Defender|Chicago Daily Defender]]'', October 6, 1971, p. 20</ref>{{refn|After the orchestra played at the [[Edinburgh Festival]] the critic [[William Mann (critic)|William Mann]] wrote: "I am tempted to describe it as the United States' most completely accomplished orchestra. It has the fine attack of the [[New York Philharmonic|New York Phil]] under [[Leonard Bernstein|Bernstein]], the radiance of the [[Boston Symphony Orchestra|Boston]] under [[Erich Leinsdorf|Leinsdorf]], the classic elegance of the [[Cleveland Orchestra|Cleveland]] under [[George Szell|Szell]], and to these qualities it adds, under Solti, a warm, human musical expressiveness that one associates with European rather than modern American orchestras."<ref>Mann, William. "Chicago SO", ''The Times'', September 6, 1971, p. 8</ref> After one of the London concerts, [[Alan Blyth]] wrote, "nobody could doubt that this is about the most formidably-equipped orchestra in the world at present".<ref>Blyth, Alan. "Chicago SO/Solti", ''The Times'' October 5, 1971, p. 17</ref>|group= n}} and was welcomed home at the end of the tour with a [[ticker-tape parade]].<ref name=dnb>Follows, Stephen. [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/68813 "Solti, Sir Georg (1912–1997)"], ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004; online edition, January 2011, accessed February 22, 2012 {{subscription required}}</ref>

On May 5, 2008, the CSO announced the appointment of [[Riccardo Muti]] as its 10th music director, starting with the 2010–2011 season<ref name="Wakin">{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/06/arts/music/06muti.html?ref=arts%26pagewanted=all| title= And the Brass Ring Goes to Chicago Symphony: Riccardo Muti Says Yes | work=[[The New York Times]]| first=Daniel J.| last=Wakin| date=May 5, 2008| access-date=September 18, 2013}}</ref><ref name="Patner">{{cite news |url=http://voices.suntimes.com/arts-entertainment/the-daily-sizzle/riccardo-muti-renews-contract-with-chicago-symphony-orchestra |work=[[Chicago Sun-Times]] |first=Andrew |last=Patner |date=February 3, 2014 |access-date=February 5, 2015 |title=Chicago – Chicago : News : Politics : Things To Do : Sports |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150205085753/http://voices.suntimes.com/arts-entertainment/the-daily-sizzle/riccardo-muti-renews-contract-with-chicago-symphony-orchestra/ |archive-date=February 5, 2015 }}</ref><ref>{{cite press release | url=https://csosoundsandstories.org/riccardo-muti-to-remain-cso-music-director-until-2021-22/ | title=Riccardo Muti to remain CSO music director until 2021–22 | publisher=Chicago Symphony Orchestra | date=January 30, 2018 | access-date=January 1, 2021 | archive-date=April 17, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210417094423/https://csosoundsandstories.org/riccardo-muti-to-remain-cso-music-director-until-2021-22/ | url-status=dead }}</ref>  After extending his stay several times, the CSO confirmed that Muti would conclude his active directorship of the orchestra at end of the 2022–2023 season.<ref>{{cite press release | url=https://csosoundsandstories.org/muti-talks-about-20-21-season-also-cavalleria-rusticana-on-wdcb-fm/ | title=Muti talks about '20–21 season, also ''Cavalleria rusticana'', on WDCB-FM | publisher=Chicago Symphony Orchestra | date=January 28, 2020 | access-date=January 1, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite press release | url=https://cso.org/media/fpzepwjk/csoa-news-release-riccardo-muti-contract-extension_09-23-21i.pdf | title=Riccardo Muti extends contract as Music Director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra through 2023 | publisher=Chicago Symphony Orchestra | date=September 23, 2021 | access-date=September 24, 2021}}</ref> In September 2023, the orchestra granted Muti the title of Music Director Emeritus for life.<ref>{{cite news | author=Lawrence A. Johnson | title=Riccardo Muti honored with new CSO title | url=https://chicagoclassicalreview.com/2023/06/riccardo-muti-honored-with-new-cso-title/ | work=Chicago Classical Review | date = June 23, 2023 | access-date=June 27, 2023}}</ref>

In 2022, [[Klaus Mäkelä]] first guest-conducted the CSO, and returned for a guest-conducting appearance in February 2023.  In April 2024, the CSO announced the appointment of Mäkelä as its next music director, effective with the 2027–2028 season, with an initial contract of five years.<ref>{{cite press release | url=https://cso.org/experience/article/18131/klaus-makela-named-next-music-director-of-the | title=Klaus Mäkelä named next music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra | publisher=Chicago Symphony Orchestra | date=April 2, 2024 | accessdate=April 2, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite news | title=Klaus Mäkelä, 28-Year-Old Finnish Conductor, to Lead Chicago Symphony | url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/02/arts/music/klaus-makela-28-to-lead-chicago-symphony-orchestra.html | author=Javier C. Hernández | work=The New York Times | date=April 2, 2024 | access-date=April 2, 2024}}</ref>

The orchestra has also hosted many distinguished guest conductors, including [[Thomas Beecham]], [[Leonard Bernstein]], [[Aaron Copland]], [[Edward Elgar]], [[Morton Gould]], [[Paul Hindemith]], [[Erich Kunzel]], [[Erich Leinsdorf]], [[Charles Munch (conductor)|Charles Munch]], [[Eugene Ormandy]], [[André Previn]], [[Sergei Prokofiev]], [[Sergei Rachmaninoff]], [[Maurice Ravel]], [[Arnold Schoenberg]], [[Leonard Slatkin]], [[Leopold Stokowski]], [[James Levine]], [[Richard Strauss]], [[George Szell]], [[Klaus Tennstedt]], [[Michael Tilson Thomas]], [[Bruno Walter]], and [[John Williams]]. Many of these guests have also recorded with the orchestra. [[Carlos Kleiber]] made his only symphonic guest appearances in America with the CSO in October 1978 and June 1983.

The three principal guest conductors of the orchestra have been [[Carlo Maria Giulini]], [[Claudio Abbado]], and [[Pierre Boulez]].

The CSO holds an annual fundraiser, originally known as the Chicago Symphony Marathon, more recently as "Radiothon" and "Symphonython", in conjunction with Chicago radio station [[WFMT]]. As part of the event, from 1986 through 2008, the orchestra released tracks from their broadcast archives on double LP/CD collections, as well as two larger sets of broadcasts and rarities (CSO: The First 100 Years, 12 CDs, 1991; CSO in the 20th Century: Collector's Choice, 10 CDs, 2000).

==Ravinia Festival==
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra maintains a summer home at the [[Ravinia Festival]] in Ravinia Park, [[Highland Park, Illinois]]. The CSO first performed there on November 20, 1905, during Ravinia Park's second year since its opening in 1904, and continued to appear there on and off through August 1931, after which Ravinia Park closed for four years due to the [[Great Depression]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://csoarchives.wordpress.com/2016/03/10/125-moments-054-ravinia-park/ |title=125 Moments: 054 Ravinia Park &#124; from the archives |website=Csoarchives.wordpress.com |date=October 22, 2018 |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>  The year of Ravinia Park's re-opening, the CSO helped to inaugurate the first season of the [[Ravinia Festival]] on July 3, 1936,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://csoarchives.wordpress.com/2016/04/12/125-moments-064-ravinia-festival/ |title=125 Moments: 064 Ravinia Festival &#124; from the archives |website=Csoarchives.wordpress.com |date=April 12, 2016 |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref> and has been in residence at the Festival every summer since. The one exception to this is during the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], when the orchestra did not perform any concerts due to Ravinia announcing that it had cancelled all concerts for the 2020 season.<ref>{{Cite web|date=May 1, 2020|title=Ravinia Cancels 2020 Season Due to Covid Pandemic|url=https://www.ravinia.org/Page/CoronaVirus|access-date=August 21, 2020|website=Ravinia Festival|archive-date=April 19, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419114620/https://www.ravinia.org/Page/CoronaVirus|url-status=dead}}</ref>

Many conductors have made their debut with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra at Ravinia, and several have gone on to become music director for the festival, including [[Seiji Ozawa]] (1964–68), [[James Levine]] (1973–93), and [[Christoph Eschenbach]] (1995–2003). [[James Conlon]] held the title from 2005 until 2015.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://csoarchives.wordpress.com/2016/09/20/125-moments-116-james-conlon/ |title=125 Moments: 116 James Conlon &#124; from the archives |website=Csoarchives.wordpress.com |date=March 29, 2017 |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>  The Ravinia Festival created an honorific title for James Levine, "Conductor Laureate", and signed him to a five-year renewable contract beginning in 2018. On December 4, 2017, after Levine was accused of sexual misconduct, the Ravinia Festival severed all ties with Levine, and terminated his five-year contract to lead the Chicago Symphony there.<ref>{{cite web|last=Fanto |first=Clarence |url=http://www.berkshireeagle.com/stories/boston-symphony-management-to-industry-reflect-upon-reports-of-sexual-misconduct,526379 |title=Boston Symphony management to industry: Reflect upon reports of sexual misconduct |newspaper=[[The Berkshire Eagle]] |date=December 6, 2017 |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>  [[Marin Alsop]] served as the festival's first artistic curator from 2018 until 2019. She became its chief conductor and curator in 2021.

==Recordings==
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra has amassed an extensive discography. Recordings by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the [[Chicago Symphony Chorus]] have earned sixty-five [[Grammy Awards]] from [[the Recording Academy]]. These include several Classical Album of the Year awards, awards in Best Classical Performance in vocal soloist, choral, instrumental, engineering and orchestral categories.

On May 1, 1916, [[Frederick Stock]] and the orchestra recorded the Wedding March from [[Felix Mendelssohn]]'s music to ''[[A Midsummer Night's Dream (Mendelssohn)|A Midsummer Night's Dream]]'' for [[Columbia Records]]. Stock and the CSO made numerous recordings for Columbia and the [[Victor Talking Machine Company]]/[[RCA Victor]].  The Chicago Symphony's first [[Sound_recording_and_reproduction#Electrical|electrical recordings]] were made for Victor in December 1925, including a performance of [[Karl Goldmark]]'s ''In Springtime'' overture.  These early electrical recordings were made in Victor's Chicago studios; within a couple of years Victor began recording the CSO in Orchestra Hall. Stock continued recording for Columbia and RCA Victor until his death in 1942.

In 1951, [[Rafael Kubelík]] made the first modern [[high fidelity]] recordings with the orchestra, in Orchestra Hall, for [[Mercury Records|Mercury]].  Like the first electrical recordings, these performances were made with a single microphone.  [[Philips]] has reissued these performances on compact disc with the original Mercury label and liner notes.

[[File:Sir George Solti 6 Allan Allan Warren.jpg|thumb|left|Sir Georg Solti]]
In March 1954, [[Fritz Reiner]] made the first stereophonic recordings with the CSO, again in Orchestra Hall, for RCA Victor, including  performances of two symphonic poems by [[Richard Strauss]]: ''[[Ein Heldenleben]]'' and ''[[Also sprach Zarathustra (Strauss)|Also sprach Zarathustra]]''.  Reiner and the orchestra continued to record for RCA Victor through 1963.  These were mostly recorded in RCA Victor's triple-channel "Living Stereo" process.  RCA has digitally remastered the recordings and released them on CD and SACD.  [[Jean Martinon]] also recorded with the CSO for RCA Victor during the 1960s, producing performances that have been reissued on CD.

[[Sir Georg Solti]] recorded with the CSO primarily for [[Decca Records]]. These [[Georg Solti discography|Solti recordings]] were issued in the U.S. on the London label and include a highly acclaimed [[Mahler]] series, recorded, in part, in the historic [[Medinah Temple]]—some installments were recorded in the [[Krannert Center for the Performing Arts]] at the [[University of Illinois]] (in [[Urbana, Illinois|Urbana]]), as well as in the [[Sofiensaal]] in Vienna, Austria.  Many of the recordings with [[Daniel Barenboim]] were released on [[Teldec]].

In 2007, the Chicago Symphony formed its own recording label, [[CSO Resound]]. After an agreement was reached with the Orchestra's musicians, arrangements were made for new recordings to be released digitally at online outlets and on compact disc.<ref name="2007Recordings"/> The first CSO Resound CD, a recording of [[Bernard Haitink|Haitink's]] rendition of Mahler's Third Symphony, was released in the spring of 2007. Releases that followed included Bruckner's Seventh Symphony, Mahler's Sixth Symphony, and Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony (Grammy winner), all conducted by Haitink; Shostakovich's Fifth Symphony led by [[Myung-Whun Chung]]; "Traditions and Transformations: Sounds of Silk Road Chicago" with the Orchestra's Judson and Joyce Green Creative Consultant [[Yo-Yo Ma]] (Grammy winner); and recordings of Verdi's [[Verdi Requiem|Requiem]] (Grammy winner) and [[Otello]], under the direction of Muti.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus have recorded the music for two movies: ''[[Fantasia 2000]]'' conducted by James Levine and ''[[Lincoln (2012 film)|Lincoln]]'' conducted by John Williams. Selections from the Orchestra and Chorus's recording of [[Johann Sebastian Bach]]'s ''[[St Matthew Passion]]'', conducted by Sir Georg Solti, were used in the movie ''[[Casino (1995 film)|Casino]]''.

==Broadcasts==
The Chicago Symphony first broadcast on the radio in 1925.  Though often sporadic, there have been broadcasts ever since. With the 1965–1966 season, Chicago radio station WFMT began regular [[Broadcast delay|tape-delayed]] stereo broadcasts of CSO concerts, running through the 1968–1969 season. They resumed from 1976 through the 2000–2001 season before ceasing due to lack of sponsorship. In 2007, the broadcasts once again resumed with a 52-week series.  The broadcasts were originally sponsored by [[BP]] and air on 98.7 [[WFMT]] in Chicago and the [[WFMT]] Radio Network.  They consist of 39 weeks of recordings of live concerts, as well as highlights from the CSO's vast discography.<ref name="2007Recordings">{{cite press release| title= Chicago Symphony Orchestra Announces Major Radio and Recording Initiatives|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130209034238/http://www.wfmt.com/main.taf?p=7,4,1,1,1,13|url-status=dead| publisher=Chicago Symphony Orchestra| date=November 30, 2006| access-date= September 18, 2013| url=http://www.wfmt.com/main.taf?p=7,4,1,1,1,13| archive-date=February 9, 2013 }}</ref>

The CSO appeared in a series of telecasts on [[WGN-TV]], beginning in 1953.  The early 1960s saw the videotaped telecast series ''[[Music from Chicago]]'', conducted by Fritz Reiner and guest conductors including [[Arthur Fiedler]], [[George Szell]], [[Pierre Monteux]], and [[Charles Munch (conductor)|Charles Munch]].  Many of these televised concerts, from 1953 to 1963, have since been released to DVD by [[Video Artists International]].

Sir [[Georg Solti]] also conducted a series of concerts with the Chicago Symphony that were recorded for the European firm Unitel and were broadcast in the 1970s on [[PBS]].  They have subsequently been reissued by Decca Video on DVD.

== Civic Orchestra of Chicago ==
Frederick Stock founded the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the first training orchestra in the United States affiliated with a major symphony orchestra, in 1919.  Its goal is to recruit pre-professional musicians and train them as high-level orchestra players.  Many alumni have gone on to play for the CSO or other major orchestras.  

The Civic Orchestra performs half a dozen orchestral concerts and a chamber music series annually in Symphony Center and in other venues throughout the Chicago area free of charge to the public.

== Music directors and titled positions ==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-break}}

===Music Directors===
* [[Theodore Thomas (conductor)|Theodore Thomas]] (1891–1905)
* [[Frederick Stock]] (1905–1942)
* [[Désiré Defauw]] (1943–1947)
* [[Artur Rodziński]] (1947–1948)
* [[Rafael Kubelík]] (1950–1953)
* [[Fritz Reiner]] (1953–1962; Musical Advisor, 1962–1963)
* [[Jean Martinon]] (1963–1968)
* [[Irwin Hoffman]] (1968–1969, Acting Music Director)
* Sir [[Georg Solti]] (1969–1991)
* [[Daniel Barenboim]] (1991–2006)
* [[Riccardo Muti]] (2010–2023)<ref>{{cite news | author=Kyle MacMillan | title=Chicago Symphony Orchestra 2023–24 season ushers in new era |  url=https://chicago.suntimes.com/2023/2/15/23598461/chicago-symphony-orchestra-2023-24-season-ushers-in-new-era | work=Chicago Sun-Times | date=February 15, 2023 | access-date=April 17, 2023}}</ref>
* [[Klaus Mäkelä]] (designate, effective 2027)

===Principal Conductor===
* [[Bernard Haitink]] (2006–2010)

===Other Titled conductors===
* [[Carlo Maria Giulini]] – Principal Guest Conductor (1969–1972)
* [[Claudio Abbado]] – Principal Guest Conductor (1982–1985) 
* Sir [[Georg Solti]] – Music Director Laureate (1991–1997)
* [[Pierre Boulez]] – Principal Guest Conductor (1995–2006); Conductor Emeritus (2006–2016)
* [[Riccardo Muti]] – Music Director Emeritus for Life (2023–present)<ref name="Experience the Chicago Symphony Orchestra 2023 s761">{{cite web | title=Riccardo Muti named Music Director Emeritus for Life | website=Experience the Chicago Symphony Orchestra | date=June 23, 2023 | url=https://cso.org/experience/article/14228/riccardo-muti-is-named-music-director-emeritu | access-date=September 24, 2023}}</ref>

===Composers-in-residence===
* [[John Corigliano]] (1987–1990)
* [[Shulamit Ran]] (1990–1997)
* [[Augusta Read Thomas]] (1997–2006)
* [[Osvaldo Golijov]] (2006–2010)
* [[Mark-Anthony Turnage]] (2006–2010)
* [[Anna Clyne]] (2010–2015)
* [[Mason Bates]] (2010–2015)
* [[Elizabeth Ogonek]] (2015–2018)
* [[Samuel Adams (composer)|Samuel Adams]] (2015–2018)
* [[Missy Mazzoli]] (2018–2021)
* [[Jessie Montgomery]] (2021–2024)

{{col-break}}

===Assistant / associate conductors===
* [[Arthur Mees]] – Assistant (1896–1898)
* [[Frederick Stock]] – Assistant (1899–1905)
* [[Eric DeLamarter]] – Assistant (1918–1933); Associate (1933–1936)
* [[Hans Lange (conductor)|Hans Lange]] – Associate, (1936–1943); Conductor (1943–1946)
* [[Tauno Hannikainen]] – Assistant (1947–1949); Associate (1949–1950)
* [[George Schick]] – Assistant (1950–1952); Associate (1952–1956)
* [[Walter Hendl]] – Associate (1958–1964)
* [[Irwin Hoffman]] – Assistant (1964–1965); Associate (1965–1968); Conductor (1969–1970)
* [[Henry Mazer]] – Associate (1970–1986)
* [[Kenneth Jean]] – Associate (1986–1993)
* [[Michael Morgan (conductor)|Michael Morgan]] – Assistant (1986–1993)
* [[Yaron Traub]] – Assistant (1995–1998), Associate (1998–1999)
* [[William Eddins]] – Assistant (1995–1998); Associate (1998–1999); Resident (1999–2004)

===Ravinia Festival===
* [[Walter Hendl]] – Artistic Director (1959–1963)
* [[Seiji Ozawa]] – Music Director (1964–1968); Principal Conductor (1969)
* [[István Kertész (conductor)|István Kertész]] – Principal Conductor (1970–1972)
* [[James Levine]] – Music Director (1973–1993)
* [[Christoph Eschenbach]] – Music Director (1995–2003)
* [[James Conlon]] – Music Director (2005–2015)
* [[Marin Alsop]] – Artistic Curator (2018–2019); Chief Conductor and Curator (2020–present)
{{col-end}}

==Honors and awards==
{{main article|List of awards received by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra}}
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra was voted the best orchestra in the United States and the fifth best orchestra in the world by editors of the British classical music magazine ''[[Gramophone (magazine)|Gramophone]]'' in November 2008.<ref name="huizenga">{{cite episode| url=http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=97291390| title=Chicago Symphony Tops U.S. Orchestras| first=Tom| last=Huizenga| network=[[NPR]]| series=[[Morning Edition]]| air-date=November 21, 2008| access-date=September 18, 2013}}</ref> The same was said by a panel of critics polled by the classical music website [[bachtrack]] in September 2015.<ref name="pullinger">{{citation| url=https://bachtrack.com/worlds-best-orchestra-best-conductor-critics-choice-september-2015| title=Chailly and the Berliner Philharmoniker: the critics' choice for World's Best Conductor and Orchestra| first=Mark| last=Pullinger| website=Bachtrack.com| date=September 3, 2015| access-date=November 30, 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160724202637/https://bachtrack.com/worlds-best-orchestra-best-conductor-critics-choice-september-2015| archive-date=July 24, 2016| url-status=dead}}</ref>

In 2011, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra was inducted into the [[American Classical Music Hall of Fame]].<ref name="hall of fame">{{cite web |title=Chicago Symphony Orchestra |url=https://classicalwalkoffame.org/view-inductees/?id=23 |website=[[American Classical Music Hall of Fame]] |access-date=July 18, 2024}}</ref>

===Grammy Awards===
Recordings by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus have earned sixty-five [[Grammy Awards]] from the [[Recording Academy]].

[[Riccardo Muti]], former music director, has won two Grammy Awards, both with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, for the recording of Verdi's ''Messa da Requiem'' on the CSO Resound label. [[Duain Wolfe]], chorus director, has won two Grammy Awards for his collaboration with the Chorus, also for Verdi's ''Messa da Requiem'' on the CSO Resound label.

[[Bernard Haitink]], former principal conductor, has won two Grammy Awards, including one with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for the recording of Shostakovich's Fourth Symphony on the CSO Resound label.

[[Pierre Boulez]], former conductor emeritus and principal guest conductor, won twenty-six Grammy Awards including eight with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. Boulez is the sixth all-time Grammy winner, behind [[Beyoncé]] (thirty-two), Sir [[Georg Solti]] (thirty-one), [[Quincy Jones]] (twenty-eight), [[Alison Krauss]], and [[Chick Corea]] (twenty-seven each). Boulez also received the academy's 2015 [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award|Lifetime Achievement Award]].

Sir [[Georg Solti]], former music director and music director laureate, won thirty-one Grammy Awards. He received seven awards in addition to his twenty-four awards with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus. In addition, Sir Georg Solti and producer [[John Culshaw]] received the first NARAS [[Grammy Trustees Award|Trustees' Award]] in 1967 for their "efforts, ingenuity, and artistic contributions" in connection with the first complete recording of [[Richard Wagner]]'s ''[[Der Ring des Nibelungen]]'' with the [[Vienna Philharmonic]]. Solti also received the academy's 1995 [[Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award|Lifetime Achievement Award]].

[[Margaret Hillis]], founder and longtime director of the [[Chicago Symphony Chorus]], won nine Grammy Awards for her collaborations with the Orchestra and Chorus.<ref name="m732">{{cite web | title=Margaret Hillis | website=GRAMMY.com | url=https://www.grammy.com/artists/margaret-hillis/16835 | access-date=25 December 2024}}</ref>

[[File:Riccardo Muti.jpg|thumb|Riccardo Muti]]
==Volunteer groups==
*African American Network
*Governing Members (established 1894)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cso.org/support/get-involved/governing-members/ |title=Governing Members |website=Cso.org |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>
*Latino Alliance<ref>{{cite web |title=Latino Alliance {{!}} Chicago Symphony Orchestra |url=https://cso.org/support/get-involved/latino-alliance/ |website=Experience the Chicago Symphony Orchestra |language=en-us}}</ref>
*League of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association (formerly the Women's Association, established 1934)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cso.org/support/get-involved/the-league/ |title=Chicago Symphony Orchestra |website=Cso.org |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>
*Overture Council (established 2009)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cso.org/support/get-involved/overture-council/ |title=Chicago Symphony Orchestra |website=Cso.org |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>
*Women's Board <ref>{{cite web|url=https://cso.org/support/get-involved/womens-board/ |title=Women's Board |website=Cso.org |access-date=April 22, 2020}}</ref>

==See also==
* [[List of museums and cultural institutions in Chicago]]
*[[Chicago Symphony Chorus]]

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=n}}

== References ==
{{Reflist|30em}}

== Further reading ==
* {{cite book|last1=Furlong |first1=William Barry |title=Season with Solti: A Year in the Life of the Chicago Symphony |year=1974 |publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers]] |isbn=0-02-542000-3|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1=Otis |first1= Philo Adams |title=The Chicago Symphony Orchestra: Its Organization, Growth, and Development, 1891-1924 |year=1974 |publisher=Chicago: Clayton F. Summy Co.|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1= Patner |first1= Andrew |title=A Portrait in 4 Movements: The Chicago Symphony under Barenboim, Boulez, Haitink, and Muti |year=2019 |publisher=[[University of Chicago Press]] |isbn=978-0226609911|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1= Peck |first1= Donald |title=The Right Place, The Right Time! Tales of Chicago Symphony Days |year=2007 |publisher=[[Indiana University Press]] |isbn=9780253349149|ref=none}}
* {{cite book|last1= Russell |first1= Charles Edward |title= The American Orchestra & Theodore Thomas: The Founder of the Chicago Symphony |year= 1927 |publisher= Doubleday, Page, and Company |isbn= 979-8373586047 |ref=none}}
== External links ==
{{Commons category}}
{{NIE Poster|Chicago Orchestra}}
* {{Official website|http://www.cso.org}}
* [https://experience.cso.org/ Experience CSO]
* [http://csoarchives.wordpress.com/ ''From the Archives'' blog]
* [https://cso.org/about/performers/chicago-symphony-chorus/ Chicago Symphony Chorus website]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20221205234715/https://csosoundsandstories.org/ Chicago Symphony Orchestra Sounds and Stories (archived)]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20060615194845/http://www.silkroadchicago.org/ Silk Road website]
* [http://www.bruceduffie.com/solti.html Interviews with Sir Georg Solti] by Bruce Duffie, May & October 1988
* [http://www.bruceduffie.com/hillis4.html Interview with Margaret Hillis], founder of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, by Bruce Duffie, July 1986

{{Big Five (orchestras)}}
{{CSO music directors}}
{{Chicago mtp}}
{{Disney's Fantasia}}
{{Authority control}}

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