You are currently browsing the tag archive for the ‘René Pape’ tag.
Georg Solti—who would serve as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s eighth music director from 1969 until 1991—received his first Grammy at the Recording Academy’s fifth awards ceremony in May 1963, for the RCA recording of Verdi’s Aida with Leontyne Price in the title role. Over the next two decades, he steadily increased his count, and at the 26th ceremony in February 1984, Solti received four awards, bringing his total to twenty-three and surpassing Henry Mancini’s record of twenty awards. Ultimately, Sir Georg would receive thirty-one awards—twenty-four with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus—and he reigned as the all-time Grammy champ for nearly forty years.
At the the 65th Grammy Awards on February 5, 2023, Beyoncé received four statuettes, bringing her total to thirty-two and crowning her as the new champ. Quincy Jones follows Solti with twenty-eight awards, Alison Krauss and Chick Corea each has twenty-seven, and Pierre Boulez—former CSO conductor emeritus and principal guest conductor—is in fifth place, with twenty-six Grammy awards, including eight with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus.
In addition, Solti and producer John Culshaw received the Academy’s first Trustees’ Award in 1967 for their “efforts, ingenuity, and artistic contributions” in connection with the first complete recording of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen with the Vienna Philharmonic. Sir Georg also received the Academy’s 1995 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Following is a complete list of Sir Georg Solti’s thirty-one Grammy awards and seventy-four nominations.*
5th Annual Grammy Awards (1962)
Best Opera Recording (nom 1, win 1)
VERDI Aida
Georg Solti, conductor
Leontyne Price, Rita Gorr, Jon Vickers, Robert Merrill, Giorgio Tozzi
Rome Opera House Orchestra
Rome Opera House Chorus
Giuseppe Conca, director
RCA
STRAUSS Salome
Best Opera Recording (nom 2)
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Gerhard Stolze, Grace Hoffman, Eberhard Wächter, Waldemar Kmentt
Vienna Philharmonic
London
6th Annual Grammy Awards (1963)
Best Opera Recording (nom 3)
WAGNER Siegfried
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Hans Hotter, Gerhard Stolze, Gustav Neidlinger, Joan Sutherland
Vienna Philharmonic
London
7th Annual Grammy Awards (1964)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 4)
Best Opera Recording (nom 5)
VERDI Falstaff
Georg Solti, conductor
Geraint Evans, Giulieta Simionato, Ilva Ligabue, Robert Merrill, Mirella Freni, Alfredo Kraus, Rosalind Elias
RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra
RCA Italiana Opera Chorus
Nino Antonellini, director
RCA
8th Annual Grammy Awards (1965)
Best Opera Recording (nom 6)
WAGNER Götterdämmerung
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Gottlob Frick, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Christa Ludwig, Claire Watson, Gustav Neidlinger
Vienna Philharmonic
Men of the Vienna State Opera Chorus
Wilhelm Pitz, director
London
9th Annual Grammy Awards (1966)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 7)
Best Opera Recording (nom 8, win 2)
WAGNER Die Walküre
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Régine Crespin, Christa Ludwig, James King, Hans Hotter, Gottlob Frick
Vienna Philharmonic
London
10th Annual Grammy Awards (1967)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 9)
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Georg Solti, conductor
Heather Harper, Helen Watts
London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra Chorus
John Alldis, director
London
11th Annual Grammy Awards (1968)
Best Opera Recording (nom 10)
STRAUSS Elektra
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Marie Collier, Regina Resnik, Gerhard Stolze, Tom Krause
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
London
13th Annual Grammy Awards (1970)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 11)
MAHLER Symphony No. 6 in A Minor
Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 12)
STRAUSS Der Rosenkavalier
Georg Solti, conductor
Régine Crespin, Yvonne Minton, Helen Donath, Luciano Pavarotti, Manfred Jungwirth
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
London
14th Annual Grammy Awards
Best Opera Recording (nom 13)
MOZART The Magic Flute, K. 620
Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Christina Deutekom, Stuart Burrows, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Hermann Prey, Martti Talvela
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
London
15th Annual Grammy Awards (1972)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 14, win 3)
Best Choral Performance–Classical (other than opera) (nom 15, win 4)
MAHLER Symphony No. 8 in E-flat Major
Georg Solti, conductor
Heather Harper, Lucia Popp, Arleen Augér, Yvonne Minton, Helen Watts, René Kollo, John Shirley-Quirk, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Singverein Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Helmut Froschauer, director
London
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 16, win 5)
MAHLER Symphony No. 7 in E Minor
Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 17)
Best Opera Recording (nom 18)
WAGNER Tannhäuser
Georg Solti, conductor
René Kollo, Christa Ludwig, Hans Sotin, Helga Dernesch
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Wilhelm Pitz, director
London
16th Annual Grammy Awards (1973)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 19)
BEETHOVEN Piano Concertos
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73 (Emperor)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano
London
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 20)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Yvonne Minton, Stuart Burrows, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 21)
WAGNER Parsifal
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
René Kollo, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Hans Hotter, Gottlob Frick, Zoltán Kélémen, Christa Ludwig
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Anton Neyder, director
London
17th Annual Grammy Awards (1974)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 22, win 6)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 23, win 7)
BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 24, win 8)
PUCCINI La bohème
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Montserrat Caballé, Judith Blegen, Plácido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, Vicente Sardinero, Ruggero Raimondi
London Philharmonic Orchestra
John Alldis Choir
John Alldis, director
Wandsworth School Boys’ Choir
Russell Burgess, director
RCA
Best Opera Recording (nom 25)
MOZART Così fan tutte, K. 588
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Ryland Davies, Tom Krause, Gabriel Bacquier, Pilar Lorengar, Teresa Berganza, Jane Berbié
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Opera House Chorus
Douglas Robinson, director
London
18th Annual Grammy Awards (1975)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom, 26, win 9)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 27)
Beethoven’s Symphonies
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1 in C Major, Op. 21
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 in E flat Major, Op. 55 (Eroica)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, Op. 60
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 (Pastoral)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
BEETHOVEN Overture to Egmont, Op. 84
BEETHOVEN Overture to Coriolan, Op. 62
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72b
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Yvonne Minton, Stuart Burrows, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
19th Annual Grammy Awards (1976)
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 28, win 10)
STRAUSS Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 29)
Best Opera Recording (nom 30)
BIZET Carmen
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Tatiana Troyanos, Kiri Te Kanawa, Plácido Domingo, José van Dam
London Philharmonic Orchestra
John Alldis Choir
John Alldis, director
Boys’ Chorus from Haberdashers’ Aske’s School, Elstree
Alan Taylor and Jean Povey, directors
London
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 31)
ELGAR Symphony No. 2 in E-flat Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London
20th Annual Grammy Awards (1977)
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 32, win 11)
VERDI Messa da Requiem
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Leontyne Price, Janet Baker, Veriano Luchetti, José van Dam
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
RCA
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 33)
DEBUSSY Prelude to The Afternoon of a Faun and La mer
RAVEL Boléro
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 34)
RAVEL Boléro
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 35)
WAGNER The Flying Dutchman
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Norman Bailey, Martti Talvela, Janis Martin, René Kollo
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
21st Annual Grammy Awards (1978)
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 36, win 12)
BEETHOVEN Missa solemnis in D Major, Op. 123
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Lucia Popp, Yvonne Minton, Mallory Walker, Gwynne Howell
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 37)
WALTON Belshazzar’s Feast
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Benjamin Luxon, baritone
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Choir
John Alldis, director
London
22nd Annual Grammy Awards (1979)
Best Classical Album (nom 38, win 13)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 39, win 14)
Brahms’s Symphonies
BRAHMS Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68
BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73
BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90
BRAHMS Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98
BRAHMS Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80
BRAHMS Tragic Overture, Op. 81
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 40, win 15)
BRAHMS A German Requiem, Op. 45
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Bernd Weikl
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 41)
HOLST The Planets
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Women of the London Philharmonic Choir
John Alldis, director
London
23rd Annual Grammy Awards (1980)
Best Classical Album (nom 42)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 43, win 16)
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 6 in A Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 44)
BARTÓK Bluebeard’s Castle
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kolos Kováts, Sylvia Sass, István Sztankay
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London
24th Annual Grammy Awards (1981)
Best Classical Album (nom 45, win 17)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 46, win 18)
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Isobel Buchanan, Mira Zakai
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
25th Annual Grammy Awards (1982)
Best Classical Album (nom 47)
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 48, win 19)
BERLIOZ The Damnation of Faust, Op. 24
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Frederica von Stade, Kenneth Riegel, José van Dam, Malcolm King
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Doreen Rao, director
London
26th Annual Grammy Awards (1983)
Best Classical Album (nom 49, win 20)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 50, win 21)
MAHLER Symphony No. 9 in D Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 51, win 22)
MOZART The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Lucia Popp, Frederica von Stade, Samuel Ramey, Thomas Allen, Kurt Moll
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Opera Chorus
London
This recording tied with the soundtrack for Verdi’s La traviata with James Levine conducting the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Teresa Stratas, Plácido Domingo, and Cornell MacNeil.
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 52, win 23)
HAYDN The Creation
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Norma Burrowes, Sylvia Greenberg, Rüdiger Wohlers, James Morris, Siegmund Nimsgern
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
27th Annual Grammy Awards (1984)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 53)
MAHLER Symphony No. 4 in G Minor
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, soprano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
28th Annual Grammy Awards (1985)
Best Opera Recording (nom 54, win 24)
SCHOENBERG Moses und Aron
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Franz Mazura, Philip Langridge
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
29th Annual Grammy Awards (1986)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 55, win 25)
LISZT A Faust Symphony
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Siegfried Jerusalem, tenor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Classical Album (nom 56)
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 56 (Scottish)
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90 (Italian)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 57)
VERDI Un ballo in maschera
Margaret Price, Kathleen Battle, Christa Ludwig, Luciano Pavarotti, Renato Bruson
National Philharmonic Orchestra
London Opera Chorus
Terry Edwards, director
Royal College of Music Junior Department Chorus
Vaughan Meakins, director
London
30th Annual Grammy Awards (1987)
Best Classical Album (nom 58)
Best Orchestral Recording (nom 59, win 26)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Jessye Norman, Reinhild Runkel, Robert Schunk, Hans Sotin
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 60)
MOZART The Abduction from the Seraglio, K. 384
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Edita Gruberová, Kathleen Battle, Gösta Winbergh, Heinz Zednik, Martti Talvela
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Concert Choir
Martha Heigl, director
London
31st Annual Grammy Awards (1988)
Best Classical Album (nom 61)
Best Opera Recording (nom 62, win 27)
WAGNER Lohengrin
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Jessye Norman, Eva Randová, Plácido Domingo, Siegmund Nimsgern, Hans Sotin, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Concert Choir
London
Best Chamber Music Performance (nom 63, win 28)
BARTÓK Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion
Sir Georg Solti and Murray Perahia, pianos
Evelyn Glennie and David Corkhill, percussion
CBS
Best Orchestral Recording (nom 64)
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 7 in E Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 65)
BACH Saint Matthew Passion, BWV 244
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Anne Sofie von Otter, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Hans Peter Blochwitz, Olaf Bär, Tom Krause
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
33rd Annual Grammy Awards
Best Orchestral Performance (nom 66)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
34th Annual Grammy Awards (1991)
Best Performance of a Choral Work (nom 67, win 29)
BACH Mass in B Minor, BWV 232
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Felicity Lott, Anne Sofie von Otter, Hans Peter Blochwitz, William Shimell, Gwynne Howell
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
35th Annual Grammy Awards (1992)
Best Classical Album (nom 68)
Best Opera Recording (nom 69, win 30)
STRAUSS Die Frau ohne Schatten
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Hildegard Behrens, Júlia Várady, Sumi Jo, Reinhild Runkel, Plácido Domingo, José van Dam
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Helmuth Froschauer, director
40th Annual Grammy Awards (1997)
Best Classical Album (nom 70)
Best Opera Recording (nom 71, win 31)
WAGNER Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Karita Mattila, Iris Vermillion, Ben Heppner, Herbert Lippert, José van Dam, Alan Opie, René Pape
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 72)
MOZART Don Giovanni, K. 527
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Bryn Terfel, Renée Fleming, Ann Murray, Michele Pertusi, Herbert Lippert, Monica Groop, Robert Scaltriti, Mario Luperi
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Voices
Terry Edwards, director
London
41st Annual Grammy Awards (1998)
Best Classical Album (nom 73)
Best Choral Performance (nom 74)
BARTÓK Cantata profana
WEINER Serenade for Small Orchestra, Op. 3
KODÁLY Psalmus Hungaricus, Op. 13
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Tamás Daróczi, Alexandru Agache
Budapest Festival Orchestra
Choir of the Hungarian Radio and Television
Kálmán Strausz, director
Children’s Choir of Hungarian Radio and Television
Gabriella Thész, director
Schola Cantorum Budapestiensis
Tamás Bubnó, director
*A database of former Grammy Award winners can be found using the search function here; category titles have changed over the years. For opera recordings, only principal soloists are listed.
This article also appears here.
Georg Solti—who would serve as the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s eighth music director from 1969 until 1991—received his first Grammy at the Recording Academy’s fifth awards ceremony in May 1963, for the RCA recording of Verdi’s Aida with Leontyne Price in the title role. Over the next two decades, he steadily increased his count, and at the 26th ceremony in February 1984, Solti received four awards, bringing his total to twenty-three and surpassing Henry Mancini’s record of twenty awards. Ultimately, Sir Georg would receive thirty-one awards—twenty-four with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus—and has continued to reign as the all-time Grammy champ for nearly forty years.
In addition, Solti and producer John Culshaw received the Academy’s first Trustees’ Award in 1967 for their “efforts, ingenuity, and artistic contributions” in connection with the first complete recording of Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen with the Vienna Philharmonic. Sir Georg also received the Academy’s 1995 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Beyoncé and Quincy Jones currently tie for the number two slot with twenty-eight awards each, Alison Krauss has twenty-seven, and Pierre Boulez—former CSO conductor emeritus and principal guest conductor—is number four, with twenty-six Grammy awards, including eight with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus.
But keep an eye on Queen Bey . . . she goes into this Sunday’s Grammy Awards ceremony with nine nominations—including Album, Song, and Record of the year. If she receives three wins, she will tie with Sir Georg; if she takes home four or more, she will become the all-time champ. The 2023 Grammy Awards will air live on CBS on Sunday, February 5.
In the meantime, following is a complete list of Sir Georg Solti’s thirty-one Grammy awards and seventy-four nominations.*
5th Annual Grammy Awards (1962)
Best Opera Recording (nom 1, win 1)
VERDI Aida
Georg Solti, conductor
Leontyne Price, Rita Gorr, Jon Vickers, Robert Merrill, Giorgio Tozzi
Rome Opera House Orchestra
Rome Opera House Chorus
Giuseppe Conca, director
RCA
STRAUSS Salome
Best Opera Recording (nom 2)
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Gerhard Stolze, Grace Hoffman, Eberhard Wächter, Waldemar Kmentt
Vienna Philharmonic
London
6th Annual Grammy Awards (1963)
Best Opera Recording (nom 3)
WAGNER Siegfried
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Hans Hotter, Gerhard Stolze, Gustav Neidlinger, Joan Sutherland
Vienna Philharmonic
London
7th Annual Grammy Awards (1964)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 4)
Best Opera Recording (nom 5)
VERDI Falstaff
Georg Solti, conductor
Geraint Evans, Giulieta Simionato, Ilva Ligabue, Robert Merrill, Mirella Freni, Alfredo Kraus, Rosalind Elias
RCA Italiana Opera Orchestra
RCA Italiana Opera Chorus
Nino Antonellini, director
RCA
8th Annual Grammy Awards (1965)
Best Opera Recording (nom 6)
WAGNER Götterdämmerung
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Wolfgang Windgassen, Gottlob Frick, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Christa Ludwig, Claire Watson, Gustav Neidlinger
Vienna Philharmonic
Men of the Vienna State Opera Chorus
Wilhelm Pitz, director
London
9th Annual Grammy Awards (1966)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 7)
Best Opera Recording (nom 8, win 2)
WAGNER Die Walküre
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Régine Crespin, Christa Ludwig, James King, Hans Hotter, Gottlob Frick
Vienna Philharmonic
London
10th Annual Grammy Awards (1967)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 9)
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Georg Solti, conductor
Heather Harper, Helen Watts
London Symphony Orchestra
London Symphony Orchestra Chorus
John Alldis, director
London
11th Annual Grammy Awards (1968)
Best Opera Recording (nom 10)
STRAUSS Elektra
Georg Solti, conductor
Birgit Nilsson, Marie Collier, Regina Resnik, Gerhard Stolze, Tom Krause
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
London
13th Annual Grammy Awards (1970)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 11)
MAHLER Symphony No. 6 in A Minor
Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 12)
STRAUSS Der Rosenkavalier
Georg Solti, conductor
Régine Crespin, Yvonne Minton, Helen Donath, Luciano Pavarotti, Manfred Jungwirth
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
London
14th Annual Grammy Awards
Best Opera Recording (nom 13)
MOZART The Magic Flute, K. 620
Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Christina Deutekom, Stuart Burrows, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Hermann Prey, Martti Talvela
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
London
15th Annual Grammy Awards (1972)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 14, win 3)
Best Choral Performance–Classical (other than opera) (nom 15, win 4)
MAHLER Symphony No. 8 in E-flat Major
Georg Solti, conductor
Heather Harper, Lucia Popp, Arleen Augér, Yvonne Minton, Helen Watts, René Kollo, John Shirley-Quirk, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Singverein Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Helmut Froschauer, director
London
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 16, win 5)
MAHLER Symphony No. 7 in E Minor
Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 17)
Best Opera Recording (nom 18)
WAGNER Tannhäuser
Georg Solti, conductor
René Kollo, Christa Ludwig, Hans Sotin, Helga Dernesch
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Wilhelm Pitz, director
London
16th Annual Grammy Awards (1973)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 19)
BEETHOVEN Piano Concertos
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 1 in C Major, Op. 15
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 19
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Op. 37
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 4 in G Major, Op. 58
BEETHOVEN Piano Concerto No. 5 in E-flat Major, Op. 73 (Emperor)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Vladimir Ashkenazy, piano
London
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 20)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Yvonne Minton, Stuart Burrows, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 21)
WAGNER Parsifal
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
René Kollo, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, Hans Hotter, Gottlob Frick, Zoltán Kélémen, Christa Ludwig
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Norbert Balatsch, director
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Anton Neyder, director
London
17th Annual Grammy Awards (1974)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 22, win 6)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 23, win 7)
BERLIOZ Symphonie fantastique, Op. 14
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 24, win 8)
PUCCINI La bohème
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Montserrat Caballé, Judith Blegen, Plácido Domingo, Sherrill Milnes, Vicente Sardinero, Ruggero Raimondi
London Philharmonic Orchestra
John Alldis Choir
John Alldis, director
Wandsworth School Boys’ Choir
Russell Burgess, director
RCA
Best Opera Recording (nom 25)
MOZART Così fan tutte, K. 588
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Ryland Davies, Tom Krause, Gabriel Bacquier, Pilar Lorengar, Teresa Berganza, Jane Berbié
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Royal Opera House Chorus
Douglas Robinson, director
London
18th Annual Grammy Awards (1975)
Album of the Year–Classical (nom, 26, win 9)
Best Classical Performance–Orchestra (nom 27)
Beethoven’s Symphonies
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 1 in C Major, Op. 21
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 36
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 3 in E flat Major, Op. 55 (Eroica)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 4 in B flat Major, Op. 60
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 (Pastoral)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
BEETHOVEN Overture to Egmont, Op. 84
BEETHOVEN Overture to Coriolan, Op. 62
BEETHOVEN Leonore Overture No. 3, Op. 72b
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Pilar Lorengar, Yvonne Minton, Stuart Burrows, Martti Talvela
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
19th Annual Grammy Awards (1976)
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 28, win 10)
STRAUSS Also sprach Zarathustra, Op. 30
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 29)
Best Opera Recording (nom 30)
BIZET Carmen
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Tatiana Troyanos, Kiri Te Kanawa, Plácido Domingo, José van Dam
London Philharmonic Orchestra
John Alldis Choir
John Alldis, director
Boys’ Chorus from Haberdashers’ Aske’s School, Elstree
Alan Taylor and Jean Povey, directors
London
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 31)
ELGAR Symphony No. 2 in E-flat Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London
20th Annual Grammy Awards (1977)
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 32, win 11)
VERDI Messa da Requiem
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Leontyne Price, Janet Baker, Veriano Luchetti, José van Dam
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
RCA
Album of the Year–Classical (nom 33)
DEBUSSY Prelude to The Afternoon of a Faun and La mer
RAVEL Boléro
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Classical Orchestral Performance (nom 34)
RAVEL Boléro
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 35)
WAGNER The Flying Dutchman
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Norman Bailey, Martti Talvela, Janis Martin, René Kollo
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
21st Annual Grammy Awards (1978)
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 36, win 12)
BEETHOVEN Missa solemnis in D Major, Op. 123
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Lucia Popp, Yvonne Minton, Mallory Walker, Gwynne Howell
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 37)
WALTON Belshazzar’s Feast
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Benjamin Luxon, baritone
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Philharmonic Choir
John Alldis, director
London
22nd Annual Grammy Awards (1979)
Best Classical Album (nom 38, win 13)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 39, win 14)
Brahms’s Symphonies
BRAHMS Symphony No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 68
BRAHMS Symphony No. 2 in D Major, Op. 73
BRAHMS Symphony No. 3 in F Major, Op. 90
BRAHMS Symphony No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 98
BRAHMS Academic Festival Overture, Op. 80
BRAHMS Tragic Overture, Op. 81
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Choral Performance, Classical (other than opera) (nom 40, win 15)
BRAHMS A German Requiem, Op. 45
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Bernd Weikl
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 41)
HOLST The Planets
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
London Philharmonic Orchestra
Women of the London Philharmonic Choir
John Alldis, director
London
23rd Annual Grammy Awards (1980)
Best Classical Album (nom 42)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 43, win 16)
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 6 in A Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 44)
BARTÓK Bluebeard’s Castle
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kolos Kováts, Sylvia Sass, István Sztankay
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London
24th Annual Grammy Awards (1981)
Best Classical Album (nom 45, win 17)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 46, win 18)
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Isobel Buchanan, Mira Zakai
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
25th Annual Grammy Awards (1982)
Best Classical Album (nom 47)
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 48, win 19)
BERLIOZ The Damnation of Faust, Op. 24
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Frederica von Stade, Kenneth Riegel, José van Dam, Malcolm King
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Doreen Rao, director
London
26th Annual Grammy Awards (1983)
Best Classical Album (nom 49, win 20)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 50, win 21)
MAHLER Symphony No. 9 in D Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 51, win 22)
MOZART The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Lucia Popp, Frederica von Stade, Samuel Ramey, Thomas Allen, Kurt Moll
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Opera Chorus
London
This recording tied with the soundtrack for Verdi’s La traviata with James Levine conducting the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra and Teresa Stratas, Plácido Domingo, and Cornell MacNeil.
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 52, win 23)
HAYDN The Creation
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Norma Burrowes, Sylvia Greenberg, Rüdiger Wohlers, James Morris, Siegmund Nimsgern
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
27th Annual Grammy Awards (1984)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 53)
MAHLER Symphony No. 4 in G Minor
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, soprano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
28th Annual Grammy Awards (1985)
Best Opera Recording (nom 54, win 24)
SCHOENBERG Moses und Aron
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Franz Mazura, Philip Langridge
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
29th Annual Grammy Awards (1986)
Best Classical Orchestral Recording (nom 55, win 25)
LISZT A Faust Symphony
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Siegfried Jerusalem, tenor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Classical Album (nom 56)
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 3 in A Minor, Op. 56 (Scottish)
MENDELSSOHN Symphony No. 4 in A Major, Op. 90 (Italian)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 57)
VERDI Un ballo in maschera
Margaret Price, Kathleen Battle, Christa Ludwig, Luciano Pavarotti, Renato Bruson
National Philharmonic Orchestra
London Opera Chorus
Terry Edwards, director
Royal College of Music Junior Department Chorus
Vaughan Meakins, director
London
30th Annual Grammy Awards (1987)
Best Classical Album (nom 58)
Best Orchestral Recording (nom 59, win 26)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Jessye Norman, Reinhild Runkel, Robert Schunk, Hans Sotin
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 60)
MOZART The Abduction from the Seraglio, K. 384
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Edita Gruberová, Kathleen Battle, Gösta Winbergh, Heinz Zednik, Martti Talvela
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Concert Choir
Martha Heigl, director
London
31st Annual Grammy Awards (1988)
Best Classical Album (nom 61)
Best Opera Recording (nom 62, win 27)
WAGNER Lohengrin
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Jessye Norman, Eva Randová, Plácido Domingo, Siegmund Nimsgern, Hans Sotin, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Concert Choir
London
Best Chamber Music Performance (nom 63, win 28)
BARTÓK Sonata for Two Pianos and Percussion
Sir Georg Solti and Murray Perahia, pianos
Evelyn Glennie and David Corkhill, percussion
CBS
Best Orchestral Recording (nom 64)
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 7 in E Major
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
Best Choral Performance (other than opera) (nom 65)
BACH Saint Matthew Passion, BWV 244
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa, Anne Sofie von Otter, Anthony Rolfe Johnson, Hans Peter Blochwitz, Olaf Bär, Tom Krause
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
33rd Annual Grammy Awards
Best Orchestral Performance (nom 66)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 7 in A Major, Op. 92
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 8 in F Major, Op. 93
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
London
34th Annual Grammy Awards (1991)
Best Performance of a Choral Work (nom 67, win 29)
BACH Mass in B Minor, BWV 232
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Felicity Lott, Anne Sofie von Otter, Hans Peter Blochwitz, William Shimell, Gwynne Howell
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
London
35th Annual Grammy Awards (1992)
Best Classical Album (nom 68)
Best Opera Recording (nom 69, win 30)
STRAUSS Die Frau ohne Schatten
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Hildegard Behrens, Júlia Várady, Sumi Jo, Reinhild Runkel, Plácido Domingo, José van Dam
Vienna Philharmonic
Vienna State Opera Chorus
Vienna Boys’ Choir
Helmuth Froschauer, director
40th Annual Grammy Awards (1997)
Best Classical Album (nom 70)
Best Opera Recording (nom 71, win 31)
WAGNER Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Karita Mattila, Iris Vermillion, Ben Heppner, Herbert Lippert, José van Dam, Alan Opie, René Pape
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
London
Best Opera Recording (nom 72)
MOZART Don Giovanni, K. 527
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Bryn Terfel, Renée Fleming, Ann Murray, Michele Pertusi, Herbert Lippert, Monica Groop, Robert Scaltriti, Mario Luperi
London Philharmonic Orchestra
London Voices
Terry Edwards, director
London
41st Annual Grammy Awards (1998)
Best Classical Album (nom 73)
Best Choral Performance (nom 74)
BARTÓK Cantata profana
WEINER Serenade for Small Orchestra, Op. 3
KODÁLY Psalmus Hungaricus, Op. 13
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Tamás Daróczi, Alexandru Agache
Budapest Festival Orchestra
Choir of the Hungarian Radio and Television
Kálmán Strausz, director
Children’s Choir of Hungarian Radio and Television
Gabriella Thész, director
Schola Cantorum Budapestiensis
Tamás Bubnó, director
*A database of former Grammy Award winners can be found using the search function here; category titles have changed over the years. For opera recordings, only principal soloists are listed.
This article also appears here.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra family joins the music world in mourning the loss of American tenor John Aler, who died on December 10, 2022. He was seventy-three.
A four-time Grammy Award winner, Aler was a frequent guest with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, both in Orchestra Hall and the Ravinia Festival. A complete list of his appearances and recordings with the Orchestra and Chorus is below.
February 13, 14, and 16, 1986, Orchestra Hall
BRITTEN War Requiem, Op. 66
Margaret Marshall, soprano
John Aler, tenor
Benjamin Luxon, tenor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Doreen Rao, conductor
Leonard Slatkin, conductor
August 14, 1986, Ravinia Festival
LISZT A Faust Symphony
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
James Conlon, conductor
December 12 and 17, 1991, Orchestra Hall
BARTOK Cantata profana
John Aler, tenor
John Tomlinson, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Pierre Boulez, conductor
Recorded in Orchestra Hall on December 16, 1991, for Deutsche Grammophon. Paired with Bartók’s The Wooden Prince, the release won four Grammy awards—Best Classical Album, Best Orchestral Performance, Best Choral Performance, and Best Engineered Recording–Classical—from the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
January 16, 17, 18, and February 14, 1992, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Requiem in D Minor, K. 626
Renée Fleming, soprano (January 16, 17, and 18)
Margaret Jane Wray, soprano (February 14)
Waltraud Meier, mezzo-soprano
John Aler, tenor
Peter Rose, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
April 29, 30, May 1, and 4, 1993, Orchestra Hall
BEETHOVEN Missa solemnis in D Major, Op. 123
Tina Kiberg, soprano
Waltraud Meier, mezzo-soprano
John Aler, tenor
Robert Holl, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded live in Orchestra Hall for Erato.
October 22, 1997, Orchestra Hall
MOZART Requiem in D Minor, K. 626
Emily Magee, soprano
Anna Larsson, contralto
John Aler, tenor
René Pape, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
The second half of a concert given in memory of Sir Georg Solti, who died on September 5, 1997
August 14, 1999, Ravinia Festival
MOZART Dies Bildnis is bezaubernd schön from The Magic Flute, K. 620
LEHÁR Lippen schweigen from The Merry Widow
Frederica von Stade, mezzo-soprano
John Aler, tenor
Christoph Eschenbach, conductor
A portion of a concert—called A Galaxy of Stars—presented to benefit Ravinia’s outreach programs
July 23, 2010, Ravinia Festival
BERNSTEIN/Mauceri Vocal Suite from Candide
Cunegonde Anna Christy, soprano
Old Lady Kim Criswell, vocalist
Candide Nicholas Phan, tenor
Maximilian Jonathan Beyer, baritone
Governor/Vanderdendur John Aler, tenor
Paquette Kathryn Leemhuis, mezzo-soprano
Lakeside Singers
Robert Bowker, director
John Axelrod, conductor
August 6 and 8, 2010, Ravinia Festival
MOZART The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492
Figaro John Relyea, bass-baritone
Countess Almaviva Ailyn Pérez, soprano
Bartolo Richard Bernstein, bass
Susanna Lisette Oropesa, soprano
Marcellina Jane Bunnell, mezzo-soprano
Cherubino Lauren McNeese, mezzo-soprano
Count Almaviva Nathan Gunn, baritone
Basilio John Aler, tenor
Antonio Paul Corona, bass
Don Curzio Rodell Rosel, tenor
Barbarina Lei Xu, soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
James Conlon, conductor
This article also appears here.
Sir Georg Solti (Yousuf Karsh photo)
As the summer of 1997 drew to a close, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association was putting the finishing touches on Symphony Center, culminating a three-year, $120 million project. To celebrate the renovation of Orchestra Hall and facilities expansion, a three-week festival was planned that included gala concerts and the first Day of Music, twenty-four hours of free, live performances across all genres in multiple Symphony Center venues.
One of the gala concerts was scheduled for Saturday, October 25, with Music Director Laureate Sir Georg Solti leading the Orchestra in an all-Beethoven program: the Seventh Symphony and the Emperor Piano Concerto with Music Director Daniel Barenboim as soloist. The concert would celebrate not only Solti’s 85th birthday (October 21, 1997) but also his 1,000th concert with the Orchestra. In November, he was scheduled to return for two weeks of subscription concerts, leading Ives’s Decoration Day, Schumann’s Symphony no. 3, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony no. 3, along with a full program of choruses from Wagner’s operas with the Chicago Symphony Chorus, to be recorded live by London.
Over the Labor Day holiday weekend, the world had been rocked with the news of the tragic death of Diana, Princess of Wales, on Sunday, August 31. Barely a week later on the morning of September 5 (the day before Diana’s funeral), news outlets reported the death of Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India. And late that same evening, we heard the unthinkable. While on holiday with his family in Antibes, France, Sir Georg Solti had taken ill and died peacefully in his sleep.
Michigan Avenue entrance of Orchestra Hall on September 6, 1997 (Marilyn Arado photo)
“I had just returned hours earlier from Europe, where I was working with Daniel Barenboim on Solti’s 85th birthday celebration concert,” remembered Martha Gilmer, former vice president for artistic planning. After confirming with Charles Kaye, Solti’s longtime assistant, she called Barenboim in Bayreuth, waking him to relay the news.
“I was stunned,” recalled Henry Fogel, then president of the CSO Association. The following morning, senior staff met to determine how to proceed with the plans for the festival, among several other issues. As some of them approached the entrance, “We were very touched because when we came to Orchestra Hall, one person had left a bouquet of flowers at the Michigan Avenue entrance.”
Daniel Barenboim leads Mozart’s Requiem on October 22, 1997 (Jim Steere photo)
The festival would continue mostly as planned. The Symphony Center inaugural gala opened with Barenboim leading Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, performed in Solti’s memory. A special, free memorial concert was added on October 22 with Barenboim leading Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and the Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde, followed by Mozart’s Requiem with Emily Magee, Anna Larsson, John Aler, René Pape, and the Chicago Symphony Chorus, prepared by Duain Wolfe.
Richard L. Thomas receives one of Solti’s batons from Lady Valerie Solti on October 25, 1997 (Jim Steere photo)
The program for the celebration concert on October 25 changed slightly, and Barenboim led Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto from the keyboard along with the Seventh Symphony. At the beginning of the concert, Lady Valerie Solti presented Richard L. Thomas (chairman of the CSO Association from 1986 until 1991) with one of Solti’s batons.
A special commemorative program book for the memorial and celebration concerts was prepared, and it included tributes from President Bill Clinton, Illinois governor Jim Edgar, and Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley, along with Solti’s colleagues from all over the world, members of the Orchestra, and administrative staff. (The program book is available here.)
The block of Adams Street between Michigan and Wabash avenues was named honorary Sir Georg Solti Place on October 24, 1997. The following spring (just before the beginning of the fifteenth European tour with concerts in Paris and Berlin), a small contingent of Orchestra family traveled to Budapest for a ceremony on March 28, 1998, in which Solti’s ashes were interred next to the grave of his teacher, Béla Bartók. During the ceremony, Charles Pikler, then–principal viola, performed Ravel’s Kaddish.
Fogel continued, “One thought that I did keep having was how sad it was that Maestro Solti would never see the renovated hall, with which I believe he would have been thrilled.”
“Solti, so vibrant, such energy, such magnetism, such a life force,” added Gilmer. “It was impossible to believe that it ended so quietly and in a place so far away. . . . He was a young 84-year-old and what occurred to all of us is that we had all been robbed of wonderful musical memories that were yet to be made.”
This article also appears here.
Sir Georg Solti and Margaret Hillis show off their 1986 Grammy Awards for Liszt’s A Faust Symphony and Orff’s Carmina burana. (Jim Steere)
During her 37 years as director of the Chicago Symphony Chorus, Margaret Hillis prepared her ensemble for many recordings—including nine Grammy Award winners—with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on the Erato, Deutsche Grammophon, London, and RCA labels. A sample of some of those iconic records is below.
BACH Mass in B Minor, BWV 232Sir Georg Solti conductor
Felicity Lott soprano
Anne Sofie von Otter mezzo-soprano
Hans Peter Blochwitz tenor
William Shimell baritone
Gwynne Howell bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1990
BACH Saint Matthew Passion, BWV 244Sir Georg Solti conductor
Kiri Te Kanawa soprano
Anne Sofie von Otter mezzo-soprano
Anthony Rolfe Johnson tenor
Tom Krause bass
Hans Peter Blochwitz tenor
Olaf Bär baritone
Richard Cohn baritone
Patrice Michaels soprano
Debra Austin mezzo-soprano
William Watson tenor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Doreen Rao director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1987
London
BARBER The LoversDale Duesing baritone
BARBER Prayers of Kierkegaard
Sarah Reese soprano
Andrew Schenk conductor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
BEETHOVEN Missa solemnis in D Major, Op. 123
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Lucia Popp soprano
Yvonne Minton mezzo-soprano
Mallory Walker tenor
Gwynne Howell bass
Victor Aitay violin
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1977
London
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Fritz Reiner conductor
Phyllis Curtin soprano
Florence Kopleff contralto
John McCollum tenor
Donald Gramm bass-baritone
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1961
RCABEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Jessye Norman soprano
Reinhild Runkel mezzo-soprano
Robert Schunk tenor
Hans Sotin bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1986
LondonBERLIOZ The Damnation of Faust, Op. 24
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Frederica von Stade mezzo-soprano
Kenneth Riegel tenor
José van Dam baritone
Malcolm King bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Doreen Rao director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1981
London
BRAHMS A German Requiem, Op. 45
Daniel Barenboim conductor
Janet Williams soprano
Thomas Hampson baritone
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1992
Erato
BRUCKNER Helgoland
Daniel Barenboim conductor
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1979
Deutsche Grammophon
BRUCKNER Psalm 150
Daniel Barenboim conductor
Ruth Welting soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1979
Deutsche Grammophon
BRUCKNER Te Deum
Daniel Barenboim conductor
Jessye Norman soprano
Yvonne Minton mezzo-soprano
David Rendall tenor
Samuel Ramey bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1981
Deutsche Grammophon
DOWNS Bear Down, Chicago Bears
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1986
London
HANDEL Messiah
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Elizabeth Hynes soprano
Anne Gjevang contralto
Keith Lewis tenor
Gwynne Howell bass
David Schrader harpsichord
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1984
London
HAYDN The Seasons
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Ruth Ziesak soprano
Uwe Heilmann tenor
René Pape bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1992
London
HAYDN The Creation
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Norma Burrowes soprano
Sylvia Greenberg soprano
Rüdiger Wohlers tenor
Siegmund Nimsgern bass-baritone
James Morris bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1984
London
IVES Orchestral Set No. 2
Morton Gould conductor
Members of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Robert Schweitzer assistant director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1967
RCA
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Isobel Buchanan soprano
Mira Zakai mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1980
London
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Claudio Abbado conductor
Carol Neblett soprano
Marilyn Horne mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1976
Deutsche Grammophon
PROKOFIEV Alexander Nevsky
Fritz Reiner conductor
Rosalind Elias mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1959
RCA
SMITH/Stock The Star-Spangled Banner
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1986
London
VERDI Opera Choruses
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Terry Edwards guest chorus director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in 1989
London
VERDI Four Sacred Pieces
Sir Georg Solti conductor
Jo Ann Pickens soprano
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis director
Recorded in Medinah Temple in 1977-78
London
This article also appears here.
Duain Wolfe in 2013 (Todd Rosenberg photo)
Wishing a very happy seventy-fifth birthday to Duain Wolfe, Grammy Award–winning chorus director and conductor of the Chicago Symphony Chorus!
In 1994, ninth music director Daniel Barenboim appointed Wolfe to succeed Margaret Hillis, founder and first director of the Chorus. Since then, he has prepared the ensemble for over 150 programs for concerts in Orchestra Hall and at the Ravinia Festival, as well as at the Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, Carnegie Hall, and Berlin’s Philharmonie. Wolfe’s activities have earned him an honorary doctorate and numerous awards, including the Bonfils Stanton Award in the Arts and Humanities, the Colorado Governor’s Award for Excellence in the Arts, and Chorus America’s Michael Korn Founders Award for Development of the Professional Choral Art.
Wolfe also has prepared the Chicago Symphony Chorus for numerous commercial recordings, and a complete list is below.
BARTÓK The Miraculous Mandarin, Op. 19
Pierre Boulez, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in December 1994 for Deutsche Grammophon. The album was executive produced by Roger Wright and produced by Karl-August Naegler, Rainer Maillard was the balance engineer, Stephan Flock and Hans-Rudolf Müller were the recording engineers, and Stephan Flock and Rainer Maillard were the editors.
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 13 in B-flat Minor, Op. 113 (Babi Yar)
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Sergej Aleksashkin, bass
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in February 1995 for London Records. The album was produced by Michael Woolcock, John Dunkerley and Andy Groves were the recording engineers, and Nigel Gayler was the recoding editor.
ROUGET DE L’ISLE/Berlioz La Marseillaise
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Plácido Domingo, tenor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
The Orchestra and Chorus were recorded in Orchestra Hall in May 1995; Domingo was later recorded at the Hochschule für Musik Mozarteum in Salzburg, Austria. For Teldec, the album was executive produced by Nikolaus Deckenbrock and produced by Martin Fouqué, Ulrich Ruscher was the recording engineer, Jens Schünemann and Paul Nedel were assistant engineers, and Andreas Florcak and Stefan Witzel were digital editors.
WAGNER Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Eva Karita Mattila, soprano
Magdalene Iris Vermillion, mezzo-soprano
Walther von Stolzing Ben Heppner, tenor
David Herbert Lippert, tenor
Hans Sachs José van Dam, bass-baritone
Veit Pogner René Pape, bass
Sixtus Beckmesser Alan Opie, baritone
Kunz Vogelgesang Roberto Saccà, tenor
Konrad Nachtigall Gary Martin, baritone
Fritz Kothner Albert Dohmen, bass-baritone
Balthasar Zorn John Horton Murray, tenor
Ulrich Eisslinger Richard Byrne, baritone
Augustin Moser Steven Tharp, tenor
Hermann Ortel Kevin Deas, bass-baritone
Hans Schwarz Stephen Morscheck, bass-baritone
Hans Foltz, Ein Nachtwächter Kelly Anderson, baritone
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in September 1995 for London Records. The recording was produced by Michael Woolcock; James Lock, John Pellowe, and Neil Hutchinson were the balance engineers; and Krzysztof Jarosz was the location engineer. The recording won the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Opera Recording.
SCRIABIN Prometheus, Op. 60
Pierre Boulez, conductor
Anatol Ugorski, piano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in December 1996 for Deutsche Grammophon. The album was executive produced by Roger Wright and Ewald Markl and produced by Karl-August Naegler; Ulrich Vette was the balance engineer; Jobst Eberhardt and Stephan Flock were the recording engineers; and Karl-August Naegler and Ulrich Vette were the editors.
STRAVINSKY Symphony of Psalms
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus
Emily Ellsworth, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in March 1997 for London Records. The album was produced by Michael Woolcock, and James Lock and Philip Siney were the balance engineers. Duncan Mitchell was the location engineer, and Sally Drew and Nigel Gayler were the recording editors.
American Spirit
KELLEY/Davis Home on the Range
STEFFE/Davis Battle Hymn of the Republic
WARD/Davis America the Beautiful
Chip Davis, conductor
Mannheim Steamroller Symphony
Members of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded at Saint Michael’s Catholic Church in Old Town, Chicago in March 2003 for American Gramaphone. The album was produced by Chip Davis; Chris Sabold, Mike Konopka, and Dick Lewsey were the engineers; and Mat Lejeune, Brian Pinke, Mike Scasiwicz, Darren Styles were the assistant engineers.
MAHLER Symphony No. 3 in D Minor
Bernard Haitink, conductor
Michelle DeYoung, mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Women of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Chicago Children’s Choir
Josephine Lee, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in October 2006 for CSO Resound. The album was produced by James Mallinson, and Christopher Willis was the recording engineer.
MENOTTI Amahl and the Night Visitors
Alastair Willis, conductor
Amahl Ike Hawkersmith, treble
Mother Kirsten Gunlogson, mezzo-soprano
King Kaspar Dean Anthony, tenor
King Melchior Todd Thomas, baritone
King Balthazar Kevin Short, bass-baritone
Page to the Kings Bart LeFan, baritone
Nashville Symphony Orchestra
Members of the Nashville Symphony Chorus
George Mabry, director
Members of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Laura Turner Concert Hall, Nashville, Tennessee, in December 2006 for Naxos. The album was produced by Blanton Alspaugh, and John Hill and Mark Donahue were the engineers.
RAVEL L’enfant et les sortilèges
Alastair Willis, conductor
L’enfant Julie Boulianne, mezzo-soprano
Maman, La libellule, L’écureuil Geneviève Després, mezzo-soprano
La tasse chinoise, Un pâtre, La chatte Kirsten Gunlogson, mezzo-soprano
La théière, Le petit viellard, La rainette Philippe Castagner, tenor
L’horloge comtoise, Le chat Ian Greenlaw, baritone
Le fauteuil, Un arbre Kevin Short, bass-baritone
La princesse, La chauve-souris Agathe Martel, soprano
Le feu, Le rossignol Cassandre Prévost, soprano
La bergère, Une pastourelle, La chouette Julie Cox, soprano
Nashville Symphony Orchestra
Members of the Nashville Symphony Chorus
George Mabry, director
Members of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Chattanooga Boys Choir
Vincent Oakes, director
Recorded in Laura Turner Concert Hall, Nashville, Tennessee, in December 2006 for Naxos. The album was produced by Blanton Alspaugh, and John Hill and Mark Donahue were the engineers.
POULENC Gloria
RAVEL Daphnis and Chloe
Bernard Haitink, conductor
Jessica Rivera, soprano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in November 2007 for CSO Resound. The album was produced by James Mallinson, and Christopher Willis was the recording engineer.
MAHLER Symphony No. 2 in C Minor (Resurrection)
Bernard Haitink, conductor
Miah Persson, soprano
Christianne Stotijn, mezzo-soprano
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in November 2008 for CSO Resound. The album was produced by James Mallinson, and Christopher Willis was the recording engineer.
VERDI Messa da Requiem
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Barbara Frittoli, soprano
Olga Borodina, mezzo-soprano
Mario Zeffiri, tenor
Ildar Abdrazakov, bass
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in January 2009 for CSO Resound. The album was produced by Christopher Alder, Christopher Willis was the recording engineer, and David Frost and Tom Lazarus were the mixing engineers.
The recording received 2010 Grammy awards for Best Classical Album and Best Choral Performance.
BERLIOZ Lélio ou le retour à la vie
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Gérard Depardieu, narrator
Mario Zeffiri, tenor
Kyle Ketelsen, bass-baritone
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in September 2010 for CSO Resound. The album was produced and mixed by David Frost, Christopher Willis was the recording engineer, and Silas Brown was the mixing and mastering engineer.
VERDI Otello
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Otello Aleksandrs Antonenko, tenor
Desdemona Krassimira Stoyanova, soprano
Iago Carlo Guelfi, baritone
Emilia Barbara di Castri, mezzo-soprano
Cassio Juan Francisco Gatell, tenor
Roderigo Michael Spyres, tenor
Montano Paolo Battaglia, bass
Lodovico Eric Owens, bass-baritone
A Herald David Govertsen, bass
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Chicago Children’s Choir
Josephine Lee, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in April 2011 for CSO Resound. The album was produced, edited, and mixed by David Frost; Christopher Willis was the recording engineer; and Tim Martyn, Silas Brown, and Richard King were the mixing engineers.
SCHOENBERG Kol Nidre, Op. 39
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Alberto Mizrahi, narrator
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in March 2012 for CSO Resound. The album was produced, edited, and mixed by David Frost; Christopher Willis was the recording engineer; and Silas Brown was the mastering engineer.
WILLIAMS Lincoln (original motion picture soundtrack)
John Williams, conductor
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in May 2012 for Sony. The recording was produced by John Williams, Ramiro Belgardt was the music editor, Shawn Murphy was the recording and mixing engineer, Robert Wolff was the recording editor, Brad Cobb was the technical engineer, and Patricia Sullivan Fourstar was the mastering engineer.
Riccardo Muti conducts Italian Masterworks
VERDI Gli arredi festivi from Nabucco
VERDI Patria oppressa! from Macbeth
BOITO Prologue to Mefistofele
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Riccardo Zanellato, bass
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Chicago Children’s Choir
Josephine Lee, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in June 2017 for CSO Resound. The album was produced, edited, and mixed by David Frost; Charlie Post was the recording engineer; and Silas Brown was the mastering engineer.
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 13, Op. 113 (Babi Yar)
Riccardo Muti, conductor
Alexey Tikhomirov, bass
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Recorded in Orchestra Hall in September 2018 for CSO Resound. The album was produced, edited, and mastered by David Frost; Charlie Post was the recording engineer; and Silas Brown was the mastering engineer.
The recording received the 2020 Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album–Classical.
Happy, happy birthday!
Duain Wolfe acknowledges the Chicago Symphony Chorus following a performance of Ravel’s Daphnis and Chloe on April 5, 2018 (Todd Rosenberg photo)
In addition to releases with Deutsche Grammophon, Erato, and Teldec, Daniel Barenboim and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra made commercial recordings on several other labels. A complete list is below (all recordings made in Orchestra Hall unless otherwise noted).
Barenboim and du Pré at Medinah Temple on November 11, 1970 (Robert M. Lightfoot III photo)
Barenboim made his conducting debut with the Orchestra on November 4, 1970, on a concert at Michigan State University. The first work on that first program was Dvořák’s Cello Concerto, and the soloist was Barenboim’s wife, Jacqueline du Pré. One week later, they recorded the work—along with the same composer’s Silent Woods—with the Orchestra at Medinah Temple.
DVOŘÁK Concerto for Cello in B Minor, Op. 104
DVOŘÁK Silent Woods for Cello and Orchestra, Op. 68
Jacqueline du Pré, cello
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded in Medinah Temple on November 11, 1970
Angel Records
On January 26, 1998, in Orchestra Hall, Barenboim led—from the podium and the keyboard—a special concert called Star-Crossed Lovers, featuring Renée Fleming and Plácido Domingo in songs, arias, and duets along with narrators Lynn Redgrave and Timothy Dalton. The concert was recorded for a Great Performances telecast and a London Records release.
Domingo and Fleming on January 26, 1998 (Dan Rest photo)
BERNSTEIN Prologue, Tonight, Rumble, and Somewhere from West Side Story
ELLINGTON In a sentimental mood, Do nothin’ till you hear from me, and Prelude to a kiss
GARDEL El día que me quieras
GOUNOD Il se fait tard . . . Ô nuit d’amour! from Faust
LEHÁR Dein ist mein ganzes Herz from The Land of Smiles
LEHÁR Lippen schweigen from The Merry Widow
MORENO-TORROBA ¡Quisiera verte y no verte! and Jota castellana
VERDI Già nella notte densa from Otello
Renée Fleming, soprano
Plácido Domingo, tenor
Daniel Barenboim, piano and conductor
Recorded January 26, 1998
London Records
Barenboim led the Orchestra in the world premiere of composer-in-residence Shulamit Ran’s Legends in October 1993 and programmed the work again in June 2004. A recording of the second set of performances—along with Ran’s Violin Concerto, performed by Ittai Shapira with the BBC Concert Orchestra under Charles Hazlewood—was released by Albany Records in 2007.
RAN Legends
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded June 3, 4, 5, and 8, 2004
Albany Records
Three videos featuring the Orchestra and Barenboim, performing at the Philharmonie in Cologne, Germany, were also released, on the Arthaus Musik and EuroArts labels.
MAHLER Symphony No. 5
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded at the Philharmonie in Cologne, Germany on June 4 and 5, 1997
Arthaus Musik
SIBELIUS Concerto for Violin in D Minor, Op. 47
*BACH Sarabande from Partita No. 2 in D Minor, BWV 1004
*YSAŸE Ballad from Sonata No. 3 in D Minor
Maxim Vengerov, violin
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
FALLA Nights in the Gardens of Spain
Plácido Domingo, conductor
Recorded at the Philharmonie in Cologne, Germany on June 8 and 9, 1997
*Solo encores performed by Vengerov
Arthaus Musik
BOULEZ Notations for Orchestra I-IV
DEBUSSY La mer
FALLA The Three-Cornered Hat
*MORES/Carli El firulete
Elisabete Matos, mezzo-soprano
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded at the Philharmonie in Cologne, Germany on April 27 and 28, 2001
*Performed as an encore
EuroArts
In conjunction with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association’s annual Symphonython (previously Marathon and Radiothon) fundraiser, a themed collection of radio broadcasts was offered as a donation premium. Several works led by Barenboim were included on various sets, and one collection was dedicated solely to him.
Chicago Symphony Chorus: A Fortieth Anniversary Celebration
From the Archives, vol. 13 (1998)
BACH Singet dem Herr nein neues Lied, BWV 225
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded May 11 and 14, 1991
SCHUBERT Gesang der Geister über den Wassern, D. 714
Men of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Margaret Hillis, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded May 9, 1991
Beethoven
From the Archives, vol. 17 (2003)
BEETHOVEN Elegy, Op. 118
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe and Cheryl Frazes Hill, directors
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded September 17, 1994
A Tribute to Daniel Barenboim
From the Archives, vol. 20 (2006)
BERG Three Pieces for Orchestra, Op. 6
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded October 15, 1997
BERNSTEIN Symphony No. 1 (Jeremiah)
Birgitta Svendén, mezzo-soprano
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded February 15 and 16, 1996
FALLA El amor brujo
Jennifer Larmore, mezzo-soprano
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded May 22, 1997
HAYDN Symphony No. 48 in C Major (Maria Theresa)
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded May 20, 1993
MONIUSZKO Mazurka from Halka
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded at the Petrillo Music Shell in Grant Park, September 21, 1991
MORES/Carli El firulete
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded February 15, 2001
MOZART Finale Scene from The Marriage of Figaro, K. 492
Lella Cuberli, Joan Rodgers, Dawn Kotoski, sopranos
Cecilia Bartoli, Mimi Lerner, mezzo-sopranos
Graham Clark, tenor
Ferruccio Furlanetto, Michele Pertusi, Peter Rose, Günther von Kannen, basses
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded February 2, 7, and 12, 1992
SCHUBERT Psalm 23, D. 706
Women of the Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Daniel Barenboim, piano
Recorded October 3, 1996
THOMAS Ceremonial
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded January 6, 2000
WAGNER A Faust Overture
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded October 18, 1991
WOLF Der Feurreiter
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe and Cheryl Frazes Hill, directors
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded September 17, 1994
Soloists of the Orchestra III
From the Archives, vol. 21
FISHER/Gould Chicago
Larry Combs, clarinet
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Petrillo Music Shell, September 1991
BOULEZ Messagesquisse for Seven Cellos
John Sharp, solo cello
Stephen Balderston, Phillip Blum, Loren Brown, Richard Hirschl, Jonathan Pegis, and Gary Stucka, cellos
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
September 22, 1994
Additionally, two large collections of radio broadcast material were released as commercial recordings: a twelve-disc set to celebrate the the Orchestra’s centennial in 1990 and a ten-disc set as a retrospective of the twentieth century in 2000.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra: The First 100 Years (1990)
SCRIABIN Symphony No. 4, Op. 54 (The Poem of Ecstasy)
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded December 13, 14, and 16, 1984
BRAHMS Concerto for Piano No. 2 in B-flat Major, Op. 83
Daniel Barenboim, piano
Carlo Maria Giulini, conductor
Recorded November 28, 1977
RAN Concerto for Orchestra
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded October 20, 22, and 25, 1988
Chicago Symphony Orchestra in the Twentieth Century: Collector’s Choice (2000)
BUSONI Lustspiel Overture, Op. 38
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded January 4, 1996
MOZART/Busoni Overture to The Abduction from the Seraglio, K. 284
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded February 8, 1996
BEETHOVEN Christ on the Mount of Olives, Op. 85
Laura Aikin, soprano
Ben Heppner, tenor
René Pape, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Recorded February 15 and 16, 1996
Illustration by Pam Rossi
After more than three years of planning, building, testing, and fine-tuning, Symphony Center—a $120 million project that included a facility expansion and extensive renovation of Orchestra Hall—opened its doors twenty years ago today, on October 4, 1997, with an opening night gala concert.
Led by acousticians Kirkegaard Associates and architects Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, the project encompassed additions and improvements to Orchestra Hall, including raising the roof line for increased sound reverberation, replacing plaster walls, decreasing the width and increasing the depth of the stage, adding an extensive riser system, replacing all seats and adding terrace seating behind the stage, installing an acoustic canopy (to improve onstage ensemble conditions and sound reflection to the audience), and increasing patron amenity spaces. In addition, the project included new administrative offices in the former Chapin & Gore building; Buntrock Hall, a multipurpose rehearsal and performance space; renovation of a private club (formerly the home of the Cliff Dwellers); and a multistory arcade and rotunda. The following year brought the opening of a new restaurant (originally Rhapsody and now tesori) and an education center.
Opening a three-week inaugural festival, the October 4 gala concert featured Daniel Barenboim leading the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and the complete program was as follows:
Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center (Jim Steere photo)
ELGAR Nimrod from the Enigma Variations, Op. 36 (performed in memory of Sir Georg Solti)
VERDI Già nella notte densa from Otello, Act 1
Soile Isokoski, soprano
Plácido Domingo, tenor
VERDI Niun mi tema from Otello, Act 4
Plácido Domingo, tenor
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 5 in C Minor, Op. 67
MOZART Piano Concerto No. 27 in B-flat Major, K. 595
Daniel Barenboim, piano
COPLAND Lincoln Portrait
William Warfield, narrator
BRUCKNER Te Deum
Soile Isokoski, soprano
Rosemarie Lang, mezzo-soprano
Thomas Moser, tenor
Matthias Hölle, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, chorus director
Natyakalalayam Dance Company performing in Symphony Center’s rotunda on October 5, 1997 (Jeff Meacham photo)
Midnight marked the beginning of the first Marshall Field’s Day of Music: twenty-four hours of free, live performances of music across all genres in multiple Symphony Center venues, attended by more than 20,000 people. The festival also launched the newly renamed Symphony Center Presents series (formerly Allied Arts, begun by Harry Zelzer in the 1930s), with concerts by Barenboim, Itzhak Perlman, Pinchas Zukerman, Maurizio Pollini, and the Emerson String Quartet, along with the Dave Brubeck Quartet, Joe Williams, Oscar Peterson, Marcus Roberts Trio, and a tribute celebrating the eightieth-birthday anniversary of Thelonious Monk (led by his son Thelonious Monk, Jr.).
October 22, 1997 (Jim Steere photo)
Sadly, the many celebrations were bittersweet. Music director laureate Sir Georg Solti—who, during the festival would have celebrated not only his eighty-fifth birthday but also his 1,000th concert with the Orchestra—had unexpectedly died on September 5, 1997. A special, free memorial concert was added on October 22 that included Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and the Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde, followed by Mozart’s Requiem with Emily Magee, Anna Larsson, John Aler, René Pape, and the Chicago Symphony Chorus. A celebration concert was given on October 25, with Barenboim conducting Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto (from the keyboard) and the Seventh Symphony.
Portions of this article previously appeared here.
Sir Georg Solti (Yousuf Karsh photo)
As the summer of 1997 drew to a close, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association was putting the finishing touches on Symphony Center, culminating a three-year, $120 million project. To celebrate the renovation of Orchestra Hall and facilities expansion, a three-week festival was planned that included gala concerts and the first Day of Music, twenty-four hours of free, live performances across all genres in multiple Symphony Center venues.
One of the gala concerts was scheduled for Saturday, October 25, with music director laureate Sir Georg Solti leading the Orchestra in an all-Beethoven program: the Seventh Symphony and the Emperor Piano Concerto with music director Daniel Barenboim as soloist. The concert would celebrate not only Solti’s 85th birthday (October 21, 1997) but also his 1,000th concert with the Orchestra. In November, he was scheduled to return for two weeks of subscription concerts, leading Ives’s Decoration Day, Schumann’s Symphony no. 3, and Mendelssohn’s Symphony no. 3, along with a full program of choruses from Wagner’s operas with the Chicago Symphony Chorus, to be recorded live by London.
Over the Labor Day holiday, the world had been rocked with the news of the tragic death of Princess Diana on Sunday, August 31. The day before her funeral on September 5, news outlets began to report the death of Mother Teresa in Calcutta, India. And late that same evening, we heard the unthinkable. While on holiday with his family in Antibes, France, Sir Georg Solti had taken ill and died peacefully in his sleep.
Michigan Avenue entrance of Orchestra Hall on September 6, 1997 (Marilyn Arado photo)
“I had just returned hours earlier from Europe, where I was working with Daniel Barenboim on Solti’s 85th birthday celebration concert,” remembered Martha Gilmer, former vice president for artistic planning. After confirming with Charles Kaye, Solti’s longtime assistant, she called Barenboim in Bayreuth, waking him to relay the news.
“I was stunned,” recalled Henry Fogel, then president of the CSO Association. The following morning, senior staff held a meeting to determine how to proceed with the plans for the festival, among several other issues. As some of them approached the entrance, “We were very touched because when we came to Orchestra Hall, one person had left a bouquet of flowers at the Michigan Avenue entrance.”
Daniel Barenboim leads Mozart’s Requiem on October 22, 1997 (Jim Steere photo)
The festival would continue mostly as planned. The Symphony Center inaugural gala opened with Barenboim leading a performance of Nimrod from Elgar’s Enigma Variations, performed in Solti’s memory. A special, free memorial concert was added on October 22 with Barenboim leading Wagner’s Prelude to Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and the Prelude and Liebestod from Tristan and Isolde, followed by Mozart’s Requiem with Emily Magee, Anna Larsson, John Aler, René Pape, and the Chicago Symphony Chorus, prepared by Duain Wolfe.
Richard L. Thomas receives one of Solti’s batons from Lady Valerie Solti on October 25, 1997 (Jim Steere photo)
The program for the celebration concert on October 25 changed slightly, and Barenboim led Beethoven’s Third Piano Concerto from the keyboard along with the Seventh Symphony. At the beginning of the concert, Lady Valerie Solti presented Richard L. Thomas (chairman of the CSO Association from 1986 until 1991) with one of Solti’s batons.
A special commemorative program book for the memorial and celebration concerts was prepared, and it included tributes from President Bill Clinton, Illinois governor Jim Edgar, and Chicago mayor Richard M. Daley, along with Solti’s colleagues from all over the world, members of the Orchestra, and administrative staff. The program book is available here.
The block of Adams Street between Michigan and Wabash avenues was named honorary Sir Georg Solti Place on October 24, 1997. The following spring (just before the beginning of the fifteenth European tour with concerts in Paris and Berlin), a small contingent of Orchestra family traveled to Budapest for a ceremony on March 28, 1998, in which Solti’s ashes were interred next to the grave of his teacher, Béla Bartók. During the ceremony, principal viola Charles Pikler performed Ravel’s Kaddish.
Fogel continued, “One thought that I did keep having was how sad it was that Maestro Solti would never see the renovated hall, with which I believe he would have been thrilled.”
“Solti, so vibrant, such energy, such magnetism, such a life force,” added Gilmer. “It was impossible to believe that it ended so quietly and in a place so far away. . . . He was a young 84-year-old and what occurred to all of us is that we had all been robbed of wonderful musical memories that were yet to be made.”
Decca Classics is releasing a 108-CD set of Sir Georg Solti’s entire catalog with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Chorus in the United States on September 15, 2017. It can be pre-ordered here.
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra family joins the music world in mourning the death of tenor Johan Botha, who died earlier today in Vienna at the age of 51 following a long illness.
A remarkably versatile singer, Botha was known for a vast number of roles in works by Beethoven, Puccini, Strauss, Verdi, and Wagner, among others. During his nearly thirty-year career, he appeared regularly on many of the world’s opera stages, including La Scala; the Royal Opera House Covent Garden; the Metropolitan Opera; the Vienna Staatsoper, where he made his home; and Lyric Opera of Chicago, where he most recently appeared in Wagner’s Tannhäuser in 2015.
Born on August 19, 1965, in the northern South African city of Rustenburg, Botha studied at the Technical College Pretoria. He made his debut as Max in Weber’s Der Freischütz at the Staatstheater Roodepoort in 1989, and the following year traveled to Germany, where he sang with the Bayreuth Festival Chorus before making his debut as Gustavus in Verdi’s Un ballo in maschera in Kaiserslautern. Botha made his United States debut in 1994, as Florestan in Beethoven’s Fidelio at the Spoleto Festival in Charleston, South Carolina; and he first appeared with Lyric Opera of Chicago in 1998, as Enzo in Ponchielli’s La gioconda.
He is survived by his wife and two sons.
Botha appeared with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra on two occasions, as follows:
September 13, 1996 (Royal Albert Hall, London)
BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 9 in D Minor, Op. 125
Sir Georg Solti, conductor
Deborah Voigt, soprano
Anne Sofie von Otter, mezzo-soprano
Johan Botha, tenor
René Pape, bass
BBC Singers
London Voices
Terry Edwards, director
April 24, 26, and 28, 2001 (Orchestra Hall)
VERDI Requiem
Daniel Barenboim, conductor
Margaret Jane Wray, soprano (April 24)
Deborah Voigt, soprano (April 26 and 28)
Violeta Urmana, mezzo-soprano
Johan Botha, tenor
René Pape, bass
Chicago Symphony Chorus
Duain Wolfe, director
from the archives 