For Immediate Release: Press Contacts: March 31, 2021 Eileen Chambers 312-294-3092 RICCARDO MUTI LEADS VIRTUAL COACHING SESSION FOR YOUNG MUSICIANS FROM CHICAGO MUSICAL PATHWAYS INITIATIVE, CIVIC ORCHESTRA OF CHICAGO, AND CHICAGO SINFONIETTA PROJECT INCLUSION FELLOWSHIP Quartets by Verdi and Mozart Are Focus of Online Program Hosted by the Negaunee Music Institute at the CSO Wednesday, March 31, at 10:00 a.m. (Central) CHICAGO—The Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Zell Music Director Riccardo Muti leads a virtual coaching session on Wednesday, March 31 at 10:00 a.m. with two chamber ensembles comprised of fellows from the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative (CMPI), as well as current and past members of the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and Chicago Sinfonietta Project Inclusion Fellowship, who serve as CMPI mentors. Hosted on Zoom by the Negaunee Music Institute of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), the hour-long program features the two ensembles performing selections from Verdi’s String Quartet No. 1 and Mozart’s Oboe Quartet on the stage of Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center with Muti joining the virtual coaching session from Italy. The free educational program is an extension of Muti’s ongoing commitment to mentoring young musicians from across greater Chicago, a commitment that has also resulted in free open rehearsals with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and Civic Orchestra of Chicago at Orchestra Hall as well as participation in the CSO’s Chicago Youth in Music Festival since he became music director in 2010. The program will be accessible to Chicago area community music schools and youth orchestra musicians, as well as senior and community centers and veterans groups. “In these difficult times, it is important to remember that music can still bring us together,” noted Muti. “In Chicago, there are now many organizations, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, who have a strong commitment to the training of young musicians and this work is essential. The dedication of these young musicians is very inspiring, and I am looking forward to working with them.” “I am thrilled that five of our fellows will have the opportunity to work with Maestro Muti on stage at Orchestra Hall,” said CMPI Director Adrienne Thompson. “I have no doubt that this is an experience that our fellows will remember for the rest of their lives. CMPI is grateful to Maestro Muti and to the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for their support and partnership.” The program of works by Verdi and Mozart was selected in consultation with Muti and opens with a performance of the first movement of Verdi’s String Quartet in E Minor featuring violinists Esme Arias- Kim (CMPI Fellow) and Ella Saputra (CMPI Fellow), violist Sameer Agrawal (CMPI Fellow) and cellist Jonathan Miller (CMPI Fellow). Completing the program is a performance of the third movement of Mozart’s Quartet in F Major for Oboe and Strings featuring oboist Zachary Allen (CMPI Fellow), violinist Brent Taghap (Civic Member, CMPI Mentor), violist Seth Pae (Civic Alum, Sinfonietta Project Inclusion Alum, CMPI Mentor) and cellist Najette Abouelhadi (Civic Fellow, Sinfonietta Project Inclusion Fellow, CMPI Mentor). The mission of the Chicago Musical Pathways Initiative (CMPI) is to identify and develop gifted and motivated orchestral students from underrepresented backgrounds for acceptance into top-tier conservatory, college or university classical music programs in preparation for careers as professional musicians. Launched in the 2019/20 season, CMPI is part of a multi-city consortia, funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, with the shared goal of diversifying American orchestras. As a major market for classical music and the third largest school district in the nation, Chicago’s CMPI represents the largest ‘Pathways’ program with other programs in the consortia also underway in Philadelphia, Nashville, Boston and Atlanta. Project Inclusion is a program of the Chicago Sinfonietta that supports the development of emerging musicians, conductors, and administrators on and off-stage. The commitment of Sinfonietta’s founder Paul Freeman to eliminating institutional bias due to factors such as ethnicity, race, and socioeconomic status has broadened to tackle matters of diversity and inclusion from every angle. The Project Inclusion Freeman Fellowship offers four multifaceted, professional development fellowships to orchestral and ensemble musicians, conductors, arts administrators, and composers. The Negaunee Music Institute at the CSO is one of nine CMPI Advisory Council partner organizations along with the Merit School of Music, Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra, Chicago High School for the Arts, Chicago Sinfonietta, DePaul School of Music, The Ravinia Festival, Hyde Park Suzuki Institute, and Musical Arts Institute. CMPI Advisory Council organizations support the program with training resources on an ongoing basis. Each year, musicians of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, as well as musicians from the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the preprofessional training orchestra of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, provide additional training to CMPI participants as mentors. All artists and programs are subject to change. The CSO’s music director position is endowed in perpetuity by a generous gift from the Zell Family Foundation. The 2020/21 Civic Orchestra of Chicago season is generously sponsored by The Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation. Major funding for the Civic Orchestra Fellowship Program is provided by The Julian Family Foundation. The Negaunee Music Institute is endowed by a generous gift from The Negaunee Foundation. # # # Chicago Symphony Orchestra: cso.org and experience.cso.org Founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is consistently hailed as one of the greatest orchestras in the world. Since 2010, the pre-eminent conductor Riccardo Muti has served as its 10th music director. Missy Mazzoli is Mead Composer-in-Residence. From baroque through contemporary music, the CSO commands a vast repertoire. Its renowned musicians annually perform more than 150 concerts, most at Symphony Center in Chicago and, each summer, at the suburban Ravinia Festival. They regularly tour nationally and internationally. Since 1892, the CSO has made 63 international tours, performing in 29 countries on five continents. People around the globe listen to weekly radio broadcasts of CSO concerts and recordings on the WFMT radio network and online at cso.org/radio. Recordings by the CSO have earned 63 Grammy Awards, including two in 2011 for Muti’s recording with the CSO and Chorus of Verdi's Messa da Requiem (Muti’s first of eight releases with the CSO to date). Find details on these and many other CSO recordings at cso.org/resound. The CSO is part of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, which also includes the Chicago Symphony Chorus (Duain Wolfe, Director and Conductor) and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago (Ken-David Masur, Principal Conductor), a training ensemble for emerging professionals. Through its prestigious Symphony Center Presents series, the CSOA presents guest artists and ensembles from a variety of genres—classical, jazz, world and contemporary. The Negaunee Music Institute at the CSO offers community and education programs that annually engage more than 200,000 people of diverse ages and backgrounds. Through the Institute and other activities, including a free annual concert led by Muti, the CSO is committed to using the power of music to create connections and build community. The CSO is supported by thousands of patrons, volunteers and institutional and individual donors. The CSO’s music director position is endowed in perpetuity by a generous gift from the Zell Family Foundation. The Negaunee Foundation provides generous support in perpetuity for the work of the Negaunee Music Institute. .