GUEST CONDUCTOR SEMYON BYCHKOV RETURNS FOR TWO

For Immediate Release:
March 27, 2015
Press Contacts:
Rachelle Roe, 312-294-3090
Eileen Chambers, 312-294-3092
Photos Available By Request
[email protected]
GUEST CONDUCTOR SEMYON BYCHKOV RETURNS FOR
TWO WEEKS OF DIVERSE PROGRAMMING, APRIL 16-26
Pianist Daniil Trifonov Joins Bychkov and CSO for performances of
Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 1
CHICAGO—Conductor Semyon Bychkov returns to lead the Chicago Symphony Orchestra
(CSO) in two subscription programs: one featuring Russian repertoire, the other devoted to
Bruckner’s Symphony No. 8, from April 16 through April 26, 2015. Russian pianist Danill
Trifonov, who returns for the first time since his CSO debut in 2012, joins Bychkov and the CSO
for performances of Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 1. Bychkov’s most recent appearance
with the CSO was in 2013 in a program featuring music by Walton and Prokofiev.
Bychkov’s two-week residency with the orchestra opens with an all-Russian program on April
16, 17, 18, and 21, 2015. The program features Shostakovich’s Symphony No. 8, the
composer’s most ferocious symphony, written in 1943 in response to WWII, as well as
Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with Trifonov as soloist. Trifonov, who won both the
Tchaikovsky and Rubinstein Piano competitions in 2011 at the age of 20, is recognized as one
of today’s finest young concert pianists. One hour prior to these performances, there will be a
30-minute introduction to the program with guest lecturer Derek Matson.
Bychkov returns to the podium April 23-26, 2015 for a program including Bruckner’s intensely
dramatic Symphony No. 8. The 75-minute piece is presented without intermission on the April
23 Afterwork Masterworks concert as well as the performances on April 24, 25 and 26. The
April 23 Afterwork Masterworks program starts at 6:30 p.m. and continues after the concert with
the opportunity for patrons to enjoy complimentary wine and an engaging Q&A with Bychkov.
One hour prior to the April 24-26 performances, there will be a 30-minute introduction to the
program with guest lecturer Carl Grapentine.
Tickets for all CSO concerts can be purchased by phone at 800-223-7114 or 312-294-3000;
online at cso.org, or at the Symphony Center box office: 220 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago, IL
60604.
Discounted student tickets for select concerts can be purchased, subject to availability, online in
advance or at the box office on the day of the concert. For group rates, please call 312-2943040.
Artists, programs and prices are subject to change.
###
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Thursday, April 16, 2015, 8 p.m.
Friday, April 17, 2015, 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 18, 2015, 8 p.m.
Tuesday, April 21, 2015, 7:30 p.m.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Semyon Bychkov, conductor
Daniil Trifonov, piano
RACHMANINOV Piano Concerto No. 1 in F-sharp Minor, Op. 1
SHOSTAKOVICH Symphony No. 8 in C Minor, Op. 65
Tickets: $29-$216
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Afterwork Masterworks
Thursday, April 23, 2015, 6:30 p.m.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Semyon Bychkov, conductor
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 8 in C Minor (1890 version)
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Friday, April 24, 2015, 1:30 p.m.
Saturday, April 25, 2015, 8 p.m.
Sunday, April 26, 2015, 3 p.m.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Semyon Bychkov, conductor
BRUCKNER Symphony No. 8 in C Minor (1890 version)
Semyon Bychkov
Since leaving St Petersburg in the mid-1970s, Semyon Bychkov has been a guest on the podiums of the
world’s finest musical institutions. With his time carefully balanced between operatic and symphonic
repertoire, he enjoys long-standing and fruitful relationships with the orchestras and major opera houses
in London, Paris, Vienna, Milan, Berlin, Chicago and New York.
A pupil of the legendary pedagogue, Ilya Musin, Bychkov’s name came to international attention while
Music Director of Michigan’s Grand Rapids Symphony Orchestra and the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra
in the United States. Following a series of high-profile cancellations that resulted in invitations to conduct
both the New York and Berlin Philharmonics and the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra, he was signed to
an exclusive recording contract with Philips Classics. Moving to Paris, Bychkov was appointed Music
Director of Orchestre de Paris (1989), Principal Guest Conductor of the St Petersburg Philharmonic
(1990), Principal Guest Conductor of Maggio Musicale, Florence (1992), Chief Conductor of WDR
Sinfonieorchester Köln (1997) and Chief Conductor of Dresden Semperoper (1998). He also holds the
Otto Klemperer Chair of Conducting Studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London.
Since completing his 13-year tenure with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln, Semyon Bychkov has
focused on maintaining and deepening the rewarding guest relationships he enjoys with many of the
world’s most prestigious orchestras. In recent seasons he has appeared in Europe with the Royal
Concertgebouw Orchestra, the Gewandhausorchester Leipzig, the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, the
Vienna, Berlin and Munich Philharmonics, the London Symphony Orchestra and the BBC Symphony
Orchestra with whom he appears annually at the BBC Proms. In the United States, Semyon Bychkov is a
frequent guest with the Cleveland and Philadelphia Orchestras, the Chicago and San Francisco
Symphony Orchestras, and the Los Angeles and New York Philharmonic Orchestras. Future seasons
include return engagements with each of these orchestras, in addition to conducting the Orchestre
National de France, NDR-sinfonieorchester Hamburg, Israel Philharmonic, Orchestra Sinfonica
Nazionale della RAI Turin, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia Rome, Orchestre de la Suisse
Romande and NHK Symphony Orchestra Tokyo.
Bychkov made his Royal Opera House debut in 2003 with a new production of Elektra and, the same
year, returned to conduct Boris Godunov. He has since conducted The Queen of Spades (2006),
Lohengrin (2009), Don Carlo (2009), Tannhäuser (2010) and La Bohème (2012). At the Metropolitan
Opera he has conducted Boris Godunov (2004) and Otello (2007), returning in 2012 for further
performances of Otello which will be broadcast Live in HD to 54 countries. He has conducted Elektra
(2000), Tristan und Isolde (2001), Daphne (2003) and Lohengrin (2005) at the Vienna State Opera, and
Der Rosenkavalier (2005) at the Salzburg Festival and, made his Paris Opera debut with Un Ballo in
Maschera (2007), returning for Tristan und Isolde (2009). Semyon Bychkov opened the 2011/12 season
at Teatro Real Madrid with highly acclaimed performances of Elektra, and in Italy conducted Tosca
(1996) and Elektra (2005) at La Scala, Milan, a new production of Don Carlo (2006) and a concert
performances of Das Rheingold (2000) and Tannhauser (2010), as well as numerous productions at
Maggio Musicale Florence, including award-winning productions of Jenufa (1993), Schubert's Fierrabras
(1995) and Lady Macbeth of Mtsensk (1997).
Semyon Bychkov’s conducting is recognised for the breadth of his vision, the clarity of interpretation and
the rich beauty of his sound, captured in a series of award-winning CDs and DVDs that are part of the
legacy of his tenure with WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln. Winner of BBC Music Magazine’s Record of the
Year 2010, Bychkov’s recording of Wagner’s Lohengrin was committed to disc following staged
performances at the Vienna Staatsoper and concert performances in Cologne, and his recording of
Strauss’ Alpine Symphony coupled with Till Eulenspiegel (Profil) follows a series of benchmark Strauss
recordings that include Ein Heldenleben and Metamorphosen (Avie), Daphne with Renée Fleming
(Decca) and Elektra with Deborah Polaski (Profil). Also with WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln are recordings
of Mahler, Shostakovich, Rachmaninov, the complete cycle of Brahms’ Symphonies, and Verdi’s
Requiem. Both the Brahms symphonies and the Rachmaninov (Symphony No. 2, Symphonic Dances
and The Bells) are also available on DVD (Arthaus).
Daniil Trifonov
Russian pianist Daniil Trifonov (dan-EEL TREE-fon-ov) has made a spectacular ascent to classical music
stardom since winning First Prize at both the Tchaikovsky and Rubinstein competitions in 2011 at the age
of 20. Combining consummate technique with rare sensitivity and depth, his performances are a
perpetual source of awe. “He has everything and more, ... tenderness and also the demonic element. I
never heard anything like that,” stated pianist Martha Argerich, while the Financial Times observes,
“What makes him such a phenomenon is the ecstatic quality he brings to his performances. … Small
wonder every western capital is in thrall to him.”
Trifonov launches the 2014-15 season with the Seattle Symphony, making his debut in Tchaikovsky’s
First Piano Concerto, which is also the vehicle for his upcoming Japanese tour with the Mariinsky
Orchestra and Valery Gergiev. For first appearances with the Dallas Symphony and returns to the New
York Philharmonic, Chicago Symphony, and London’s Philharmonia Orchestra, he performs the first
concerto of Rachmaninov, whose orchestral output continues to figure prominently in the pianist’s
programming; he also plays the second concerto with the Vienna Symphony; the third with Washington’s
National Symphony and London’s Philharmonia; and the “Paganini Variations” with the Atlanta
Symphony, Czech Philharmonic, and for his Toronto Symphony debut. Trifonov joins the Cleveland
Orchestra for Shostakovich’s first concerto, and plays Chopin on European tours with the Kremerata
Baltica and Philharmonia Orchestra. With a solo recital program of Bach, Beethoven, and Liszt, he tours
a host of key venues, including London’s Royal Festival Hall, the Théatre des Champs Elysées in Paris,
Tokyo’s Opera City, Barcelona’s Palau de la Musica, and New York’s Carnegie Hall, for the third
consecutive year. Trifonov also returns to the New York venue’s main stage as the culmination of a ninecity U.S. duo recital tour in partnership with Grammy Award-winning violinist Gidon Kremer.
Last season saw the release of Trifonov: The Carnegie Recital, the pianist’s first recording as an
exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist. Captured live at his sold-out 2013 Carnegie Hall recital debut,
which showcased “his uncommon technical gifts and poetic sensibility” (New York Times), the album’s
release coincided with his return to Carnegie’s main stage one year later. Further recital engagements
took the pianist from Chicago to London, Paris, Vienna, Berlin, Amsterdam, Rio de Janeiro, and other
international musical hotspots, and he collaborated with 19 of the world’s foremost orchestras, including
the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the symphony orchestras of Washington, San Francisco, and London,
where his account of Chopin’s F-minor concerto prompted the Times to hail him as “an artist of
breathtaking poise and theatricality.” This past summer the pianist toured with the Israel Philharmonic,
and made high-profile festival appearances in Edinburgh, Verbier, and Lucerne.
In 2012-13, Trifonov made debuts with all the “Big Five” orchestras – the New York Philharmonic,
Chicago Symphony, Boston Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, and Philadelphia Orchestra – and with
European ensembles including Rome’s Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia and
London’s Royal Philharmonic. He made solo recital debuts at Carnegie Hall, London’s Wigmore Hall,
Vienna’s Musikverein, Japan’s Suntory Hall, and the Salle Pleyel in Paris, while summer brought
triumphs at the Verbier and Edinburgh Festivals and in his BBC Proms debut at London’s Royal Albert
Hall.
Recent recitals have also taken Trifonov to the Kennedy Center in Washington DC, Boston’s Celebrity
Series, London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall, Amsterdam’s Concertgebouw (Master Piano Series), Berlin’s
Philharmonie (the Kammermusiksaal), Munich’s Herkulessaal, Bavaria’s Schloss Elmau, Zurich’s
Tonhalle, the Lucerne Piano Festival, the Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, the Auditorium du Louvre in
Paris, and the Seoul Arts Center.
As an exclusive Deutsche Grammophon artist, Trifonov’s future plans with the label include recording
Rachmaninov’s complete piano concertos. His discography also features a Chopin album for Decca and
a recording of Tchaikovsky’s First Piano Concerto with Gergiev and the Mariinsky Orchestra on the
ensemble’s own label.
It was during the 2010-11 season that Trifonov won medals at three of the music world’s most prestigious
competitions, taking Third Prize in Warsaw’s Chopin Competition, First Prize in Tel Aviv’s Rubinstein
Competition, and both First Prize and Grand Prix – an additional honor bestowed on the best overall
competitor in any category – in Moscow’s Tchaikovsky Competition. In 2013 he was also awarded the
prestigious Franco Abbiati Prize for Best Instrumental Soloist by Italy’s foremost music critics.
Born in Nizhny Novgorod in 1991, Trifonov began his musical training at the age of five, and went on to
attend Moscow’s Gnessin School of Music as a student of Tatiana Zelikman, before pursuing his piano
studies with Sergei Babayan at the Cleveland Institute of Music. He has also studied composition, and
continues to write for piano, chamber ensemble, and orchestra. When he premiered his own piano
concerto last spring, the Cleveland Plain Dealer marveled: “Even having seen it, one cannot quite believe
it. Such is the artistry of pianist-composer Daniil Trifonov.”
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra: http://www.cso.org and http://www.csosoundsandstories.org/.
Founded in 1891, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra is consistently hailed as one of the greatest
orchestras in the world. Since 2010, the preeminent conductor Riccardo Muti has served as its 10th
music director. Pierre Boulez is the CSO’s Helen Regenstein Conductor Emeritus, Yo-Yo Ma is its Judson
and Joyce Green Creative Consultant, and Mason Bates and Anna Clyne are its Mead Composers-inResidence.
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 58 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
network and online at cso.org/radio. Recordings by the CSO have earned 62 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
four releases with the CSO to date). Find details on these and many other CSO recordings at
www.cso.org/resound.
The CSO is part of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association, which includes the Chicago Symphony
Chorus (Duain Wolfe, Director and Conductor) and the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, a preprofessional
training ensemble. 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 with Muti and the CSO, the CSO promotes the concept of
Citizen Musicianship™: using the power of music to create connections and build community.
The CSO is supported by tens of thousands of patrons, volunteers and institutional and individual donors.
Bank of America is the Global Sponsor of the CSO. 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. CSO Tuesday series
concerts are sponsored by United Airlines.