The Chicago Symphony Orchestra and its Music Director Designate, Klaus Mäkelä, rode a wave of successes this past weekend, with an enthusiastic audience eager to see its home orchestra under the baton of its future leader. It was the second of his two weeks in town, a longer stay than most guest conductors but not enough for the music lovers looking impatiently to the ten in-town weeks per season that begin in fall 2027.
The program opened with its longest piece, Brahms’ Second Piano Concerto with Daniil Trifonov. The current CSO artist-in-residence, Trifonov first appeared with the orchestra more than 12 years ago, making him an old hand here in comparison with his conductor. The two displayed an impressive partnership, Mäkelä balancing the sound expertly around the piano and Trifonov intelligently imitating and responding to gestures from the orchestra. In a question-and-answer passage early in the first movement, Trifonov’s response to a phrase from the woodwinds mimicked their articulations, and in the second, a quick neighbor-note figure tennis-bounced between the orchestra and the piano. Mäkelä managed dynamics and tempos with exactitude, keeping impeccable ensemble at the ends of phrases and always situating the piano in the sound deliberately.
The third movement, one of the loveliest moments in the oeuvre of a composer who excelled at loveliness, was exceptional this evening. John Sharp’s cello solo – as conducted by a cellist – sang with sensitivity and yearning, and Trifonov’s interpretation, pulling out a pinging melody that guided the harmonies by the hand, flew gracefully. Succumbing to the rousing crescendo at the end of the first movement, the audience applauded, setting a precedent for each of the concerto’s four movements. Mäkelä chose to soak in it rather than hush it or dive into the next movement, letting the music lovers show their love.