Riccardo Muti

Riccardo Muti, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI [ [http://www.quirinale.it/onorificenze/DettaglioDecorato.asp?idprogressivo=11264&iddecorato=10844 Cavaliere di Gran Croce Muti Maestro Riccardo, quirinale.it] ] (b. July 28, 1941) is an Italian conductor.

Biography

Muti was born in Naples, Italy, where his father was a doctor and an amateur singer; his mother was a professional singer. Muti studied piano in Naples at the Conservatory of San Pietro a Majella under Vincenzo Vitale. He was subsequently awarded a diploma in Composition and Conducting by the Conservatory "Giuseppe Verdi," Milan, where he studied with the composer Bruno Bettinelli and the conductor Antonino Votto. He has also studied composition with Nino Rota, whom he considers a mentor. He was unanimously awarded first place by the jury of the "Guido Cantelli" competition for conductors in Milan in 1967. From 1968 to 1980, Muti served as principal director and music director of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.

Since 1971, he has been a frequent conductor of operas and concerts at the Salzburg Festival, where he is particularly known for his Mozart opera performances. From 1972, Muti regularly conducted the Philharmonia Orchestra in London. In 1974, he was appointed the orchestra's principal conductor to succeed Otto Klemperer. [cite news | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/features/story/0,,1402106,00.html | title=Enough! | publisher="The Guardian" | author=Stephen Moss | date=31 January 2005 | accessdate=2007-06-03]

In 1987, Muti was appointed principal conductor of the Scala Philharmonic Orchestra, with which in 1988 he received the Viotti d'Oro and with which he went on tour in Italy and in Europe. In 1991, he announced his resignation from the Philadelphia Orchestra at the end of the 1991-1992 season.

Muti has been a regular guest of the Berlin Philharmonic and the Vienna Philharmonic. In 1996, Muti conducted the latter at the closing of the Viennese Festival Week in a tour of the Far East to Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Germany, and the Vienna New Year's Concert in 1993, 1997, 2000 and 2004. [cite news | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/fridayreview/story/0,,1146501,00.html | title=New Year's Concert 2004, Vienna PO/ Muti |author =Edward Greenfield | publisher="The Guardian" | date=13 February 2004 | accessdate=2007-06-03]

Apart from La Scala, Muti has conducted operatic performances with the Philadelphia Orchestra, as well as productions in Munich, at the Vienna State Opera (starting with "Aida" in 1973, followed by "La forza del destino" in 1974, "Rigoletto" in 1983, "Così fan tutte" in 1994, "Don Giovanni" in 1999, "Le nozze di Figaro" in 2001), in London, and at the Ravenna Festival.

Muti is a regular guest conductor at the Vienna Staatsoper where he continues to conduct Mozart operas such as "Le nozze di Figaro" and "Così fan tutte". He is to return to this opera house in 2008 with "Così fan tutte".

A special relationship connects Muti with the Salzburg Festival, where the conductor debuted in 1971 with Donizetti's "Don Pasquale." In the following years Muti has been constantly present at the festival, conducting both concerts with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra and opera productions, such as "Così fan tutte" in 1983 and "Die Zauberflöte" in 2005 and 2006. Muti also owns a residence close to Salzburg.

From 2007 on, Muti is the principal conductor at Salzburg's "Pentecost Festival". He conducts opera productions and concerts with his "Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra".

In the USA, from 1980 to 1992, Muti was music director of the Philadelphia Orchestra, which he led on numerous international tours. In 1979, he was appointed its music director and, in 1992, conductor laureate. Muti stated that his approach was to remain faithful to the intent of the composer. This meant a change from applying the lush "Philadelphia Sound," created by his predecessors Eugene Ormandy and Leopold Stokowski, to all repertoire; however, many of his recordings with that orchestra largely seem to do away with its hallmark sound, even in the works of such composers as Tchaikovsky, Brahms, and other high romantics. His sonic changes to the orchestra remain controversial. Some felt he turned it into a generic-sounding institution with a lean sound much favored by modern recording engineers. Others believe Muti uncovered the true intention of the works, which had been covered in a silky sheen by Muti's predecessor. Since his departure from Philadelphia, he has made very few guest conducting appearances with the Philadelphia Orchestra, most recently in 2005. [cite news | url=http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/15/arts/music/15muti.html?ex=1177646400&en=8cd7acc72af0b901&ei=5070 | title=Muti Returns to Philadelphia for a Reunion | publisher="The New York Times" | author=Bernard Holland | date=15 February 2005 | accessdate=2007-06-03]

Muti has been a regular and popular guest conductor with the New York Philharmonic. The orchestra's musicians have been reported as being interested in Muti as their next music director, both towards the end of the tenures of Kurt Masur and Lorin Maazel, but Muti had stated that he had no wish to take on the position with the orchestra. [cite news | author=Ed Vulliamy | title=How America dropped the baton | url=http://observer.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,415306,00.html | work=The Observer | date=24 December 2000 | accessdate=2007-07-15] [cite news | author=Daniel J. Wakin | title=Philharmonic to Add a Position at the Top | url=http://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/25/arts/music/25phil.html | work=The New York Times | date=25 April 2007 | accessdate=2007-07-15] On May 5, 2008, Muti was named the next music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO), effective with the 2010-2011 season, with an initial contract of 5 years. Muti is scheduled to conduct a minimum of 10 weeks of CSO subscription concerts each season, in addition to domestic and international tours. He made his CSO debut at the Ravinia Festival in 1973. [cite news | url=http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5iO5e3fpPSuYuiHuJEu_0WBEbZymQD90FH81O0| title=Riccardo Muti to be CSO music director | publisher="The Associated Press" | date=5 May 2008 | accessdate=2008-05-05]

Riccardo Muti is married to Cristina Mazzavillani, who is the founder and director of the Ravenna Festival. They have three children, two sons and a daughter.

La Scala controversy

In 2003, there were reports of artistic and programming conflicts at La Scala between musical director and principal conductor Muti and general manager Carlo Fontana. [cite news | author=John Hooper | title=Dumbing down row at La Scala | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1042826,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=16 September 2003 | accessdate=2007-07-15] Muti did not attend the press conference that announced the new 2003 season. The appointment in 2003 of Mauro Meli as La Scala's artistic director was intended to calm the conflict between Fontana and Muti. [cite news | author=Philip Willan | title=New aria of peace at La Scala | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1061804,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=13 October 2003 | accessdate=2007-07-15]

On 24 February 2005, the La Scala governors dismissed Fontana as general manager and named Meli as his successor. [cite news | author=John Hooper | title=Recriminations fly as crisis engulfs La Scala | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1429011,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=3 March 2005 | accessdate=2007-07-15] The musicians sided with Fontana against Muti at this point in the dispute, and on 13 March, Muti stated that he would refuse to conduct the La Scala orchestra from that point on. [cite news | author=John Hooper | title=Conductor downs baton at La Scala | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1437074,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=14 March 2005 | accessdate=2007-07-15] On March 16, 2005, the orchestra and staff of La Scala voted overwhelmingly against Muti in a motion of no-confidence. [cite news | author=John Hooper | title=Staff demand Muti exit in latest La Scala drama | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1439503,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=17 March 2005 | accessdate=2007-07-15] Muti was forced to cancel a concert prior to the vote, and some other productions were disrupted at the theater because of continuing rifts with Fontana's supporters. On April 2, he resigned from La Scala, citing "hostility" from staff members. [cite news | author=Vanessa Thorpe | title=Muti exits after a musical mutiny | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1451231,00.html | work=The Observer | date=3 April 2005 | accessdate=2007-07-15] [cite news | author=Laura Smith| title=Curtain falls on unhappy Muti at La Scala | url=http://arts.guardian.co.uk/news/story/0,,1451561,00.html | work=The Guardian | date=4 April 2005 | accessdate=2007-07-15]

Repertoire and recordings

With Philadelphia, his extensive recordings include the first Beethoven Symphony Cycle made for compact disc as well as critically acclaimed recordings of the symphonies of Johannes Brahms, Tchaikovsky, Sergei Prokofiev, and Alexander Scriabin as well as the less known works of composers such as Giacomo Puccini and Ferruccio Busoni.

Muti is considered one of the world's greatest conductors of the operas of Giuseppe Verdi. He also led a series of annual performances of opera in concerts include the works of the composers Verdi, Puccini, Mozart, and Wagner. In 1992, Muti conducted performances of Ruggero Leoncavallo's "Pagliacci" with Luciano Pavarotti. A recording was also made of these performances.

At La Scala, Muti was noted for exploring lesser-known works of the Classical- and early Romantic-era repertory such as "Lodoiska" by Luigi Cherubini and "La Vestale" by Gaspare Spontini.

Honors

Riccardo Muti was awarded a doctorate "honoris causa" by the Universitat de Barcelona on 13 October 2003.

References

External links

*Riccardo Muti [http://www.riccardomuti.com Official website]
*allmusic|41:41954
*imdb name|0616120
* [http://www.sonybmgmasterworks.com/artists/riccardomuti/ Riccardo Muti biography] at Sony BMG Masterworks