A Chicago Symphony Orchestra official on Friday said music director Riccardo Muti, who fainted during a double rehearsal Thursday, will undergo surgery Monday at Northwestern Memorial Hospital for facial injuries he suffered when he fell from the podium.
President Deborah Rutter of the CSO Association also said the 69-year-old Muti is undergoing tests to determine the underlying cause of his fall.
Pianist-conductor Mitsuko Uchida and Detroit Symphony Orchestra conductor Leonard Slatkin are filling in for Muti in this week's concerts, substituting Mozart works for an originally scheduled Cherubini overture that is a Muti specialty.
Prior to a matinee performance by the CSO on Friday, a representative walked out on stage and informed the audience that Muti was joking and looking over scores but wants to make sure he's healthy before conducting again.
Rutter said Finnish conductor Sakari Oramo, who is making his CSO debut, will fill in for Muti at next week's concerts.
