We thank you again for the enormous part you play in keeping the music alive, and ask you for your continued support. We do not exaggerate when we say time and again that Mistral concerts exist because of you. But it is more than your generous donations. Your deep love of music and your smiling faces from your seats (though harder to see behind the masks!) make it possible for us to continue doing what we love most.

Riccardo Muti, Chicago Symphony’s music director, addressed his audience in a moving speech before their first live concert since the pandemic. He said it was a special evening because they were finally coming together after twenty months of separation due to a world disaster that not only killed thousands of people, but also killed culture. He explained that culture affects our souls, our minds, and the interrelationships between people, and we forget how much the lack of culture can damage a society.  The musicians of the world—and the actors, painters, composers—not only had to silence their professions, but they could not communicate the real purpose of their lives: to give people richness and beauty.  Culture is not entertainment, he emphasized, and his audience was not there because they didn’t know what to do with their evenings: they were there that night because they needed music, and they needed to hear it live.

And that is the reason that we play for you and why you continue to fill our halls. It is ever-reassuring that you choose to come to our concerts with friends and loved ones to spend a couple hours sharing music with us, even during your busiest seasons.

Wishing you the happiest of holidays and see you in 2022!

Julie