MUSIC

Music to Celebrate By: What do you get a legendary conductor for his birthday? How about a new musical piece written just for him? That was the 80th birthday gift presented to Sir Georg Solti, music director laureate of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, over the weekend. Solti stepped on stage at Orchestra Hall expecting to conduct. Instead, he was escorted to a seat by composer Pierre Boulez, who then led a four-minute piece that he had been commissioned by the orchestra to write. The work ended with eight chimes, one for every decade of Solti’s life. The celebration actually came a month late. Solti was born in Hungary on Oct. 21, 1912. He conducted the orchestra from 1969-1991, winning 29 Grammys during his tenure.