Our story of the Orchestra’s early tours continues with founder and first music director Theodore Thomas promoting talented young female soloists during a time when such opportunities were rare.

Read more: On the Road with the Chicago Orchestra, part 2

TOP: Soloists who performed with the Chicago Orchestra during the first seasons included (from left to right) pianists Augusta S. Cottlow and Fannie Bloomfield Zeisler, soprano Ida Klein, and violinist Maud Powell.