Remembering Chicago Symphony Violinist Fox Fehling (1949-2025)
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra family is mourning the loss of Fox Fehling, who served as a member of the violin section from 1979 until 2022. She died on July 7, 2025, following a long illness. Fehling was 76.
Violinist Fox Fehling in 1979. Photo by Robert M. Lightfoot III.
Born on June 23, 1949, in Iowa City, Iowa, Fehling later studied in New York at the Manhattan School of Music and the Juilliard School. Her teachers included Dorothy DeLay, Charles Treger, Raphael Bronstein, Allen Ohmes, Shmuel Ashkenasi and Donald Weilerstein. While in New York, Fehling had the distinction of becoming the first winner of the Mischa Elman Award and made a recital tour of Italy with Joseph Seiger, Elman’s longtime accompanist.
Fehling performed with orchestras as diverse as the Springfield Symphony, the National Orchestra of New York, the Piedmont Chamber Orchestra, the Florida Symphony and the orchestras at the Spoleto and Aspen music festivals.
Before joining the CSO, Fehling played with the Grant Park Orchestra and served as assistant principal second violin with the Lyric Opera Orchestra. In addition, she was active as a chamber musician and also played bluegrass and western swing with the CSOkies, a country-western band comprised of members of the Orchestra.
Fox Fehling performing with the CSOkies (ca. 1990).
At the invitation of Sir Georg Solti, Fehling joined the Chicago Symphony Orchestra in 1979. She served in the violin section for 43 years until her retirement in 2022.
Fox Fehling is survived by her sister Vicki Mayne, nieces Elizabeth and Diana, nephew Joseph, great-nieces Caroline and Abigail, and great-nephews Jack and Colin. Friends and colleagues are invited to gather with the family to share memories at the visitation, to be held at Donnellan Funeral Home in Skokie on Thursday afternoon, July 17, from 4:00 until 7:00 p.m.
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Replies
Echoing Paul, Frank's tribute is a reminder that great orchestras are made up of talented and wonderful individuals.
Bravo, for a truly artistic life and art - well done.
Re my Solti hired Chicago Symhony Orchestra Violinist Colleague, Fox Fehling ~
I would like to Thank You, Editor of Violinist.com, Laurie, for this lovely and most timely tender Obituary from our CSO Archivist, Frank Villella, known to all of us in our rare CSOAA Org which is the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Alumni Association, formed in the early 1990s to provide all CSO Members access to each of our fellow CSO colleagues after retiring or leaving the CSO which did form during the 'reign' of our beloved & globally heralded Music Director/ Chief Conductor, Sir Georg Solti who engaged my CSO Violinist Colleague, now late Fox Fehling, to become a Member of the Violin Section in 1979 and I must add during what has become known here in Chicago as "The Golden Years" of the Solti/CSO ...
Fox Fehling was forever an Independent Spirit prior to joining the Solti/CSO living here in Chicago working in both the Grant Park Symphony for the Annual Grant Park Summer Music Festival with eminent Conductor's - Leonard Slatkin, Music Director and in 1979, plus her tenure in the Lyric Opera Orchestra of Chicago later under newly late MD, Sir Andrew Davis, prior to Maestro Solti inviting her to join "his CSO" as Solti often referred to his newly engaged Chicago Symphony Orchestra Members!
Our Organisation, the CSOAA, received the very sad news of Fox Fehling's Passing in the wee hours of 8th of July from Mr. Villella, a very kind and considerate gentleman and authorised by our very attentive long time CSOAA President, Violinist, Tom M Hall, who received the CSO Theodore Thomas Medal for Outstanding Service of over 49 years upon his retirement some years ago whilst heading our CSOAA Active Organisation who informed us our CSO was the first Major American Orchestra to create this unique Alumni Organisation in the United States.
Fox had a flair for Blue grass as mentioned and could 'bait 'n switch' musically in nano seconds! She will be sorely missed for her positive spirits of Good and Love of the CSO and its other Music Director's both of whom Pianist Conductor Daniel Barenboim and Grand Riccardo Muti chronologically followed when Sir Georg Solti retired with his last Solti/CSO Concert in Chicago's then Orchestra Hall in Dmitri Shostakovich's Symphony No. 13 in an extraordinary Solti/CSO performance filmed for a Documentary Film on Sir Georg Solti which was later shown following the Passing of our beloved Music Director, Maestro Solti on September 5, 1997, while in Europe ... Both Fox Fehling and myself had the honour of being hired by Sir Georg Solti and in the 1970s ... May 'our' CSO Rare Fox Fehling now Rest In Eternal Peace ... My deepest Condolences to the Family of CSO Superb Violinist, Fox Fehling, upon their irreplaceable Loss ~
~ ~ Thanking Laurie Niles from my Heart for This ~ ~
... Elisabeth Matesky/Violinist Post Solti/CSO Chicago ...
Fwd ~ dmg {EM re Solti/CSO Fox Fehling Passing #4}
Sure sounds like a life well lived. I’m a bluegrass music fan, and I’m sorry to say I’ve never heard of her until now. But then, hardly any bluegrass musicians get “famous”.
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July 9, 2025 at 10:11 AM · Thank you for that respectful and informative remembrance.