The Vienna Philharmonic hasn’t had a chief conductor since 1933. But it has had favorite conductors. The violinist Daniel Froschauer, the Philharmonic’s chairman, has said that today, the ensemble not so secretly has two maestros at the top of its roster: Riccardo Muti and Franz Welser-Möst. It takes a lot to win over the affection of the Philharmonic, one of Europe’s finest ensembles, just as it takes a lot to join its ranks. These players — known for their lush sound, their brighter, higher tuning frequency and their distinctly Viennese articulation — can be haughty and stubborn; I have seen them outright defy a conductor in rehearsal.

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Persons: Vienna Philharmonic hasn’t, Leonard Bernstein, Pierre Boulez, Herbert von Karajan, Karl Böhm, Daniel Froschauer, Riccardo Muti, Franz Welser, Bruckner, Mahler, Berg, Hindemith, Schoenberg, Strauss, Ravel Organizations: Vienna Philharmonic, Carnegie Hall, Philharmonic Locations: Vienna, Austrian