Claudio Abbado ( 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014 ) Italian Conductor whose career spanned over six decades.  He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharmonic and The London Symphony Orchestra, principal guest conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, music director of the Vienna State Opera, founder and director of the Lucerne Festival Orchestra.

Abbado made numerous recordings and had a particular affinity with the music of Gustav Mahler, whose symphonies he recorded several times. Abbado recorded extensively for a variety of labels, including Decca, Deutsche Grammophon, Columbia and EMI.