Featuring Alisa Jordheim, soprano; Kimberly E. Jones, mezzo-soprano;
Lorenzo Parnell, tenor; Jonathan Wilson, baritone; and the Symphony Chorus

Step into the world of timeless melodies and captivating stories as we perform your favorite show tunes from musicals like Les Miserables, Mamma Mia, Chicago, Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd, and so many more! Whether you’re a seasoned theatergoer or simply love the power of music to stir the soul, this concert promises something for everyone.

Featuring Alisa Jordheim, soprano; Kimberly E. Jones, mezzo-soprano;
Lorenzo Parnell, tenor; Jonathan Wilson, baritone; and the Symphony Chorus

Step into the world of timeless melodies and captivating stories as we perform your favorite show tunes from musicals like Les Miserables, Mamma Mia, Chicago, Phantom of the Opera, Sweeney Todd, and so many more! Whether you’re a seasoned theatergoer or simply love the power of music to stir the soul, this concert promises something for everyone.

We are thrilled to present Brazilian violinist Guido Sant’Anna in his North American debut. Guido gained international recognition in 2022 when at seventeen he became the first South American violinist to win the prestigious International Fritz Kreisler Competition in Vienna.

Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, repertoire will include the Brahms Violin Concerto with internationally renowned violinist Guido Sant’Anna, and great music inspired by great literature!

– La Forza del Destino by Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino, a Spanish drama written in 1835 by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas.

– Peer Gynt by Grieg inspired by the five-act play of the same name written in verse in 1867 by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen.

– A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Mendelssohn inspired by and written for a production of Shakespeare’s play in 1842.

We are thrilled to present Brazilian violinist Guido Sant’Anna in his North American debut. Guido gained international recognition in 2022 when at seventeen he became the first South American violinist to win the prestigious International Fritz Kreisler Competition in Vienna.

Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, repertoire will include the Brahms Violin Concerto with internationally renowned violinist Guido Sant’Anna, and great music inspired by great literature!

– La Forza del Destino by Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino, a Spanish drama written in 1835 by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas.

– Peer Gynt by Grieg inspired by the five-act play of the same name written in verse in 1867 by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen.

– A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Mendelssohn inspired by and written for a production of Shakespeare’s play in 1842.

We are thrilled to present Brazilian violinist Guido Sant’Anna in his North American debut. Guido gained international recognition in 2022 when at seventeen he became the first South American violinist to win the prestigious International Fritz Kreisler Competition in Vienna.

Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, repertoire will include the Brahms Violin Concerto with internationally renowned violinist Guido Sant’Anna, and great music inspired by great literature!

– La Forza del Destino by Verdi. The libretto was written by Francesco Maria Piave based on Don Álvaro o la fuerza del sino, a Spanish drama written in 1835 by Ángel de Saavedra, 3rd Duke of Rivas.

– Peer Gynt by Grieg inspired by the five-act play of the same name written in verse in 1867 by the Norwegian dramatist Henrik Ibsen.

– A Midsummer Night’s Dream by Mendelssohn inspired by and written for a production of Shakespeare’s play in 1842.

Our 110th season opens with a celebration of Bruckner’s 200th birthday featuring the grandeur of his Seventh Symphony, alongside Mozart’s enchanting Magic Flute overture and Ruth Gipps’ captivating and lyrical oboe concerto!

PROGRAM

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Die Zauberflöte, K.620 (The Magic Flute): Overture
RUTH GIPPS Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra in D minor, Op. 20; Andrew Parker, oboe
ANTON BRUCKNER Symphony No.7, in E Major

Our 110th season opens with a celebration of Bruckner’s 200th birthday featuring the grandeur of his Seventh Symphony, alongside Mozart’s enchanting Magic Flute overture and Ruth Gipps’ captivating and lyrical oboe concerto!

PROGRAM

WOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART Die Zauberflöte, K.620 (The Magic Flute): Overture
RUTH GIPPS Concerto for Oboe and Orchestra in D minor, Op. 20; Andrew Parker, oboe
ANTON BRUCKNER Symphony No.7, in E Major

PROGRAM

Laura KARPMAN                  Higher. Further. Faster. Together.  Film suite from The Marvels 

Joe HISAISHI                           Kiki’s Delivery Service

Vocal Selections feat. Vocalist Laurin Talese:

          Maury YESTON                                     "My Husband Makes Movies" from Nine

           Laurin TALESE, arr. Jim GRAY     "This Love"

           Leonard BERNSTEIN                        "Somewhere" from West Side Story

Horacio FERNÁNDEZ        Tumbao (Latin Suite for Orchestra) III. Reggaeton

Leonard BERNSTEIN         Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

"Lights... Camera... Action!"

Join us for excitement, thrills, and emotions of global proportions with SCREEN & STAGE, our first subscription concert of Chicago Sinfonietta’s 2024-25 Season. Maestra Mei-Ann Chen curated musical selections from global pop culture, offering patrons a lively experience at the intersection of popular and classical music. 

The concert begins honoring the newest female superheroes to hit the big screen with Laura Karpman’s film suite Higher. Further. Faster. Together. from the blockbuster movieThe Marvels. Next, we cross the seas to explore Japanese fandom with Joe Hisaishi’sKiki’s Delivery Service, whose risk-taking heroine charms and enchants with whimsical melodies from the anime film, a globally popular piece for over 40 years!

Vocalist Laurin Talese takes the stage for a sweeping Broadway tribute and shares her own original composition, "This Love," arranged for orchestra..Then 20-something Mexican composer Horacio Fernández invokes a Latin dance club scene withTumbao (Latin Suite for Orchestra), featuring pulsating rhythms inspired by Salsa, Bachata, and Reggaeton. Never have you heard Reggaeton on an orchestral stage!

The performance closes with a perennial classic and audience favorite, Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Comprising dance themes and motifs from the original stage work, it captures the essence of the story's tension, passion, and energy. Through vivid orchestration and rhythmic complexity, Bernstein intertwines elements of jazz, Latin, and classical music, creating a vibrant tapestry of sound that will leave you energized and ready to "Mambo!"

PROGRAM

Laura KARPMAN                  Higher. Further. Faster. Together.  Film suite from The Marvels 

Joe HISAISHI                           Kiki’s Delivery Service

Vocal Selections feat. Vocalist Laurin Talese:

          Maury YESTON                                     "My Husband Makes Movies" from Nine

           Laurin TALESE, arr. Jim GRAY     "This Love"

           Leonard BERNSTEIN                        "Somewhere" from West Side Story

Horacio FERNÁNDEZ        Tumbao (Latin Suite for Orchestra) III. Reggaeton

Leonard BERNSTEIN         Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

"Lights... Camera... Action!"

Join us for excitement, thrills, and emotions of global proportions with SCREEN & STAGE, our first subscription concert of Chicago Sinfonietta’s 2024-25 Season. Maestra Mei-Ann Chen curated musical selections from global pop culture, offering patrons a lively experience at the intersection of popular and classical music. 

The concert begins honoring the newest female superheroes to hit the big screen with Laura Karpman’s film suite Higher. Further. Faster. Together. from the blockbuster movieThe Marvels. Next, we cross the seas to explore Japanese fandom with Joe Hisaishi’sKiki’s Delivery Service, whose risk-taking heroine charms and enchants with whimsical melodies from the anime film, a globally popular piece for over 40 years!

Vocalist Laurin Talese takes the stage for a sweeping Broadway tribute and shares her own original composition, "This Love," arranged for orchestra..Then 20-something Mexican composer Horacio Fernández invokes a Latin dance club scene withTumbao (Latin Suite for Orchestra), featuring pulsating rhythms inspired by Salsa, Bachata, and Reggaeton. Never have you heard Reggaeton on an orchestral stage!

The performance closes with a perennial classic and audience favorite, Leonard Bernstein’s Symphonic Dances from West Side Story. Comprising dance themes and motifs from the original stage work, it captures the essence of the story's tension, passion, and energy. Through vivid orchestration and rhythmic complexity, Bernstein intertwines elements of jazz, Latin, and classical music, creating a vibrant tapestry of sound that will leave you energized and ready to "Mambo!"

Rush Hour Concerts

Now a beloved Summer tradition, the series brings free, world- class chamber music to Chicago, on Tuesdays, June through August during the evening rush hour at St James Cathedral.

August 20, 2024 - Season Finale: Mozart’s Gran Partita

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Serenade No. 10, K. 361 ‘Gran Partita’

Katie Steele and Ashley Ertz, oboes
Dario Brignoli and Theresa Zick, clarinets
Wagner Campos and Michael Tran, basset horns
Keith Buncke and Liam Jackson, bassoons
David Griffin, Susanna Gaunt, Neil Kimel and Emily Whittaker, horns
Olivia Rayes, double bass

POPS ON THE RIVER

The Ultimate Eagles Experience

A new outdoor concert experience! Sing and dance to your favorite hits from The Eagles, presented by The 7 Bridges Band and the entire symphony. Celebrate community along the banks of the Cedar River with Orchestra Iowa’s favorite tradition: an exhilarating musical experience in an informal, everyone-friendly atmosphere. Kick off your summer with Orchestra Iowa!

Join us at the McGrath Amphitheatre!

CARMINA BURANA

Amongst the most famous masterpieces for chorus and orchestra is Orff’s epic Carmina Burana.  Estelí Gomez (soprano), Ben Gulley (tenor), Norman Garrett (baritone), and our own symphonic chorus join the full symphony to stage this commanding work. Paired with Barber’s Symphony No. 1, featuring cycling themes that wax and wane through darkness and light, this concert will be a riveting experience you will not soon forget!

PROGRAM

SAMUEL BARBER

Symphony No. 1, in One Movement, Op. 9

CARL ORFF

Carmina Burana

FORTUNA IMPERATRIX MUNDI (Fortune, Empress of the World)

BLANZIFLOR ET HELENA (Blanziflor and Helena)

FORTUNA IMPERATRIX MUNDI (Fortune, Empress of the World)

CARMINA BURANA

Amongst the most famous masterpieces for chorus and orchestra is Orff’s epic Carmina Burana.  Estelí Gomez (soprano), Ben Gulley (tenor), Norman Garrett (baritone), and our own symphonic chorus join the full symphony to stage this commanding work. Paired with Barber’s Symphony No. 1, featuring cycling themes that wax and wane through darkness and light, this concert will be a riveting experience you will not soon forget!

PROGRAM

SAMUEL BARBER

Symphony No. 1, in One Movement, Op. 9

CARL ORFF

Carmina Burana

FORTUNA IMPERATRIX MUNDI (Fortune, Empress of the World)

BLANZIFLOR ET HELENA (Blanziflor and Helena)

FORTUNA IMPERATRIX MUNDI (Fortune, Empress of the World)

Performing on Principal Oboe

Meet some of music’s boundary pushers and barrier breakers with a featured side-by-side performance with the next generation of musicians, the Lake Michigan Youth Orchestra. Relish a gem from female composer Fernande Decruck. The sounds of gospel, blues, and jazz meet the orchestral stage with Duke Ellington’s Black, Brown, and Beige, his musical illustration of African American history. Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue concludes the SMSO’s Mainstage season with the raucous and joyous energy of city life. 

Fernande Decruck
Suite Française

Georges Bizet
L'Arlésienne: Suite No. 2

Edward Kennedy "Duke" Ellington
Black, Brown and Beige: Suite

George Gershwin
Rhapsody in Blue

2024 Concerto Competition Winners Katie Gallagher and Eileen Moudou are the featured soloists for the University Symphony Orchestra’s spring quarter concert, performing Béla Bartók’s Viola Concerto and the first movement of Samuel Coleridge-Taylor’s Violin Concerto in G minor respectively. For an inspirational close to the 2023-24 season, the USO will then present Sergei Prokofiev’s monumental Symphony No. 5 in B-flat Major, Op. 100. Of this work, written in the summer of 1944 while the composer was living in an artists’ retreat north of Moscow, Prokofiev wrote: “I conceived of it as glorifying the grandeur of the human spirit...praising the free and happy man – his strength, his generosity, and the purity of his soul.”

Free admission. Donations gratefully accepted at the door: $10 general/$5 students

This concert will be livestreamed here on our website and on the Department of Music’s YouTube channel. youtube.com/@UChicagoMusic.

The Quad City Symphony Youth Ensembles (QCSYE) consists of four school-year orchestras for musicians of all ability levels, ages 7 to 18. The program provides a rigorous and inspiring learning environment founded on musical excellence for string, woodwind, brass, and percussion musicians. Students develop valuable musical, social, and leadership skills which set them up for success in school and beyond. Financial aid is available so everyone can participate regardless of ability to pay.

Our Gala Concert tradition continues with world-renowned pianist Emanual Ax. The multi-Grammy®-award-winning artist will join the QCSO to perform Ludwig Van Beethoven’s powerful and virtuosic Piano Concerto No. 5, “Emperor”, followed by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s dark and tempestuous Piano Concerto No. 20. Experience the full colors of the orchestra with Gustav Mahler’s shimmering Blumine to open the concert and Igor Stravinsky’s dazzling and triumphant The Firebird Suite to close the evening.

Performing on Second Oboe

AN EARTH DAY CELEBRATION OF MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO OUR LIFE-SUSTAINING PLANET.

Beethoven’s beloved “Pastoral” Symphony is paired with two other Earth-themed works. La Creation du Monde (The Creation of the World) is an intimate chamber ballet and features Ballet Quad Cities. Argentinean composer, Richard Scofano, performs La Tierra Sin Mal (The World Without Evil), his own symphonic poem for orchestra and bandoneon, a traditional instrument (similar to the accordion) used in Argentinean tango. We invite you to imagine the world at its creation, and dream of a world free of evil.

PROGRAM

DARIUS MILHAUD

La création du monde, op.81a (The Creation of the World)

RICHARD SCOFANO

La Tierra Sin Mal

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN

Symphony No. 6, Op. 68 “Pastorale”

Performing on Second Oboe

AN EARTH DAY CELEBRATION OF MUSICAL TRIBUTE TO OUR LIFE-SUSTAINING PLANET.

Beethoven’s beloved “Pastoral” Symphony is paired with two other Earth-themed works. La Creation du Monde (The Creation of the World) is an intimate chamber ballet and features Ballet Quad Cities. Argentinean composer, Richard Scofano, performs La Tierra Sin Mal (The World Without Evil), his own symphonic poem for orchestra and bandoneon, a traditional instrument (similar to the accordion) used in Argentinean tango. We invite you to imagine the world at its creation, and dream of a world free of evil.

PROGRAM

DARIUS MILHAUD

La création du monde, op.81a (The Creation of the World)

RICHARD SCOFANO

La Tierra Sin Mal

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN

Symphony No. 6, Op. 68 “Pastorale”

Performing on English Horn and Second Oboe

In a stunning program world-renowned pianist Marta Aznavoorian performs the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 with Camerata Chicago. Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, Camerata Chicago will also perform Dvorak’s New World Symphony No. 9 and the William Tell Overture by Rossini.

Performing on English Horn and Second Oboe

In a stunning program world-renowned pianist Marta Aznavoorian performs the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 with Camerata Chicago. Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, Camerata Chicago will also perform Dvorak’s New World Symphony No. 9 and the William Tell Overture by Rossini.

Performing on English Horn and Second Oboe

In a stunning program world-renowned pianist Marta Aznavoorian performs the Beethoven Piano Concerto No. 3 with Camerata Chicago. Conducted by Maestro Drostan Hall, Camerata Chicago will also perform Dvorak’s New World Symphony No. 9 and the William Tell Overture by Rossini.

Performing on Second Oboe

The world famous production of Beethoven Lives Upstairs features a lively exchange of letters between young Christoph and his uncle. Their subject: the “madman” who has moved into the upstairs apartment of Christoph’s Vienna home. Through a touching correspondence, dramatically underscored with the composer’s most beautiful excerpts, Christoph slowly comes to understand the genius of Beethoven and the beauty of his music.

Audiences are captivated by more than twenty-five excerpts of Beethoven’s music, including the Moonlight Sonata, Fur Elise, and the great Fifth and Ninth Symphonies. The music is magically woven into the drama as two actors share anecdotes and observations based on true incidents from the composer’s life. Presenting history, drama, music, and fun, this engaging concert perfect for a fun family day out!

Beethoven Lives Upstairs theatrical symphony concert is an imaginative way to introduce young audiences and their families to the life and music of Ludwig Van Beethoven in a live performance venue.

The performance is approximately 50 minutes in length and is recommended for audiences age six and up.

Performing on Principal Oboe

French violin virtuoso Eva Zavaro joins the Jackson Symphony Orchestra to perform Swiss composer Pierre Wissmer’s Second Violin Concerto – a piece she poignantly played in Ukraine at the beginning of the war. Works by Rimsky-Korsakov, Camille Pepin, and Ravel will also be featured and the program will end with Borodin’s richly textured Symphony No. 2.

Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
Mlada: Procession of the Nobles (Cortège) <1889–1890>

Camille Pepin
Les eaux celestials

Pierre Wissmer
Violin Concerto No. 2

Maurice Ravel
Tzigane, rapsodie de concert <1924>

Alexander Borodin
Symphony No.2, B minor (B ... atirskaya simfoniya; Heroic Symphony) <1869–1875>

Join us at Weatherwax Hall as Swedish Chamber Orchestra concertmaster Clara Saitkoulov joins us to play one of the most famous violin concertos by Felix Mendelssohn. The program will begin with a work by Felix’s sister Fanny – a talented composer in her own right whose work is only now gaining the attention it deserves. The evening will conclude with Mendelssohn’s well-known Symphony No. 3 – The Scottish Symphony – a nod towards spring and youth.

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
Overture in C major <1832>

Felix Mendelssohn
Concerto, Violin, op.64, E minor <1844; rev 1845>

Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No.3, op.56, A minor (Scottish) <1829–1842; rev 1843>

Join us at Weatherwax Hall as Swedish Chamber Orchestra concertmaster Clara Saitkoulov joins us to play one of the most famous violin concertos by Felix Mendelssohn. The program will begin with a work by Felix’s sister Fanny – a talented composer in her own right whose work is only now gaining the attention it deserves. The evening will conclude with Mendelssohn’s well-known Symphony No. 3 – The Scottish Symphony – a nod towards spring and youth.

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
Overture in C major <1832>

Felix Mendelssohn
Concerto, Violin, op.64, E minor <1844; rev 1845>

Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No.3, op.56, A minor (Scottish) <1829–1842; rev 1843>

Join us at Weatherwax Hall as Swedish Chamber Orchestra concertmaster Clara Saitkoulov joins us to play one of the most famous violin concertos by Felix Mendelssohn. The program will begin with a work by Felix’s sister Fanny – a talented composer in her own right whose work is only now gaining the attention it deserves. The evening will conclude with Mendelssohn’s well-known Symphony No. 3 – The Scottish Symphony – a nod towards spring and youth.

Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel
Overture in C major <1832>

Felix Mendelssohn
Concerto, Violin, op.64, E minor <1844; rev 1845>

Felix Mendelssohn
Symphony No.3, op.56, A minor (Scottish) <1829–1842; rev 1843>

The MAC welcomes back Salt Creek Ballet with a roster of guest artists to perform the holiday tradition: Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.” This magical full-scale production features live accompaniment from New Philharmonic – a rare opportunity to see this magnificent ballet set to live music.

The MAC welcomes back Salt Creek Ballet with a roster of guest artists to perform the holiday tradition: Tchaikovsky’s “The Nutcracker.” This magical full-scale production features live accompaniment from New Philharmonic – a rare opportunity to see this magnificent ballet set to live music.