CARIBBEAN SOUNDS KICK OFF CHICAGO SINFONIETTA'S 30th SEASON

Chi, IL LIVE Shows On Our Radar:

CHICAGO SINFONIETTA OPENS 30TH SEASON WITH A BANG OF CARIBBEAN SOUNDS, CONTEMPORARY DANCE AND 

TWO WORLD PREMIERES IN

TRADEMARK

Featuring Northern Illinois University Steelband and 

Chicago’s Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre

Wentz Concert Hall, Naperville, September 16

Symphony Center, Chicago, September 18

Chicago Sinfonietta, the nation’s most diverse orchestra, kicks off its 30th anniversary with Trademark showcasing unusual instruments, collaborations, and classical reinterpretations - a trademark of the orchestra’s programming for three decades. This unexpected and adventurous concert experience will include guest performances from the 16-piece Northern Illinois University Steelband led by Liam Teague and Chicago’s own Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre plus two World Premieres as part of the orchestra’s year-long initiative Project W: Commissions by Women Composers. 

The Sinfonietta performs Trademark twice: first in the western suburbs at Wentz Concert Hall at North Central College, Naperville, Saturday, September 16 at 8 pm, and then again in its downtown Chicago home venue of Symphony Center, Monday, September 18 at 7:30 pm.

The concert begins with the World Premiere of emerging composer and violinist Jessie Montgomery’s Coincident Dances and continues with one of Mozart’s best-known works Rondo alla Turca reinvented by the Northern Illinois University Steelband who then joins Sinfonietta’s principal harpist Faye Seeman on her original solo composition Fayed to Blue before switching to the Caribbean sounds of Lord Kitchener’s upbeat Pan in A-minor. The second half opens with the World Premiere of Grammy Award-nominated composer Clarice Assad’s Sin Fronteras, meaning “without borders”, featuring Chicago’s Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre performing a new piece of choreography also commissioned by the orchestra, and concludes with Bedřich Smetana’s symphonic poem Má vlast.

“As Chicago Sinfonietta approaches an important milestone in its history, our programming continues to reflect a pioneering and innovative spirit more than ever, especially through the dedication to showcasing unusual instruments, and our unprecedented commitment to featuring brand new commissions by diverse, prominent women composers," stated Music Director Mei-Ann Chen. "Making the commissions known through the 2019 release of our 16th commercial recording produced with our wonderful partner, Cedille Records, will help this unique organization advance its mission of diversity, equity, and inclusion while showcasing the incredible talent of women composers in America."

Before the concert and during intermission, audience members will have the opportunity to learn to play the steel drum and harp with students from Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestra’s Steel Orchestras and The People’s Music School. Archival photos, artifacts, and more from Chicago Sinfonietta’s 30-year history will be on display for patrons to view as well.

Prior to the concert, Chicago Sinfonietta's Associate Board will host its annual fundraising event, Prelude: Start with a Bang!, to celebrate the start of the 30th Anniversary season. A selection from Chicago’s Crafthouse® cocktails and hors d'oeuvres will be served while attendees take part in a silent auction and raffle, as well as other interactive activities inspired by the Northern Illinois University Steelband. The event begins at 5:30 p.m. at Orchestra Hall of Symphony Center. Tickets are priced at $50 for the reception only and $95 for the reception and a concert ticket to Trademark. Early bird tickets are also available through August 30 at $40 for the reception and $85 for reception and concert. Tickets are available for purchase by calling 312-284-1554 or online at chicagosinfonietta.org/prelude. 

Trademark is sponsored in part by ITW.

Tickets: Tickets range from $20-$99 for concerts at Symphony Center and $49-$62 for concerts at North Central College with special $10 pricing available for students at both concerts. Tickets can be purchased by calling Chicago Sinfonietta at 312-284-1554 or online at www.chicagosinfonietta.org.

Program:     
MONTGOMERY
Coincident Dances
MOZART
Rondo alla Turca
SEEMAN
Fayed to Blue
KITCHENER
Pan in A-minor
ASSAD
Sin Fronteras
SMETANA
Má vlast (My Homeland)
I. Vyšehrad (The High Castle)
II. Vltava (The Moldau)

Mei-Ann Chen, music director and conductor
Faye Seeman, harp
Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre 
Northern Illinois University Steelband, steel drum ensemble directed by Liam Teague



About the Sinfonietta
Now in its 30th season, Chicago Sinfonietta and music director Mei-Ann Chen have pushed artistic boundaries to provide an alternative way of hearing, seeing and thinking about a symphony orchestra and are dedicated to promoting diversity, inclusion, racial and cultural equity in the arts. Each concert experience blends inventive new works with classical masterworks, each from a diverse array of voices, to entertain, transform and inspire. In 2016, Chicago Sinfonietta was the proud recipient of the 2016 Spirit of Innovation Award presented by the Chicago Innovation Awards as well as the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation’s prestigious MacArthur Award for Creative and Effective Institutions (MACEI). The MacArthur award recognizes exceptional organizations that are key contributors in their fields. Learn more at www.chicagosinfonietta.org

Chicago Sinfonietta is grateful to its season sponsors including Aon, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Southwest Airlines, Fairmont Hotel, Hotel Indigo and NBC5. Chicago Sinfonietta also thanks its BRIDGE Audience Engagement sponsor Macy's, as well as its season media sponsors including Chicago Tribune, Chicago magazine, Naperville magazine, and WBEZ.

I Went to A Sinfonietta And A Circus Broke Out! #ChicagoSinfonietta #CircEsteem

ChiIL Mama's daughter rocks the Chicago Sinfonietta with CircEsteem Monday night.    All photos by Mary Rafferty Photography   

Monday night there was a rustle of programs and quizzical looks across the audience as The Chicago Sinfonietta began their 2nd number.   There was nothing in the billing about circus arts, but the surprise guests of the evening stole the show and provided a lovely example of collaboration in the arts and the theme of the evening, Performance.  Art.  

Unicyclists careened down the aisles of Symphony Center and jugglers materialized in the balcony and wings.   ChiIL Mama's own 9 year old daughter flipped upside down into a bridge and crab walked across the stage in front of the orchestra, while adults foot juggled a table and large pot, and stilt walked.   A teen rolled out in a giant, metal gym wheel, and the audience was treated to Performance.  Art.  indeed!   

The surprise guests of the evening were the uber talented kids and staff of Chicago's own CircEsteem, including ChiIL Mama's own kids, Du-Jay (11) and Sagezilla (9).   The performers were under the radar, and the applause was off the charts.   

The Chicago Sinfonietta opened its 25^th Anniversary Season with a concert called Performance. Art, featuring lively guest musicians, the New York-based jazz-hybrid ensemble PROJECT Trio.  The concert took place Saturday, September 29 at Wentz Concert Hall in Naperville and Monday, October 1 at Symphony Center in downtown Chicago.   The performers from CircEsteem were special, surprise guests for both the Naperville and the Symphony Center concerts.

PROJECT Trio was also a joy to see live.   They brought an unbridled enthusiasm and rock star esthetic to their pieces.   The talented trio even sited Jethro Tull as one of their influences and did their own version of merging classical and classic rock.    

The official press release for the evening along with links to further information on The Chicago Sinfonietta and CircEsteem are below.

 

Chicago Sinfonietta Opens 25^th Anniversary Season with

PERFORMANCE. ART.

Featuring genre-crossing virtuosos PROJECT Trio

Wentz Concert Hall at North Central College, September 29

Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center, October 1

The Chicago Sinfonietta’s milestone 25^th Anniversary Season opening concert, titled Performance. Art., features a unique collaboration with the Brooklyn-based, high-energy chamber ensemble PROJECT Trio (Greg Pattillo, Peter Seymour and Eric Stephenson).  Blending their classical training with a wide array of musical styles, including jazz, hip-hop and rock, PROJECT Trio’s virtuoso performers use their passion and versatility to make an impression on audiences of all musical tastes.  Performance. Art. will be performed at Wentz Concert Hall,171 E. Chicago Avenue in Naperville, Saturday, September 29 at 8 pm and at Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Avenue in downtown Chicago, Monday, October 1 at 7:30 pm.

“PROJECT Trio combines flute, cello and bass to achieve musical colors that you would never have thought possible,” said Sinfonietta Music Director Mei-Ann Chen.  “Not only do they bring a distinct sound, they also bring a lot of movement to the stage – so much energy!  It will be very fun to have them join the Sinfonietta for our Silver Anniversary season opener, and I’m so glad we can share the talents of this incredible group with our Chicago and Naperville audiences.” 

Chen opens the concert with a distinctive variation on Johannes Brahms’ one-movement work Hungarian Dance No. 5.  The program continues with three exceptional performances by PROJECT Trio both with the orchestra and on their own, including Fast and Random Roads – two works composed by its own members – and an unusual take on J. S. Bach’s Bourrée from Suite in E Minor for Lute. 

The first movement of Israeli composer Avner Dorman’s rhythmically vigorous Spices, Perfumes, Toxins! continues the second half of the program, featuring Eric Goldberg and Shuya Gong, winners of the CSO Young Artist Competition in 2010, 2011 and 2012, on marimba and other percussion instruments. 

The concert culminates with Igor Stravinsky’s regal and soaring Firebird Suite.

Tickets

Single tickets range from $40-$50 for concerts at Wentz Concert Hall and $26-$50 for concerts at Symphony Center, with special $10 pricing available for students. Tickets can be purchased by calling the Chicago Sinfonietta at 312-236-3681 ext. 2 or online at www.chicagosinfonietta.org.

About the Guest Artists

PROJECT Trio, with Greg Pattillo (flute), Eric Stephenson (cello) and Peter Seymour (bass), is pushing the boundaries of classical music with a high-octane mix of jazz, hip-hop and rock.  Hailed for their “wide appeal, subversive humor and first-rate playing” by the Wall Street Journal, the Trio performs over 70 concerts a year, playing to fans of all ages in venues around the world.  Highlights of the Trio’s current season include concerts with the Charlotte Symphony, Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony, New Jersey Symphony, Walla Walla Symphony and the Britt Festival.  Internationally, they will make their second tour of Germanyand their first tour of the former Soviet Union as part of American Music Abroad sponsored by the US Department of State.  The Trio is dedicated to arts education, inspiring a whole new generation of concert-going music lovers.  They are in their second year of residency with the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra as Family Concert Artists in Residence.  For more information on PROJECT Trio visit www.projecttrio.com.

Eric Goldberg and Shuya Gong are members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Percussion Scholarship Group directed by CSO percussionist Patricia Dash and Lyric Opera of Chicago percussionist Douglas Waddell.  As members of the Scholarship Group ensemble, Goldberg and Gong have performed at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention and the League of American Orchestras National Conference and have also been featured on the National Public Radio show From the Top and the Introductions radio show on WFMT.  The Group performs twice annually at Chicago’s Symphony Center and has given additional Symphony Centerconcerts in conjunction with the CSO Youth in Music Festival. Goldberg and Gong are both juniors at Chicago’s Whitney M. Young Magnet High School where they are members of the Advanced Band and Philharmonic Orchestra. 

About the Chicago Sinfonietta

For 25 years, the Chicago Sinfonietta has pushed artistic and social boundaries to provide an alternative way of hearing, seeing and thinking about a symphony orchestra.  Each concert experience fuses inventive new works from a diverse array of voices with classical masterworks to entertain, transform and inspire.

The Chicago Sinfonietta has a proud history of having enriched the cultural, educational, and social quality of life in Chicago.  Under the guidance of Founding Music Director Paul Freeman, the orchestra has performed at the highest artistic level since 1987.  Mei-Ann Chen succeeded Paul Freeman as the Chicago Sinfonietta’s Music Director beginning with the 2011-12 season.  The Chicago Sinfonietta musicians truly represent the city’s rich cultural landscape and continue to fulfill the orchestra’s mission of Musical Excellence through Diversity^™. 

The Sinfonietta was recently honored with two national awards for excellence from the League of American Orchestras, one for adventurous programming and one recognizing Maestro Chen with the Helen M. Thompson Award for an Emerging Music Director. 

Mei-Ann Chen, also Music Director of the Memphis Symphony Orchestra, has appeared with symphonies all over the country and the world, include the symphonies of Alabama, Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Colorado, Columbus, Edmonton (Canada), Florida, Fort Worth, Honolulu, National (Washington, D.C.), Oregon, Pacific, Phoenix, Princeton, Seattle, Toronto, and the Grand Teton Festival Orchestra.  The first woman to win the Malko Competition (2005), Chen has served as Assistant Conductor of the Oregon Symphony, the Atlanta Symphony and the Baltimore Symphony.  Born in Taiwan, Chen has lived in the United States since 1989.  She was the first student in New England Conservatory’s history to receive master’s degrees simultaneously in both violin and conducting. 

The Chicago Sinfonietta thanks Supporting Season Sponsor Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois, Lead West Suburban Sponsor BP, and Lead Media Sponsor Chicago Sun-Times Media.  Additional thanks to Opening Night Sponsor JP Morgan Chase and the Elizabeth F. Cheney Foundation.  Support for Wentz Concert Hall performances provided by the Hinsdale Center for the Arts and Naperville’s Special Events and Cultural Amenities Fund.  Additional media support provided byChicago Magazine, ABC-7 Chicago, WFMT, WBEZ, WDCB, Arte y Vida Chicago, Today’s Chicago Woman, Naperville Sun and Naperville Magazine.  Southwest Airlines is the Official Airline of the Chicago Sinfonietta.  Fairmont Chicago Millennium Park and Hotel Arista in Naperville are the Official Hotels of the Chicago Sinfonietta.

For more information on the Chicago Sinfonietta please visit their main site here. 

For more information on CircEsteem, click here.

**See these talented kids live at Circus Soiree Benefit Fundraiser Thursday, October 18th at the gorgeous Architectural Artifacts space.  Eat, drink, and bid for a great cause.  It's shaping up to be THE party of the year.   Click here for details. **

Thursday, Oct 18, 2012
Circus Soiree

6:00 PM
Architectural Artifacts
4325 North Ravenswood Avenue
Chicago, IL

CircEsteem’s Circus Soiree is coming up fast.   Tickets are flying like aerial artists!!   Get yours before they sell out!    If you can't make it the 18th, you can still help out with a donation right here.