Review: Bernard Rands Celebrates 90 at Guarneri Hall
In sold-out concerts on Friday and Saturday, Guarneri Hall was the scene of a 90th birthday celebration for Bernard Rands, a Pulitzer Prize winning composer. Originally from Britain, Rands has […]
A lover of music his whole life, Louis Harris has written extensively from the early days of punk and alternative rock. More recently he has focused on classical music, especially chamber ensembles. He has reviewed concerts, festivals, and recordings and has interviewed composers and performers. He has paid special attention to Chicago’s rich and robust contemporary art music scene. He occasionally writes poetry and has a published novel to his credit, 32 Variations on a Theme by Basil II in the Key of Washington, DC. He now lives on the north side of Chicago, which he considers to be the greatest city in the country, if not the world. Member of the Music Critics Association of North America.
Review: Curtis Stewart Entertains at Music Now
Composer/violinist Jessie Montgomery hosted the latest installment of Music Now on Sunday afternoon at Symphony Center. Montgomery is the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s Mead Composer-in-Residence. Using CSO musicians and conductor Lidiya […]
Review: Gryphon Trio Ends the Northwestern Winter Chamber Festival in a Lackluster way
On a sunny but chilly Sunday afternoon, the Gryphon Trio gave a lackluster performance to close the Northwestern Winter Chamber Festival at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston. Although the playing […]
Review: Dover Quartet Plays a Blustery Program on a Blustery Night
On a blustery Friday night, the Dover Quartet gave a note-perfect performance at the Northwestern Winter Chamber Music Festival at Pick-Staiger Concert Hall in Evanston. While the Chicagoland region was […]
Review: Chicago’s Cedille Records Continues to Promote Excellence in Its 2023 Releases
Chicago’s Cedille Records released lots of enjoyable music in 2023. Like previous years, Cedille releases focus on lesser-known music worthy of greater attention. Unlike previous years, most of the releases […]
Review: Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center Frolics Through the Brandenburg Concertos
The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center gave a lively performance of Johann Sebastian Bach’s six Brandenburg Concertos at the Harris Theater on Wednesday night. This is an annual holiday […]
Review: Third Coast Percussion Commemorates 400 Years of Zildjian Cymbals
Third Coast Percussion commemorated a 400-year anniversary with the help of composer and percussionist Michael J. Burritt, who was their professor 20 years ago at Northwestern University. Burritt, who has […]
Review: Michael Tilson Thomas, Orion Weiss, and the CSO Deliver Mozart and Brahms/Schoenberg
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra gave a rousing if edgy performance on Thursday night, when it opened a series of concerts at Symphony Center, billed as MTT Conducts Mozart. MTT refers […]
Review: Staatskapelle Berlin and Conductor Jakub Hrůša Are Masterful
The music of Johannes Brahms is featuring prominently in a series of concerts at Symphony Center this week. On Tuesday night, under the direction of Jakub Hrůša, the Staatskapelle Berlin […]
Review: Haskell Small Performs His Celebration of Healing Concert in Epiphany Center’s Golden Hour Series
In 2021 pianist and composer Haskell Small had a stroke that debilitated the left side of his body. From the beginning of his convalescence, Small was determined not to allow […]
Review: Picosa Offers Beautiful Tango on Monday Night
Picosa gave an enjoyable performance at Allen Hall in DePaul’s Holtschneider Performance Center on Monday night. Made up of Jennie Oh Brown on flute, Andrea R. DiOrio on clarinet, Elizabeth […]
Review: Rachel Barton Pine and Inna Faliks Show Off the Blues at Ravinia
Violinist Rachel Barton Pine and pianist Inna Faliks gave a lovely recital at Ravinia’s Bennett Gordon Hall on Saturday night. The program included bluesy and soulful modern music by African […]