Review: Grossman Ensemble Gives a Dull Performance
One of the leading incubators of new music in Chicago is housed at the Chicago Center of Contemporary Composition at the University of Chicago in Hyde Park. The 13-member Grossman […]
Review: The CSO Under the Baton of Karina Canellakis Delivers the Goods
What kind of concert starts with an 11-minute introductory piece that ends up getting two ovations? A Chicago Symphony Orchestra concert that opens with Brio by Chicago-based composer Augusta Read […]
Preview: Chicago’s New Nevermore Performance Space Hosts a Chamber Music Festival This Weekend
Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood has a new performance space, and a four-day chamber music festival will take place there this weekend. Described as “a sleek, minimalist space offer[ing] luscious acoustics […]
Review: The Aznavoorian Duo Perform Gems From Armenia in a Marvelous Concert
The Aznavoorian Duo gave a marvelous performance at the Music Institute of Chicago’s Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston on Sunday afternoon. The concert was a celebration of their excellent new […]
Review: Augusta Read Thomas’ New Release Captures the Breadth of Her Musical Palette with a Regular Dose of Sunshine
Chicago-based composer Augusta Read Thomas has issued a new release comprised of several recent compositions. Bell Illuminations has a wide variety of ensemble configurations and illustrates the breadth of her […]
Review: Third Coast Percussion Releases Their CD Perspectives With an Excellent Performance
No musical techniques benefit more from visual performance than percussion. The number of ways that percussionists can produce sounds is limited only by the number of objects humans and nature […]
Review/Preview: Pianist Sergei Babayan’s Great Performance on Tuesday Gives an Insight into How He Will Perform Tonight
It is always a good sign to find myself perspiring in the middle of a performance in a venue with a working air conditioner. This is exactly what happened during […]
Review: Music of the Baroque Pays Homage to the Brothers Haydn… and Mozart
Music of the Baroque finished their 2021-22 season at Harris Theater on Monday with The Brothers Haydn, a program centered on Joseph Haydn and his younger brother Michael. The older […]
Review: Cedille Records Continues to Release Excellence, Including a Grammy Award Winner by Jennifer Koh
Chicago’s classical music label Cedille Records has continued to release compelling CDs highlighting our city’s deep musical talent, both performers and composers. Two recent Cedille releases include compositions inspired by […]
Preview: Ian Maksin to Host Cello for Peace, a Concert Benefiting Humanitarian Efforts in Ukraine This Saturday
Russian-born American cellist Ian Maksin will be joining Ukrainian pianist and vocalist Sofi Fraser and other friends in Cello for Peace, a concert to support humanitarian efforts in Ukraine. In […]
Preview: 49th Annual Bach Week Festival Starts This Sunday
The 49th annual Bach Week Festival will feature a series of concerts running three weeks in Chicago and Evanston starting this Sunday, April 24. Last year’s festival was my first […]
Review: Herbert and Yang Deliver in Night 2 of Beethoven Cello Sonatas
It’s always a great sign when I exit a concert mumbling “wonderful,” but that’s what I was saying Wednesday night after cellist Oliver Herbert and Pianist Xiaohui Yang finished their […]