2011/2012 Season Calendar
Fall 2011
Friday / October 14, 2011 / 7:30 PM
SEASON OPENING!
English Concert
Harry Bicket, conductor/harpsichord
$40 / $5 students
Works by Purcell, Vivaldi, Telemann, and Vivaldi
The English Concert is among the finest chamber orchestras in the world, with an unsurpassed reputation for inspiring performances of Baroque and Classical music. The evening includes Vivaldi's impressive "La Follia" Sonata and Purcell's Suite from Fairy Queen.
Friday / October 21, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Borodin Quartet
(Mandel Hall debut)
$35 / $5 students
6:30 pm Pre-concert lecture with Philip Gossett
String Quartets by Borodin, Stravinsky, and Shostakovich
Commanding a special position in the chamber music world, the Borodin Quartet's affinity with Russian repertoire was stimulated by a close relationship with Shostakovich, who personally supervised its study of each of his quartets. Hear the Quartet's stunning, signature interpretations in their Mandel Hall debut.
Friday / October 28, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Irish Chamber Orchestra
Gerard Korsten, conductor
Leon Fleisher, piano
$40 / $5 students
Works by Haydn, Prokofiev, Elaine Agnew, and Beethoven
The Irish Chamber Orchestra has gained a reputation as a vibrant, refreshing, and influential force on the classical and contemporary music scene, excelling in a large range of repertoire from the baroque to modern day masterpieces. Leon Fleisher returns to Mandel Hall and joins the orchestra, performing Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 4, a work for which he has set the standard.
Sunday / October 30, 2011 / 3 PM
Pacifica Quartet
$25 / $5 students
String Quartets by Schnittke, Myaskovksy, and Shostakovich
Fresh from their 2010/11 Shostakovich string quartet cycle, the Pacifica Quartet continues their exploration of Russian repertoire at Mandel Hall. Don't miss the Quartet's reprise of Shostakovich, which The Chicago Tribune called the "hottest ticket in Chicago."
Friday / November 4, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Sergey Khachatryan, violin
Lusine Khachatryan, piano
(Chicago debut)
$35 / $5 students
Violin Sonatas by Beethoven and Shostakovich
Winner of the Sibelius and Queen Elizabeth competitions, Armenian violinist Sergey Khachatryan makes his Chicago debut with sister Lusine at the keyboard. The program features Beethoven's Violin Sonatas No. 2 and No. 5, also known as the "Spring" sonata.
Tuesday / November 15, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Contempo Double-Bill
Harris Theater for Music and Dance
Tickets: 312.334.7777
Cliff Colnot, conductor
eighth blackbird
Pacifica Quartet
Anima - Emily Ellsworth, Artistic Director
Amy Briggs, piano
HIROMI: THE TRIO PROJECT featuring Anthony Jackson (Bass) and Simon Phillips (Drums)
$25 / $5 students
Works by Nancarrow, Frederic Rzewski, Shapey, and the Chicago premiere of Nico Muhly's "How Soon."
The innovative, annual double bill features an exciting opening set of new music, performed by Grammy-winning artists and special guests, followed by a second half of imaginative jazz with the buzz-worthy and passionate pianist/composer Hiromi, who London's Globe and Mail said should become "a household name."
Friday / November 18, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Discovery Concert:
Morgenstern Trio
(Chicago debut)
$15 / $5 students
Works by Debussy, Mozart, and Smetana
In January 2010, the Morgenstern Trio received the coveted Kalichstein-Laredo-Robinson Piano Trio Award, a prize that comes with twenty major debuts across the US, including this Chicago debut. They will perform three trios, including Smetana's Piano Trio, the first of several pieces of music inspired by the tragedy of Smetana's beloved daughter.
Friday / December 9, 2011 / 7:30 PM
Tallis Scholars: Holiday Program
Rockefeller Memorial Chapel
$20 / $5 students
Works by Sweelinck, Taverner, White, Arvo Pärt, Praetorius, Morales, Britten, and Palestrina
This special holiday program is structured around settings of the Magnificat, also known as the Song of Mary. These settings are diverse and masterful, featuring English, Estonian, German, and Italian. The evening begins with Sweelinck's most famous Christmas motet, Hodie Christus natus est (Today Christ is born).
Winter 2012
Sunday / January 22, 2012 / 3 PM
Pacifica Quartet
Jorge Federico Osorio, piano
$25 / $5 students
Works by Beethoven and Dvořák
The abundantly gifted Mexican pianist Jorge Federico Osorio joins Pacifica Quartet on a program including the beloved Dvořák Piano Quintet. A resident of Highland Park, Osorio has been described by the Chicago Tribune as "a serious and cultivated Beethoven player," a "rigorous, intelligent musician," and a "brilliant virtuoso."
Friday / January 27, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Miró Quartet
Anton Nel, piano
$35 / $5 students
Works by Schubert, Brahms, and Elgar
Previously UCP's 2004/05 Discovery Artist, the Miró Quartet has since become one of America's highest-profile chamber groups. Currently on faculty at the University of Texas at Austin, the Quartet performs Elgar's stunning Piano Quintet with their UT colleague Anton Nel.
Friday / February 3, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Peter Serkin, piano
$35 / $5 students
Works by Beethoven, Wolpe, Wuorinen, and Takemitsu
Distinguished American pianist Peter Serkin performs a program including Beethoven's monumental Diabelli Variations, which many writers and composers have called one of the greatest sets of variations ever written. An avid proponent of the music of many of the 20th and 21st century's most important composers, Serkin's distinctive musical vision is not to be missed!
February 15, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Contempo: Portrait of Sofia Gubaidulina
Harris Theater for Music and Dance
Tickets: 312.334.7777
eighth blackbird
Pacifica Quartet
$25 / $5 students
This all-Sofia Gubaidulina program includes the world premiere of A Pilgrimage of Four, commissioned for Contempo by The Serge Koussevitzky Music Foundation in the Library of Congress and The Koussevitzky Music Foundation, Inc.
Friday / February 17, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Fauré Quartett
(Chicago Debut)
$35 / $5 students
Piano Quartets by Mahler, Fauré, and Brahms
The award winning, up and coming piano quartet continues to receive rave review from across the globe, described as having "flawless precision and breathtaking musicality" (Deustchland Radio) and "chamber music making of the highest order" (Radio Bremen). Hear them perform signature piano quartets, including the Fauré.
Friday / March 2, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Isabel Bayrakdarian, soprano
Serouj Kradjian, piano
$35 / $5 students
Works by Liszt, Ravel, Obradors, Gomidas, Heggie, and Berlioz
Isabel Bayrakdarian burst onto the international opera scene after winning first prize in the 2000 Operalia competition founded by Plácido Domingo. Since then she has performed in many of the world's major opera houses and concert halls, including the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and has been critically acclaimed for her memorable song recitals.
Spring 2012
Friday / April 13, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Rebel Ensemble
$35 / $5 students
"Irregular Pearls: Baroque Music from European Courts & Chambers"
Works by Vivaldi, Rossi, Bertali, Mealli, Corelli, Telemann, Mancini and Leclair.
Hailed by the New York Times as "sophisticated and beguiling" the New York-based Baroque ensemble Rebel has earned an impressive international reputation for their provocative approach to Baroque and Classical repertoire. Tonight also marks Mattias Maute's return to Mandel Hall after a triumphant debut with Ensemble Caprice during the 07/08 season.
Sunday / April 15, 2012 / 6:00 PM
Gretchen Parlato Quartet
Gretchen Parlato, vocals
Taylor Eigsti, piano and keyboard
Alan Hampton, bass
Kendrick Scott, drums
$20 / $10 students
Jazz program to be announced from stage
First place winner of the Thelonious Monk Int'l Jazz Vocals Competition (2004), Gretchen Parlato has been a rising jazz star described as having a "deep, almost magical connection to the music," by jazz pianist Herbie Hancock. Saxophonist/composer Wayne Shorter said that, "in an inconspicuous way, Gretchen plays the same instrument as Frank Sinatra. There's no one out there like Gretchen."
Sunday / April 22, 2012 / 3 PM / Mandel Hall
Pacifica Quartet
$25 / $5 students
Works by Haydn, Weinberg, and Beethoven
Surrounded by string quartet masters Haydn and Beethoven, the Pacifica Quartet performs the rarely heard Sixth String Quartet by Moishe Weinberg, a prolific Soviet composer and contemporary of Shostakovich and Prokofiev.
Friday / May 11, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Tomorrow's Music Today I
eighth blackbird
Pacifica Quartet
FREE
Works by Jae-Goo Lee, Tomas Ignacio Gueglio, and Andrew McManus
Fulton Recital Hall
Friday / May 18, 2012 / 7:30 PM
Tomorrow's Music Today II
eighth blackbird
Pacifica
Quartet
Anubis Quartet
FREE
Works by Shawn Allison, Iddo Aharony, Takuma Tanikawa, and Francisco Castillo Trigueros
Ganz Hall, Roosevelt University
Hear music by University of Chicago's doctoral candidates in composition in this annual pair of free concerts. Some of today's finest young composers realize their vision through creative interactions with Contempo's Grammy-winning artists-in-residence.