A darker Walt Disney conjured in ‘The Perfect American’
It must be hard for those weaned on digital culture to appreciate the enormous impact Walt Disney and his entertainment empire had on my generation. When I was growing up,...
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Review: Third Coast Baroque gets its groove on in lively program
Chicago early-music groups are finding that maintaining a level of support necessary for long-term survival (let alone success) in a highly competitive classical music environment, venturing interesting repertory that nobody...
Neeme Jarvi with the CSO started strongly, but fizzled by the end
The music led by Neeme Jarvi with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra this weekend is concerned with matters of the spirit, matters of the heart and matters of nature. The distinguished,...
Recommended Chicago-area classical concerts
Contempo: The gallery spaces of the Museum of Contemporary Art are given over to a contemporary percussion spectacular when Eighth Blackbird's Matthew Duvall and 99 – that's right, 99 –...
Philip Glass’ opera ‘The Perfect American’ imagines Walt Disney’s demons
Walt Disney famously declared that his greatest creation was Walt Disney. But who was the man behind his grand invention? What do we find when we peer behind the facade...
For Easter weekend, CSO offers contrasting musical visions of spirituality
Neither Richard Wagner nor Gabriel Faure nor Arthur Honegger was particularly religious, but all three composers wrote music that is associated with aspects of Christian religious belief. It was to...
Recommended Chicago-area classical concerts
"Amadeus": Director Milos Forman's multiple-Oscar-winning film about Mozart and his "nemesis," composer Antonio Salieri, receives back-to-back screenings, incorporating live performances of Mozart's music from the soundtrack by the Chicago Symphony...
Ravinia creates conductor laureate title for James Levine
Conductor James Levine, whose 21-year tenure as music director of the Ravinia Festival was a watershed in its long and illustrious history, soon will return to the summer home of...
Recent albums highlight an extraordinary array of Chicago classical musicians and composers
An unusually large number of Chicago and Chicago-associated musicians, ensembles and composers figure prominently in classical albums released within recent months. The following recordings merit attention not just because they...
Audience for Lyric’s recital by Brownlee, Owens feels spirit, and then some
Given the clash of personalities, not to mention egos, that often results when big-name opera singers are joined in recital, such events often turn out to be more like struggles...