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Chicago Sinfonietta Concert Digital Guides: Dig deeper. Experience More.

The Sinfonietta experience goes far beyond the notes on the page. Our digital guides are microsites that offer insights into the artists, composers, and audience engagement activities that make up each Chicago Sinfonietta concert. Learn more about the unique connections our programming makes between composers, pieces of music, contemporary artists, themes and more!

2019/20 Season

Forces + Fates

COMPOSERS: Mendelssohn, Smith, Isaac, Arroyo, Assad, Walker, Beethoven

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

Love + Light

COMPOSERS: Beethoven, Stravinsky, Subramaniam

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST CONDUCTOR:
Sameer Patel

GUEST ARTISTS:
Dr. L. Subramaniam, violin
Mandala Arts, dance ensemble

MLK Tribute Concert

COMPOSERS: Griffin, Gruselle, Thompson, Legend, Mahler

GUEST CONDUCTORS:
Jonathan Rush
Kedrick Armstrong

GUEST ARTISTS:
Kymberli Joye
The Adrian Dunn Singers
North Central College Concert Choir
Roosevelt University Conservatory Chorus

Sight + Sound

COMPOSERS: Schoenberg, Bryan, Mussorgsky

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
Jennifer Koh, violin

2018/19 Season

ID: Images of Diversity

COMPOSERS: Verdi, Copland, Marquez, Johnson, Boyer

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Steep Theatre

Sea of Light: Reflections on Diwali

COMPOSERS: Esmail, Mazumdar, Whitacre, Debussy

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Gaurav Mazumdar, sitar
Reena Esmail, composer

MLK Tribute Concert

COMPOSERS: Beethoven, Hailstork, Weston, Coleridge-Taylor, Lee III, Tippett

GUEST CONDUCTORS:
Kedrick Armstrong, Asst. Conductor*
Kellen Gray*

GUEST ARTIST:
Kyle Dickson, violin*
Kenneth Woods, orator
Waubonsie Valley Mosaic Choir

*Project Inclusion Alumni

In Darkness We Rise: A Concert of Remembrance

COMPOSERS: Debussy, Vaughan Williams, Levinson, Górecki

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
Twyla Robinson, soprano

FEATUED ARTIST:
Paul Zafer, concertmaster

SoundSketch: Portraits in Rhythm, Blues, & Beyond

COMPOSERS: Montgomery, Schiff, Elgar

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
Regina Carter, violin
Paola Avila, Project Inclusion Freeman Conducting Fellow
At Images of Diversity, audience members were invited to trace their ancestral journeys in addition to learning more about the amazing organizations supporting the Chicagoland immigrant and refugee communities, including Latinos Progresando, World Relief.
At our annual MLK Tribute Concert, audience members explores Chicago’s rich musical and social justice history with archives from The Center for Black Music Research, took the podium and learned how to conduct, made activist buttons, and soared with a special mural made by artists from BUILD Chicago - a partner of our Residents Orchestrate Project.
At SoundSketch, audience members explored the inner workings of the violin (literally) with luthier William Harris Lee & Co, saw and had self-portraits drawn by Chicago artist Arthur Wright, and discover your melody on our floor pianos.

2017/18 SEASON

Trademark

COMPOSERS: Montgomery, Mozart, Seeman, Lord Kitchener, Assad, Smetana

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Faye Seeman, Harp
Liam Teague, Steel Drum
Cerqua Rivera Dance Theatre
NIU Steelband

Regresar/Revisit

COMPOSERS: Piazzolla, Revueltas, Mozart, Grieg, Cortes, Moncayo

Hector Guzman, Guest Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
NewMoon Chicago
Roosevelt University Conservatory Choirs
Cuerdas Clásicas

MLK Tribute Concert: Ask Your Mama

COMPOSER: Laura Karpman

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
De'Adre Aziza, vocalist
Janai Brugger, soprano
Nnenna Freelon, jazz vocalist
Patricia Frazier, spoken word
Kee Stein, spoken word

Hear Me Roar: A Celebration of Women in Classical Music

COMPOSERS: Price, Higdon, Esmail, Pejačević

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor

FEATURED ARTISTS:
Carol Dylan, violin
Ann Griffin, cello
Karen Nelson, violin
Marlea Simpson, viola

Praise and Punk: The Ending of All Endings

COMPOSERS: Butler, Saint-Saëns, Deitrich, Prokofiev, and various

Mei-Ann Chen, Conductor
Kellen Gray, Guest Conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Melissa White, violin
Ifetayo Ali-Landing, cello
Apostolic Church of God Sanctuary Choir
Mucca Pazza
2017/18

Audience Engagement Highlights

At our annualMLK Tribute Concert , audience members explored Chicago's rich musical and social justice history with archives from The Center for Black Music Research, in addition to making activist buttons and taking the podium to learn how to conduct with our Project Inclusion Freeman Conducting Fellow.
2016/17

SEASON

Unhinged

COMPOSERS: Glinka, Stravinsky, Jackson, Gershwin, Poulenc, Coldplay

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Anderson and Roe, piano duo
Clayton Stephenson, piano

Dia De Los Muertos

COMPOSERS: Golijov, Beethoven, Mussorgsky, Rivera, Saint-Saëns, Galindo

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Chicago Film Archives

MLK Tribute Concert

COMPOSERS: Williams, Vivaldi, Dvořák, Beethoven

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
E'mon Lauren, Chicago Youth Poet Laureate
Maria Arrua, violin
Tara Lynn Ramsey, violin
Tomar Marcus, violin
Teddy Wiggins, violin
Kimberly Gunderson, soprano
Louise Rogan, mezzo-soprano
Jared Esguerra, tenor
Nicolas Davis, baritone
Roosevelt University Concervatory Choirs

More Than A Letter

COMPOSERS: Christy/Moccio, Bernstein, Rachmaninoff, Barber, Higon, Conte

Michael Morgan, guest conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Sara Davis Buechner,piano
Allegrezza Singers, choir
Musicality, choir

Rightness In The Rhythm

COMPOSERS: Joplin, Abels, Gershwim, Bernstein

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Marcus Roberts Trio, jazz trio

FEATURED ARTISTS:
John Floeter, Jeff Handley, Matt Lee, Chicago Sinfonietta Musicians
2016/17

Audience Engagement Highlights

At Unhinged, audience members tried their hands (and feet) at playing the piano with pop-up piano lessons, floor keyboards, and a display of deconstructed pianos to experience the instrument from the inside out!
At our annual Dia de los Muertos Concert, audience members explored the Mexican tradition in our celebration with crafting, face paint, and our very own altar honoring the dead.
At More than a Letter, audience members explored the never-ending human question of identity with self-portrait collages, letters of encouragement, and watched a collection of coming out stories from VideoOut!
At Rightness in the Rhythm audience members learned about Chicago's rich jazz history with archives from DuSable Museum, played an instrument in Chicago Jazz Philharmonic’s Instrument Petting Zoo, and jumped in and joined the Jones College Prep jazz combo for a jam session!
2015/16

SEASON

Tap In. Turn Up.

COMPOSERS: Sierra, Stravinsky, Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Cartier Williams, tap master
Clinard Dance Theatre

Día de los Muertos

COMPOSERS: Barber, Faure, Barilari, Frank, Wagner, Moncayo

Andres Franco, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Varsity Choirs of Waubonsie Valley High School

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Tribute Concert

COMPOSERS: Smallwood, Ellisor/Wooten, Gandolfi, Various Gospels and Spirituals, Legend

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Victor Wooten, Apostolic Church of God Sanctuary Choir

BYOB: Bring Your Own Beat

COMPOSERS: Still, Lorenz, Chadwick, Higdon, and Ginastera

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Alcides Rodriguez, maracas and Cynthia Yeh, percussion

Cosmic Convergence

COMPOSERS: Sierra, Abels, Tchaikovsky, Holst, Estacio, Berlioz, and Mussorgsky, arr. Ravel

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
José Francisco Salgado, astronomer & visual artist
2014/15

SEASON

Rethink. Redefine. Reimagine.

COMPOSERS: Vaughan Williams, Price, Britten, Messing, Mahler, Smith, Tchaikovsky

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
Mucca Pazza

Día de los Muertos 2014

COMPOSERS: Giménez, Sibelius, Rodríguez, de Falla, Márquez

Lucia Matos, guest conductor

GUEST ARTIST:
Redmoon

Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 2015

COMPOSERS: Hardeman, Saint-Saëns, Copland, Various

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Sujari Britt, cello
Jherrard Hardeman, guest composer & conductor
Waubonsie Valley Mosaic Choir
Wayne K. Woods, orator
Young Chicago Authors

Primal Instincts

COMPOSERS:Bizet, Solla, Orff

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Cristina Pato, gaita
Kimberly Jones, soprano
Jonathan Calvin Weyant, tenor
Joseph Lattanzi, baritone
Roosevelt University CCPA Conservatory Chorus
Anima – Young Singers of Greater Chicago

United We Stand

COMPOSERS: Ives, Williams, Dvořák

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

14/15

Audience Engagement Highlights

2013/14

Season

eMotion

COMPOSERS: TCHAIKOVSKY, PRICE, KHACHATURIAN, RACHMANINOFF

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Footworkingz
Kuumba Lynx

Día de Muertos 2013

COMPOSERS: GOLIJOV, MOZART, PIAZZOLLA, DE FALLA

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Adé Williams
Elizabeth Norman

Tribute to Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. 2014

COMPOSERS: VERD, STRAUSS, R, JacobTV, GOULD, VARIOUS: Gospels & Spirituals

Mei-Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Nicole Cash, horn
Apostolic Church of God Sanctuary Choir
Roosevelt University CCPA Conservatory Chorus

Global Dance Party

COMPOSERS: PIAZZOLLA, VILLA‐LOBOS, DJ REKHA, SHARMA, HOLLAND, DOHNANYI

Alexandra Arrieche, conductor
Joseph Young, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
DJ Rekha
Dave Sharma

Identities

COMPOSERS: LEVINSON, SHAPIRO, M / CHENG, V, ENESCU

Mei‐Ann Chen, conductor

GUEST ARTISTS:
Maxwell Street Klezmer Band
Alex Koffman, Violin
Su Chang 蘇 暢, guzheng
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