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Classical Mon May 06 2013
Pulling Strings: For classical music in Chicago, you got a guy - May 2013
By Elliot Mandel
In memory of the great Janos Starker, watch this pure musician do his thing:
Britten 100
Benjamin Britten was one of the towering figures in 20th Century music, and this year marks the 100th anniversary of the English composer's birth. Chicago joins the celebration when the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center returns to the Harris Theater for a one-night, all-Britten program. Led by cellist David Finckel (formerly of the Emerson Quartet) and pianist Wu Han, the Chamber Music Society performs a program that shows off Britten's prolific output for a variety of instrumental and vocal combinations. The performance includes the Sonata in C for Cello and Piano, Two Insect Pieces for Oboe and Piano, Canticle II: Abraham and Isaac for Tenor, Countertenor, and Piano, and Three Divertimenti for String Quartet with the Orion String Quartet. Tickets start at $15. Wednesday, May 8, 7:30pm. Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph, Chicago.
Chicago Symphony Orchestra: Sheherazade
Rimsky-Korsakov's most famous work, Sheherazade, is a great showpiece for any large orchestra, full of lush instrumentation and mysterious storytelling. The CSO is particularly gifted with this repertoire, offering audiences a chance to hear some intoxicating solos from the principal woodwind, brass, and string players, including the famous violin melody in the hands of Concertmaster Robert Chen. The program features the Mississippi River suite by Florence Price, the first African American woman to gain national recognition as a composer. Her voice, and many other oft-neglected minority composers, is one regularly embraced by the Chicago Sinfonietta, whose music director, Mei-Ann Chen, leads the CSO as guest conductor. Tickets start at $28. Thursday, May 9 and Saturday, May 11, 8pm. Tuesday, May 14, 7:30pm. Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Ave., Chicago.
Spektral and Avalon Quartets
The Spektral and Avalon string quartets -- two of the finest and most adventurous quartets in Chicago (or anywhere) -- share the stage at Ganz Hall in Mendelssohn's famous and much-loved Octet in E-flat major. The program includes separate performances by each quartet: the Spektral in the world premiere of Chicago composer Ben Hjertmann's Etude; and the Avalon in Bartók's thorny Quartet No. 2. Tickets are $20/general, $5/students. Wednesday, May 29, 7:30pm. Ganz Hall at Roosevelt University, 430 S. Michigan Ave., 7th floor, Chicago.
Programs, artists, and prices subject to change. Tickets subject to availability.
About the author: Elliot Mandel plays cello, attends lots of concerts, writes reviews, and takes pictures. He's practicing etudes in honor of Starker.