Celebrating Margaret Hillis’s Centennial

October 3, 2021, 8:00 pm

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black and white photo of Margaret Hillis smiling onstage at Symphony Center
Margaret Hillis onstage in Orchestra Hall in 1978 (Terry’s Photography)

Despite being founded nearly 65 years ago, to this day, the Chicago Symphony Chorus has had just two directors: Margaret Hillis and Duain Wolfe. Hillis, born October 1, 1921, founded the chorus in the 1957-58 season. As WFMT general manager George Preston reflected, under Hillis’s leadership, the chorus “became a model for other symphony choruses to aspire to.” Margaret Hillis retired as the chorus’s director in 1994, after 37 years of service. She died in 1998 at age 76.

This commemorative program recognizes Margaret Hillis’s remarkable work as founder and director of the Chicago Symphony Chorus in music by Bach, Bartók, and Verdi.

Playlist

Brahms: Wie lieblich sind deine Wohnungen from A German Requiem, Op. 45
Chicago Symphony Chorus: Margaret Hillis, director; Sir Georg Solti, conductor

Bartók: Cantata profana
John Aler, tenor; John Tomlinson, bass; Chicago Symphony Chorus: Margaret Hillis, director; Pierre Boulez, conductor

Verdi: Messa da Requiem
Leontyne Price, soprano; Janet Baker, mezzo-soprano; Veriano Luchetti, tenor; José van Dam, bass-baritone; Chicago Symphony Chorus: Margaret Hillis, director; Sir Georg Solti, conductor