“We’re all different, our voices are different, our bodies are different, our temperaments. In a thousand ways, I’m not going to be the singer next to me. We have to figure it out,” says the superstar soprano.
See Rossini's uproarious opera as performed by one of the world's leading opera companies.
Perform on WFMT’s showcase of the Chicago area’s finest pre-college musicians!
From Cigar Box to Strad — Vadim Gluzman’s Lifetime of Being Chosen by The Violin
In between back-to-back lessons for around 30 students at his alma mater, Keshet Eilon International Music Center in Israel, Vadim Gluzman has been preparing for his upcoming Grant Park Music Festival performances of Bernstein’s Serenade on August 2nd and 3rd. These concerts mark Gluzman’s return to Chicago after weeks of travel, and before yet another period of touring around ...
Grant Park Music Festival’s “Pastoral Picnic in White” in Pictures
A flurry of white dresses and shirts, white tablecloths and candelabras sprinkled the Great Lawn in Millennium Park as patrons celebrated the Grant Park Music Festival’s annual “Pastoral Picnic in White” on Saturday, July 27. Originally inspired by a 1988 gathering at the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, the Grant Park Music Festival joins thousands of similar “Dinners in White” ...
The McGill Brothers return home for Grant Park Music Festival debut [Video]
Hailing from Chicago's South Side, flutist Demarre McGill and clarinetist Anthony McGill return home this weekend to make their Grant Park Music Festival debuts performing the works of Saint-Saëns and Joel Puckett. That's not to say that Demarre, the principal flutist for the Seattle Symphony, and Anthony, the principal clarinetist for the New York Philharmonic, don't get back to their ...
Tour the Glyndebourne gardens, where music meets nature
Glyndebourne, located in the England countryside, declares that it produces “no ordinary opera,” and one could certainly use a similar mantra for its stately, stunning gardens. Musicians and patrons alike gain inspiration from the visual splendor of Glyndebourne. And according to Glyndebourne’s head gardener Kevin Martin, the inspiration is mutual. “I get inspiration from the music but also from the ...
Off the Beaten Path: 9 Underrated Venues for Classical Music in Chicago
The Windy City is home to some of the greatest venues in the world to see classical music. From Symphony Center and Lyric Opera House to Millennium Park and Auditorium Theater, Chicago boasts large houses that are just as beautiful and grand as they are sonically pleasing. Beyond these major houses, Chicago is filled with smaller venues that can bring ...
Watch Glyndebourne’s vivid Barber of Seville [Video]
From the iconic overture to Figaro’s scintillating entrance aria — and all of the deception and hilarity that ensues — Gioachino Rossini’s Il barbiere di Siviglia (The Barber of Seville) is opera buffa, or comic opera, at its best. See the uproarious opera performed on the stage of Glyndebourne, one of the world's leading opera companies.
On the 50th anniversary of the moon landing, hear a song cycle inspired by American women astronauts
In February, soprano Tamara Wilson joined WFMT to perform a celestial song cycle composed for her by Chicago composer James Kallembach. The works draw from the experience of women astronauts, including Sally Ride, Sunita Williams, and Peggy Whitson. We're bringing this video back in honor of the 50th anniversary of the moon landing.
Anthony Davis’ The Central Park Five — Opera as Mirror of Modern Society
Classical and jazz composer-pianist Anthony Davis is known for writing operas based on historical figures, notably X, The Life and Times of Malcolm X. His latest opera, The Central Park Five, with a libretto by Richard Wesley, premiered in June 2019. We spoke with the composer and members of the creative team about bringing the opera to life.
Hit the Road with these 3 Classical Music Road Trips You Can Take from Chicago
I confess I do need an excuse to take a road trip. But if there’s a guarantee that the sun will be shining, the scenery beautiful, the temperature warm, and the traffic navigable, I can be convinced. And, if there’s great music to be heard at the end of the journey, I’m long gone! Kalamazoo, Michigan was one such destination ...
Maggie & Michael’s Great British Playlist!
Some of the most beautiful music ever composed originates from or was inspired by the British Isles. Weekend morning program host Maggie Clennon Reberg and Introductions host and producer Michael San Gabino have selected some of their favorites in this great British playlist!
