17-year-old Jai Bartley used to think that opera was “really long and boring.” Now, she’s producing and performing in EMPOWER, an original opera set to have its world-premiere performance at Lyric Opera of Chicago.

On May 16, 2018, what would have been Studs’s 106th birthday, listeners will have more access to this incredible gold mine of materials than ever before.

Longtime friends, musician Frank Orrall (Poi Dog Pondering and Thievery Corporation) and chef John Manion have inspired and shared each other’s passion for music and cooking. And one of their favorite subjects to talk about is the relationship between these two art forms.

Florence Price, Margaret Bonds, Irene Britton Smith, Nora Holt, and countless other women of color contributed to the Chicago Black Renaissance and changed classical music around the world.

Over the last sixty years, the Old Town School of Folk Music has grown from humble beginnings to become the largest nonprofit community arts school in the United States.

WFMT’s long-time resident “free spirit” Studs Terkel died near a decade ago, on Halloween in 2008, but he just made his Carnegie Hall debut. What brought about this feat of artistic time travel?

Since the soprano’s career takes her around the country and the world, her time in Chicago between gigs can be limited. But there are four things she has to do whenever she’s back home.

On October 20, 1977, the first Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concert was presented in Chicago, inspired by Dame Myra Hess’ passion to make music accessible for all.

When Anish Kapoor visited his iconic sculpture or the first time since it was completed in 2006, he had to take his first selfies with it.

The Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra (IPO), based in south suburban Park Forest, is celebrating its 40th season, and the orchestra welcomes a new face to the podium: conductor Stilian Kirov.

Chicago-based Mariachi Herencia de México released its debut album, “Nuestra Herenica” (“Our Heritage”), in early 2017 and it ranked No. 2 on the iTunes Latin chart in its first week. Since the ensemble is composed of pre-college musicians, the album may be the first major mariachi recording released in the United States by students.

Kevin Ambrose, a theater student at Columbia College, loved to perform ever since he was a child, explained his mother Ebony. “I kind of grew up on Columbia’s campus, because my mom worked there,” Ebony said, “so I also grew up around the arts and always loved it. When it came time for me to have kids, I wanted them …

Whether you’re new to opera or consider yourself a connoisseur, there’s something for everyone to enjoy this fall in Chicago. Here are four operas we are excited to see in the coming months.

In the summer, Chicago is teeming with block parties and street fests. Over the weekend, the Thirsty Ears Classical Music Street Festival filled the block of Wilson Avenue between Ravenswood and Hermitage with music you won’t likely hear at other Chicago street fests – or at least, not in this format. Thirsty Ears, a two-year-old project of the Chicago organization …

For 50 years, the sculpture, known simply as the Chicago Picasso, has delighted and baffled passersby. The artist never revealed his inspiration.

Since Riccardo Muti became the CSO’s music director in 2010, Chicagoans have enjoyed many magical moments with the maestro.

Soprano Whitney Morrison began singing before she could even speak. Through her early years of singing in church, she never thought she would pursue a career in opera. Now, Morrison is one of 12 young artists selected for the 2017/2018 ensemble at Lyric Opera of Chicago’s Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center. The Ryan Opera Center is one …

In April 2017, 99 percussionists joined composer Marta Ptaszyńska for the world-premiere performance of her piece Voice of the Winds at the Museum of Contemporary Art – Chicago. The performance was presented by the MCA-Chicago and Contempo of the University of Chicago Presents, of which Ptaszyńska serves as artistic director. Logistically, Ptaszyńska’s piece presents some obvious challenges. First, you need …

“Yo-Yo Ma wanted to meet with me, and I thought it was a joke,” Reverend Michael L. Pfleger said to an audience of over 1,000 people at St. Sabina Church.

Net proceeds from the remaining ticket sales will benefit St. Sabina’s Strong Futures employment program, which currently serves 50 young people ages 17-26 by providing training, mentorship, and other services.

As a composer, conductor, and educator, Leonard Bernstein’s contributions left a tremendous impact on American classical and popular music. Ravinia celebrates his centenary.

If there’s any neighborhood in Chicago where a Czech swing orchestra and an Afro-Latin funk band can share a stage, it’s Pilsen. The neighborhood has been home to diverse music and musicians since its early history and today it remains a musical melting pot of traditions from around the world.

Returning to her alma mater for the first time in nearly 40 years, Dorothy Han performed and led a workshop in the very same Kenwood Academy classroom she once rehearsed in.

If you like to accompany your favorite pieces of classical music with a cocktail, try this drink that pairs perfectly with a sonata by Ravel.

Hear a rarely-heard live performance by Mahalia Jackson’s broadcast from the Morrison Hotel in 1975 courtesy of the Studs Terkel Radio Archive.