Playlist: Christmas Classics Performed by Chicago Artists

Chicagoans really know how to celebrate the holidays! Here’s a playlist of Christmas favorites as performed by Chicago-area artists and ensembles.

Playlist: Aeronautic and Maritime Music for the Skies and Seas

Brace your ears: the Chicago Air and Water Show is upon us! But there’s more to hear than the roars of the Blue Angels and Red Arrows — take in the excitement while listening to music inspired by aviation and nautical navigation!

Playlist: WFMT Selects Classical Music to Help You Spring into Spring

You made it; the frigid, blustery days of winter have finally passed, and spring is here! Here is some music that captures the season’s irrepressible spirit.

Playlist: Classical Music for Weddings (That’s Not Pachelbel’s Canon)

If you’re looking to add a classical touch to your nuptials, but would like to avoid the ubiquitous “Canon,” we’ve compiled a list of some of our favorite pieces to match the mood of each moment in the ceremony.

Grant Park Music Festival Announces 2018 Season

The summer festival’s 2018 season of concerts runs for 10 weeks from June 13 to August 18.

Hess Concerts Celebrates 40 Years of Presenting Free Music in Downtown Chicago

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.

10 Composers Who Surprised Us With Their Hidden Talents

Though we tend to remember our favorite composers for their music first and foremost, many of them were virtuosic in more ways than one.

Video: This Dog Wanted to Hear Mendelssohn Better, So It Took a Seat Next to the First Violinist

Dog image: SixtyWeb, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons This cute Labrador may be the biggest Mendelssohn fan you’ve seen. A dog joined the Vienna Chamber Orchestra during a recent performance of Felix Mendelssohn’s Symphony No. 4 at the 31st International İzmir Festival in İzmir, Turkey. This outdoor annual festival brings live concerts to the historic stage of the Grand Theater of Ephesus, …

Art and Music: Mendelssohn’s Watercolors

Felix Mendelssohn was a beacon in his world, whether as a conductor, composer, scholar, or painter. As a painter, he wallowed in images of man in dialogue with nature: landscapes with buildings or people under trees. The image to the right is of an unknown subject, but brings to mind the mysterious, churning sounds of his Hebrides Overture, and offers …