Recorded in front of a live audience at the Harris Theater, this performance serves as a souvenir from Giancarlo Guerrero’s first season as Grant Park Music Festival Artistic Director and Prinicipal Conductor. “Early in his tenure, Guerrero has already developed sufficient rapport with his players that they could mutually revel in Shostakovich’s acrobatic antics,” noted Tim Sawyier for Chicago Classical …

It’s not very hard to sing, but it is hard to sing well. So getting the singers to engage with it can be part of the challenge.

The Nicaragua-born Costa Rican conductor visited WFMT to preview the upcoming Grant Park season, discuss his favorite summertime activities, and more.

“Now that I am artistic director, I get to find excuses to make music with these amazing colleagues. They inspire not only our orchestra, but our audiences.”

Summertime is upon us! Make the most of Chicago’s most exciting season with this eclectic sampling of concerts, exhibitions, and events!

The festival reveals a one-night-only concert featuring some high-powered talent.

Marking the free classical music festival’s first season led by Artistic Director and Principal Conductor Giancarlo Guerrero.

The appointment is effective immediately, and begins with the programming of the cherished summer festival’s 2025 season.

The closing concert of the season.

Plus Copland’s quintessential Appalachian Spring.

Plus Sibelius’ hauntingly beautiful Swan of Tuonela and the suite from Janáček’s piquant opera The Cunning Little Vixen.

Grant Park Music Festival String Fellows are violinists Alba Layana Izurieta and Janani Sivakumar, violist Harper Randolph, and cellist Gabriel Hightower.

Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony is a thriller and a longtime audience favorite.

It’s an evening of tributes, with brilliant composers borrowing tunes by other brilliant composers to cast a spell of musical delights.

Written under threat by the tyrant Joseph Stalin, the Fifth Symphony is as satisfying as it is subversive. Giancarlo Guerrero conducts.

With Christopher Bell decked in red, white, and blue, the Grant Park Orchestra presents Leonard Bernstein, John Williams, John Philip Sousa, and the ever-popular Armed Forces Salute in a glorious summer tradition.

Music and the struggle for freedom go hand in hand. The program pairs Beethoven overtures with two works championing freedom and social justice in our own country.

Concerts, festivals, and more to celebrate Juneteenth in Chicago.

Alban Gerhardt plays Dvořák’s deeply moving Cello Concerto, and we hear works by Britten and Clyne.

Summer arts riches — from open air concerts to music legends passing through our great city.

From world premieres to timeless favorites, the exciting slate of concert broadcasts has something for everyone.

In addition to her respected artistry, Slack’s industry-leading endeavors strive to make classical music and opera more accessible and inclusive.

The series presents savvy commuters with free, approachable concerts at River North’s Saint James Cathedral.

Sanders was the last active member of the legendary Frank Miller-helmed CSO cello section.

Another packed summer of live music awaits.