2023-2024 Performances
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra returns to Wheaton College’s beautiful Edman Memorial Chapel on November 17, 2023, for the first of three performances. We are happy to host the Orchestra and bring the best of Chicago to Wheaton.
Friday, November 17 | 7:30 p.m.
The Rite of Spring and Kavakos
A panorama of ancient pagan rituals, Stravinsky’s The Rite of Spring put modernism squarely on the map. Experience the swaggering and suspenseful ballet score that drove Parisian audiences to riot at its 1913 premiere. Leonidas Kavakos brings an “intense, silken, mercurial” sound (The Guardian) to his rendition of Szymanowski’s folk-inspired Second Violin Concerto. Mussorgsky’s fiery depiction of a witches’ sabbath opens the program.
Friday, March 22, 7:30 p.m.
Mahler 4
In his 2019 CSO debut, Spanish guitarist Pablo Sáinz-Villegas thrilled with “the profundities of his art,” along with “the sheen of his tone and the nobility of his rhythms,” wrote the Chicago Tribune. Sáinz-Villegas joins the ensemble in two pieces with a bright Mediterranean character. Making a welcome return to the CSO, Bernard Labadie conducts the program, featuring dark-hued symphonies by Mozart and Boccherini.
Friday, April 19, 7:30 p.m.
Chopin & Tchaikovsky
Tugan Sokhiev conducts Tchaikovsky’s youthful First Symphony, nicknamed Winter Dreams for its cozy evocation of Russian winters. Chopin’s exuberant Piano Concerto No. 1 features Russian pianist Yulianna Avdeeva, described by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette as “a one-woman powerhouse” who “stole the show.” Andrzej Panufnik’s Heroic Overture, composed in 1952, is a tribute to the courageous spirit of the Polish people.
Wheaton College and the CSO Partnership
Since its first performance at Wheaton College in 1960, the CSO has performed in Edman Memorial Chapel nearly 20 times. Consistently rated as one of the world’s most respected orchestras, the CSO is expanding its engagement with west-suburban audiences hoping to reach new generations with the glory of symphonic music. Read a feature article at CSO Sounds & Stories about this new partnership. >>
Purchase Tickets
Tickets can be purchased at the CSO website, by calling 312.294.3000, or at the Symphony Center Box Office at 220 S. Michigan Avenue, Chicago. Tickets for these performances are not available from the Wheaton College Ticket Office.