music
Renee Fleming keeps Lyric’s ‘Streetcar’ on course
In Lyric Opera’s semi-staged “A Streetcar Named Desire,” Renee Fleming’s intense commitment, Brad Dalton’s direction, a largely strong cast, Duane Schuler’s lighting wizardry, Johann Stegmeir’s effective period costuming and a good connection between American conductor Evan Rogister and the score and orchestra, create surprisingly moving performance, but it’s one much more of the theater than the opera.
Rolling Stones’ Keith Richards: I don’t own an iPod
NEW YORK — He’s rock royalty and likes to keep it old-school: Keith Richards says he doesn’t own an iPod. The Rolling Stones guitarist says he isn’t a fan of the ultra-popular music device. “I don’t have an iPod. ... I still use CDs or …
Evgeny Kissin once again proves he’s an heir to keyboard greats
In some ways, what Russian pianist Evgeny Kissin is doing at 41 is more astonishing than what he was sharing with a jaw-dropping world as a 12-year-old and teenager in the 1980s. He was a prodigy, without question, whose debuts in concert and recital around …
Chance the Rapper continues his artistic climb with ‘Acid Rain’
The second mixtape from Chance the Rapper positions him as Chicago’s biggest breakthrough hip-hop artist since Kanye West.
PHOTOS: Fitz and The Tantrums bring their energy to Double Door
Chicago has been somewhat of a second home to Fitz and The Tantrums, and Tuesday night at Double Door was no different as the band played a sold out show.
Nico Muhly composes music without limits
Whether writing a new work for the Metropolitan Opera or performing an indie-rock band like Antony and the Johnsons, Nico Muhly is at home in a wide range of musical settings.
Indeed, the 31-year-old Brooklyn composer and keyboardist is among the best known of a …
Lyric seeks the ‘Oklahoma!’ OK from a seasoned choreographer
NEIL STEINBERG: 91-year-old Gemze de Lappe, who danced with the original national company in 1943, brings her expertise to a Lyric Opera production that honors the historic legacy of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s landmark musical.
Sweet home Aurora: Top blues stars skip Chicago fest, head west
Buddy Guy, others opt to play at Blues on the Fox instead of the Chicago Blues Festival a week earlier in June. Going to the Grant Park festival is free. Aurora’s is not.
Indie pop group Fitz and the Tantrums set to play Double Door
Stepping out from the LA scene, Fitz and the Tantrums are ready for their closeup.
Chicago Sinfonietta superbly explores freedom with oud concerto, rare Dawson symphony
Audacious. Invigorating. Superbly executed. As it continues a transitional period following the retirement of its founder and longtime music director Paul Freeman, the Chicago Sinfonietta under Freeman’s successor Mei-Ann Chen is playing at the top of its form in programs that are fascinating both on …
Chicago Opera Theater singers, musicians carry Astor Piazzolla’s ‘Maria’ in overdue Chicago debut
Chicago Opera Theater continues its new “more of the different” mission in dramatic form under general director Andreas Mitisek with the much-belated Chicago premiere of Astor Piazzolla’s 1967-68 “tango operita” “Maria de Buenos Aries,” which received an enthusiastic ovation at its Saturday night opening at …
Fulcrum Point plays score live to enhance ‘Altered States’
As part of celebrations marking composer John Corigliano’s 75th birthday, the ensemble will accompany a screening of the 1980 sci-fi cult classic with a performance of its Oscar-nominated music.
Muti celebrates Spring residency with fine classic Austro-German survey
Riccardo Muti’s spring residency has featured extensive public rehearsals with the Civic Orchestra, the professional training arm of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra; a meeting with incarcerated youth at the West Side Cook County juvenile detention facility who performed their own compositions for the music director; …
Studio, live shows keep Three Dog Night in the hunt
As a founding member of classic rock band Three Dog Night, Danny Hutton could easily sit back and bask in the fame and successes of yesteryear — surround himself with four decades of accolades and line the walls of his recording studio with gold records. …
Josh Abbott Band rides wave of success
It has been said that there really is no magical formula when it comes to musical success. Yet, to hear singer/songwriter Josh Abbott talk makes one think that the former grad student from Texas just might be on to something. “I think everything in life …
Thielemann, Dresden Staatskapelle make a welcome return to Orchestra Hall
Wireless communication meant that the world was too much with many of us, late and soon, on Sunday at Orchestra Hall. Just before the much-anticipated Dresden Staatskapelle concert and the long-awaited return to Chicago of its new principal conductor Christian Thielemann, e-mail brought news of …
