Classical Music [Chicago Cultural Center]

Five of the Chicago Cultural Center’s ongoing series present classical music. Additional one-time events present a variety of other performers and ensembles. Admission is free.

Classical Mondays explores a rich diversity of chamber music, featuring Chicago’s most talented instrumentalists and vocalists (held year round on Mondays at 12:15 pm in Preston Bradley Hall).

Dame Myra Hess Memorial Concerts features solo and ensemble performances of classical music that showcase young performers. The concerts are broadcast live on
WFMT 98.7 FM (held year round on Wednesdays at 12:15 pm in Preston Bradley Hall).

Sunday Salon Series showcases a wide variety of classical music by local, national and internationally based classical artists. Each season offers the chance to hear everything from fourteenth-century songs to Brahms symphonies to world premieres by exciting contemporary composers – a tasting menu of classical music (held October through May on Sundays at 3 pm in Preston Bradley Hall).

Vocal Journeys highlights today’s top vocalists from the classical tradition. From renowned opera singers to innovative ensembles, this series explores the wealth of beautiful music written for the human voice spanning hundreds of years. (held occasionally in Preston Bradley Hall).

Live Music Now! is organized by the International Music Foundation for students in the Chicago Public Schools, these programs feature a variety of musical styles, classical to modern, from many cultures. For reservations, call 312.670.6888 (held monthly November through May at 10:30 am and noon in Preston Bradley Hall).

The annual Summer Opera program features prominent vocalists in fully staged performances of rare opera gems and re-imagined classics. Past productions have included Handel’s Acis and Galatea, Prokofiev’s The Love of Three Oranges, and the Midwest premiere of Bizet’s Djamileh.

The Cultural Center’s new monthly series, Under the Dome, will highlight a different musical genre each month. The series presents Chicago artists of all ages and musical backgrounds – often pairing performers together for the first time – under the magnificent restored Tiffany dome in Preston Bradley Hall.