Music of the Baroque (MOB) continues its 2022-2023 Season with “Baroque Heroes” at 3 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 9 at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, and 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11 at the Harris Theater | Millennium Park.
In this program, guest conductor Patrick Dupré Quigley explores the concept of “hero” in an energetic, whimsical program. The soloist is the hero of C. P. E. Bach’s Cello Concerto. From the ridiculous to the sublime, Telemann and Rameau offer rich musical depictions of literary heroes in “Burlesque de Quixote” and “Suite from Castor et Pollux” respectively. The program also includes J. S. Bach’s Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major. J. S. Bach was his son’s hero—as C. P. E. wrote in his father’s obituary, “Our Bach was the greatest organist and clavier player that we have ever had.”
Dance music composers from earlier generations are the great heroes of Baroque orchestral music. South Chicago Dance Theatre (SCDT) brings dances from Michael Praetorius’ “Terpsichore” to life with world-premiere choreography by SCDT founder and artistic director Kia Smith.
Declan McGovern, executive director of Music of the Baroque, commented, “We have been enjoying the meteoric rise of SCDT, one of Chicago’s most dynamic performing arts organizations, and their acclaimed performance this past at the Harris Theater. It was clear from our first conversations with Smith that she is a big fan of Baroque music. She jumped at the opportunity to bring to life this suite of dances from 17th-century composer Michael Praetorius’s iconic collection ‘Terpsichore.’ We are so thrilled to share this special collaborative treat with our audience, and also to partner with South Chicago Dance Theatre for ‘Music and Movement —An Afternoon with Music of the Baroque and South Chicago Dance Theatre,’ a special community performance featuring a preview of that work in Englewood’s Hamilton Park Cultural Center, in the run-up to our concerts.”
Concerts Oct. 9 & 11
Music of the Baroque presents two performances of “Baroque Heroes”
• 3 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9, at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie,
9501 Skokie Blvd.(www.northshorecenter.org)
• 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11 at the Harris Theater | Millennium Park, 205 E. Randolph (www.harristheaterchicago.org)
Tickets range from $25-$100. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
Students Go For Free at the Harris Theater: By popular demand, students will once again be able to attend any of Music of the Baroque’s seven performances at the Harris Theater during the 2022-2023 season free of charge. Students can reserve up to two complimentary tickets per valid student ID by visiting www.baroque.org or calling 312.551.1414. Student tickets will also be available at the Harris Theater box office starting two hours prior to the performance.
Run Out Program: “Music and Movement — an Afternoon with Music of the Baroque and South Chicago Dance Theatre,” Oct. 8
Music of the Baroque, in collaboration with South Chicago Dance Theatre (SCDT), presents a special free dance/music concert Saturday, Oct. 8 at the Hamilton Park Cultural Center, 513 W. 72nd St. The program, “Music and Movement — an Afternoon with Music of the Baroque and South Chicago Dance Theatre,” will feature a preview of Praetorius’ “Dances from Terpsichore,” performed by members of the Music of the Baroque Orchestra with choreography by SCDC founder and artistic director Kia Smith, performed by SCDT dancers. The program will also include C. P. E. Bach’s Cello Concerto in A Major, performed by Music of the Baroque musicians and Wade Schaaf's collaborative 12-minute contemporary ballet “Coeurs Séparés (Separated Hearts),” performed by SCDT dancers and inspired in part by the choreographer’s “kinship” with the music of Johann Sebastian Bach. Admission to this performance is free but reservations are requested. To register or for more information, visit www.baroque.org/musicandmovement.
“A Musical Feast”
“Baroque Heroes” and “Music and Movement” take place just a few days before Music of the Baroque’s only fundraising event of the year: “A Musical Feast” at the Fairmont Chicago, 200 N. Columbus Dr., Saturday, Oct. 15. The evening features champagne upon arrival, a concert led by Principal Guest Conductor Nicholas Kraemer, a lavish three-course meal, a luxury raffle and dancing afterward to the MixTape Band. Proceeds benefit every aspect of Music of the Baroque’s work, from concerts to its Strong Voices arts education program in six Chicago public high schools. For details, visit www.baroque.org/gala.
About Music of the Baroque
Long recognized as one of the region’s top classical groups, Music of the Baroque’s professional chorus and orchestra is one of the leading ensembles in the country devoted to the performance of eighteenth-century works. The 2022-2023 marks the 20th anniversaries of Music Director Dame Jane Glover and Principal Guest Conductor Nicholas Kraemer. Andrew Megill was named Chorus Director in April 2022.
Over the past four decades, Music of the Baroque has presented premiere performances of many early masterpieces, including Monteverdi’s operas and 1610 Vespers, Georg Philipp Telemann’s “Day of Judgment,” Mozart’s “Idomeneo,” and numerous Handel operas and oratorios. The ensemble has drawn particular praise throughout its history for its performances of the major choral and orchestral works of J. S. Bach and Handel, Mozart, and Haydn.
Opera News calls Music of the Baroque “one of Chicago’s musical glories” and the Chicago Sun-Times writes, “Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra may be the big guys on the local classical music scene, but in terms of sheer quality of performance…Music of the Baroque inhabits the same stratosphere.”
Music of the Baroque draws audiences from across the Chicago metropolitan area, performing regularly at the Harris Theater in Millennium Park in downtown Chicago and the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, as well as at intimate Chicago and suburban churches.
Listeners across the country enjoy Music of the Baroque’s work through radio broadcasts and recordings on 98.7WFMT Radio.
Music of the Baroque's available recordings include "Messiah—Live in Chicago" recorded live in November 2021; "Bach's Mass in B Minor" recorded live during the 2019-2020 season; and "On This Night," recorded live during the ensemble's 2017 and 2014 holiday concerts and conducted by William Jon Gray.
Through its "Strong Voices" program, Music of the Baroque conducts arts education to support and enhance music education programs at Chicago public high schools.
For more information about Music of the Baroque, visit www.baroque.org.
Biographies
Guest conductor Patrick Dupré Quigley is the founder and artistic director of Seraphic Fire. He has been a guest conductor with the San Francisco Symphony, Cleveland Orchestra, Utah Symphony, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Charlotte Symphony, Grand Rapids Symphony, New World Symphony, Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, New Jersey Symphony, San Antonio Symphony, Louisiana Philharmonic, Mobile Symphony Orchestra, and the Naples Philharmonic. Patrick Dupré Quigley last appeared with Music of the Baroque in December 2019.
During Patrick Dupré Quigley's tenure as artistic director, Seraphic Fire has grown to present forty-five concerts annually over eight subscription programs. The organization's multiple educational outreach programs (Seraphic Fire Youth Initiative; StudentAccess; Seraphic Fire-UCLA Emerging Artist Program; the Professional Choral Institute at the Aspen Music Festival) reach thousands of students, from elementary to graduate school. The Seraphic Fire Media catalog contains sixteen titles; two are recipients of Grammy nominations.
Patrick Dupré Quigley holds a master's degree from the Yale School of Music, an undergraduate degree from the University of Notre Dame, and has pursued further professional studies at the Lilly Family School of Philanthropy's Fundraising School.
German-American cellist Paul Dwyer is fortunate to have a rich musical life playing both historical and modern cello. He is principal cello of Music of the Baroque, assistant principal cellist of Lyric Opera of Chicago, and teaches cello and chamber music at Notre Dame University. He is also a founding member of the Diderot String Quartet and ACRONYM. After spending his youth in Austria and Germany, Paul Dwyer returned to the United States, where he received a Bachelor of Music from Oberlin Conservatory and a Master of Music and Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Michigan. He also completed additional graduate studies in historical performance at The Julliard School. As a Fulbright scholar in Amsterdam, he studied contemporary music with Frances-Marie Uitti and Baroque cello with Anner Byslma. Dwyer appear as soloist in "Baroque Heroes" on October 9 & 11.
South Chicago Dance Theatre (SCDT) is firmly rooted on the city’s south side. Several of the company’s collaborators have been a part of the fabric of the south side’s vibrant arts community since the early 1960’s. Thus, the SCDT is committed to maintaining its rich heritage through the embodiment of south Chicago influenced movement, music and history. Since the 2017 launch, the Main Company has toured regionally, nationally and internationally and commissioned the choreographic work of renowned artists. Its collaborative initiatives have included music ensembles, television, opera, art museums and public schools through a range of self-produced and institutionally presented performances.
Kia S. Smith is the Founder and Executive Artistic Director of the SCDT, the company’s Resident Choreographer and the founder of its signature programs South Chicago Dance Festival, the Choreographic Diplomacy Program, Choreographic Fellowship and Arts Administration Fellowship. In 2018, she received the inaugural Young and Ambitious Entrepreneurship Award from the Metropolitan Board of the Chicago Urban League and was chosen by the New York City based Stage Director’s and Choreographers Foundation as a member of the national Observership class. In 2021, Kia received a 3Arts Make A Wave award and was an Ann & Weston Hicks Choreographic Fellow at the renowned Jacobs Pillow. She is 2022 Chicago Dancemakers Forum Lab Artist Awardee and a participant in the Artist in Residence ``AIR`` Program at the Cliff Dwellers Chicago. As a freelance choreographer, Kia’s recent and upcoming commissions include Madison Ballet (2021), Chicago Repertory Ballet (2022), the Institute For Contemporary Dance at Houston Contemporary Dance Company (2022), Houston Contemporary Dance Company (2022), Chicago Opera Theater (2022), Ruth Page Civic Ballet Training Company (2022), University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee (2022), Giordano Dance Chicago (2023), Western Michigan University (2023) and a new evening length work Memoirs of Jazz in the Alley for South Chicago Dance Theatre premiering at the Auditorium Theater of Chicago.