Music of the Baroque officially opens its 2022-2023 Season with Handel’s “Jephtha” Sept. 18-19. The season marks the 20th anniversary of the appointments of Music Director Dame Jane Glover and Principal Guest Conductor Nicholas Kraemer. Single concert tickets are now on sale for all 2022-2023 Season performances.
Concerts scheduled for the first half of the season (September - December) are as follows:
Handel’s “Jephtha,”
- Conducted by Dame Jane Glover
- Featuring the Music of the Baroque Orchestra and Chorus
Soloists: David Portillo, Tenor; Lauren Snouffer, Soprano; Clara Osowski, Mezzo-Soprano; Aryeh Nussbaum Cohen, Countertenor; Neal Davies, Bass-Baritone; Katelyn Lee, Soprano
7:30 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 18, at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd.(www.northshorecenter.org)
7:30 p.m. Monday, Sept. 19 at the Harris Theater | Millennium Park, 205 E. Randolph (www.harristheaterchicago.org)
Tickets: $25-$100. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
The new season opens with Music of the Baroque’s first performance in over three decades of Handel’s final oratorio. Working furiously while his eyesight was failing, Handel tells the story of Jephtha, who promises God that if he is victorious in battle, he will sacrifice the first creature he sees when he returns—his daughter Iphis. Will Jephtha be forced to follow through on his vow?
“Baroque Heroes”
- Conducted by Patrick Dupré Quigley
- Featuring Paul Dwyer, Cellist
Program: Michael Praetorius’ “Dances from Terpsichore;” Georg Philipp Telemann’s “Burlesque de Quixote;” C. P. E. Bach’s “Cello Concerto in A Major;” Jean-Philippe Rameau’s “Suite from Castor et Pollux;” J. S. Bach’s “Orchestral Suite No. 3 in D Major”
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: $25-$100. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
Guest conductor Patrick Dupré Quigley explores the concept of “hero” in an energetic, whimsical program. Dance music composers from earlier generations are the great heroes of Baroque orchestral music. South Chicago Dance Theatre brings dances from Praetorius’s “Terpsichore” to life through world-premiere choreography by founder and artistic director Kia Smith. The soloist is the hero of C. P. E. Bach’s “Cello Concerto.” and Telemann and Rameau offer rich musical depictions of literary heroes. 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.”
“Reginald Mobley Sings”
- Conducted by Nicholas Kraemer
- Featuring Reginald Mobley, countertenor
Program: Henry Purcell’s “Welcome to all the Pleasures,” Fantasia on a Ground for 3 violins and continuo and “Hear my prayer, O Lord;” J. S. Bach’s “Brandenburg Concerto No. 4 in G Major;” George Frideric Handel’s Italian arias and “Excerpts from Belshazzar;” William Croft’s “Suite from The Comedy call’d the Funeral”
7:30 p.m. Nov. 20, at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd. (www.northshorecenter.org)
7:30 p.m. Nov. 21 at the Harris Theater, 205 E. Randolph Dr. (www.harristheaterchicago.org)
Tickets: $25-$100. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
Celebrated and Grammy-nominated countertenor Reginald Mobley wields a voice that is “pure of tone, immaculate in his articulation” (The Herald) in moving arias by Handel. The Music of the Baroque Chorus will be showcased in Purcell’s exquisite “Hear my prayer, O Lord” and “Welcome to all the Pleasures.” Music from Handel’s oratorio “Belshazzar,” J. S. Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 4, and lively dances William Croft composed for “The Comedy call’d the Funeral” complete the program.
“Holiday Brass & Choral Concerts”
- Conducted by Andrew Megill
8 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 15, at Grace Lutheran Church, 7300 Division St., River Forest, Ill. (www.graceriverforest.org)
8 p.m., Friday, Dec. 16, at St. Michael Church, 1633 N Cleveland Ave., Chicago (www.st-mikes.org)
Tickets: $25-$100. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
2 p.m., Saturday, Dec.17, at Saints Faith, Hope, & Charity Church, 191 Linden St., Winnetka, Ill. (www.faithhope.org)
2 p.m. Sunday, Dec. 18, at Alice Millar Chapel- Northwestern University, 1870 Sheridan Rd., Evanston, Ill. (www.northwestern.edu/millarchapel)
Tickets: $25-$105. Visit www.baroque.org or call 312.551.1414
In his first conducting appearance since being named Music of the Baroque’s chorus director, Andrew Megill returns to conduct a mix of joyful carols, solemn chant, and jubilant works for brass from the Medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque eras. This beloved holiday experience will be performed in River Forest, Chicago’s Old Town, Winnetka, and Evanston. Program details and featured soloists will be announced at a later date.
For tickets or more information about Music of the Baroque’s 2022-2023 season, visit www.baroque.org.
Student 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.
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.