Chicago Choral Artists

Big News: Chicago Choral Artists is now Consonance!

We are thrilled to announce that Chicago Choral Artists has a new name: Consonance! This fresh identity reflects our commitment to bringing together voices from diverse backgrounds to create beautiful music that resonates with our audience.

As we prepare for our exciting 2024–2025 season, we’re also unveiling our brand new website! Head over now to explore our upcoming season, purchase tickets, and stay connected with everything Consonance.

And don’t miss our chic, French-themed Fall Fundraiser on September 27th, "Soirée S’il Vous Plaît" —your chance to support our mission while enjoying a fabulous evening! Stay tuned for more updates as we embark on this thrilling new chapter.

Visit our new website: consonancechicago.org

Purchase tickets for our 24–25 season: consonancechicago.org/tickets

Attend our Fall Fundraiser: https://consonancechicago.org/event/fall-fundraiser-soiree-sil-vous-plait/

"Love for Life" is just around the corner! Join us this weekend as we celebrate the beauty of music and the enduring power of love. ❤️ In a world of uncertainty, our concert at Grace Lutheran Church serves as a beacon of hope and shines a light on what it means to embrace life with all its highs and lows.

This concert also marks the culmination of an incredible season, filled with unforgettable performances. As we bid farewell to this season, celebrate the memories we've created and the music we all love so dearly by bringing your friends and loved ones to this weekend’s concerts!

Get your tickets now and take advantage of our many discounts by visiting our website: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171497?performanceId=11328208

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Only 9 days to go until our next concert!🌟It has been a joy preparing this music and we can’t wait to share it with you.

Here's a sneak peek of what's in store:

🎼 Remarkable Women Composers: Experience the brilliance of Margaret Burke and Lavinia Kell Parker as we showcase their enchanting compositions.

📜 Poetic Expression: Embark on a journey through the ages of poetic expression with works by e.e. cummings, Amanda Lovelace, and more.

🎵 Choral Classics: Rediscover beloved favorites like Stephan Paulus’s "The Road Home" and Dan Forrest's "The Sun Never Says."

💫 Marimba Madness: Let your spirits soar with the fusion of voices and marimba tones in Dominick DiOrio's "A Dome of Many-Coloured Glass."

❤️ Power of Love: Celebrate love and collaboration with a harmonious piece by Jocelyn Hagen and Timothy C. Takach.

⏳ Timeless Brilliance: Pay homage to Bach with a stirring rendition of one of his revered motets.

Don't miss this extraordinary musical experience! Reserve your seats by calling 773.658.9799 or visiting our website: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171497

And remember that we have special discounts available! Seniors $35, Educators $20, Students $10. Plus, buy one ticket at $45 and get the second one at 50% off! Call our box office at 773.658.9799 to secure this deal. Children aged 12 and under can accompany you for free with the purchase of an adult ticket.

Thank you for your unwavering support. Let's make this concert a night to remember! 🎵✨

🎶✨ Ready for the grand finale of the season? 🎶✨

Hey there, music enthusiasts! Just a quick reminder that our much-anticipated concert, "Love for Life," is just around the corner! 🌟

Our ensemble of 26 choristers has been hard at work since our last announcement, fine-tuning every note to ensure an unforgettable musical experience.

"Love for Life" isn't just another concert – it's a deep dive into the many facets of love, from the complexities of relationships to the serenity of nature and beyond. 🌿

Stay tuned as we continue to share behind-the-scenes glimpses into our rehearsal process and exciting updates in the lead-up to the big day!

Save the dates: Saturday, May 4th at 7:30 pm and Sunday, May 5th at 3:00 pm at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL. Trust us, you won't want to miss this! ✨

Thanks again for your incredible support of Chicago Choral Artists. ❤️ Let's come together and make this concert a celebration of Love for Life!

Get your tickets today: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171497. And don't forget, we have big discounts available for students, teachers, and seniors!

We are excited to invite you to our last concert series of the season, "Love for Life" on Saturday, May 4th at 7:30 pm, and Sunday, May 5th at 3:00 pm! All concerts will be held at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL.

The program is brimming with gorgeous music centered around love and how it permeates our lives. The program will feature a wide variety of today's leading composers, including Margaret Burk, Michael Bussewitz-Quarm, Dominick DiOrio, Dan Forrest, Jocelyn Hagen/ Timothy C. Takach, Levina Kell Parker, Jake Runestad, and Mari Esabel Valverde.

Thank you for all of the support you have shown our organization so far this season! As with our last concert series, we are offering huge discounts for students, teachers, and seniors, as well as a buy-one-get-one-half-off deal. Get your tickets now if you haven't already, and we'll connect with you again soon!

Get your tickets now: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171497

Thank you so much to everyone who attended last night’s concert - it was a delight to share this music with you and we can’t wait to do it again today at 3:00!

On the fence about attending? Last night’s audience member Markus Sleuwen will tell why this is this best way to spend your Sunday afternoon:

“I attended today a truly marvelous choral concert in River Forest by Chicago Choral Artists at Grace Lutheran Church. The singers have beautiful voices and are very talented. The concert is very intimate and touching. […] If you go, I know that you will thank me for this note. It’s that good.”

“I know that staying at home is comfortable (and when we spend what we do on streaming service, leaving the home for entertainment is not necessary). But, imo, live music, especially of this very high caliber, is worthwhile the trip. And for those of you living in or close to RF and OP, well, the venue hardly can be more convenient.”

“The Litle Match Girl Passion by Lang, based on Hans Christian Andersen’s Little March Girl story and the St Mathew Passion, is truly breathtaking. Get ready for music to draw you into a story in a way that you seldomly, if ever, will have experienced.”

Get your tickets at the door or online:

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We can't wait to see you tonight at 7:30 and tomorrow at 3:00! We have some simply beautiful music to share with you ❤️

Get your tickets online or at the door: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496?performanceId=11328204

Thank you so much to Myrna Petlicki for writing this piece about Chicago Choral Artists in the Chicago Tribune! Join us this Saturday and Sunday at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL for an amazing program of choral works!

Chicago Tribune: https://digitaledition.chicagotribune.com/infinity/article_share.aspx?guid=4ed0d145-40e2-4b88-90fa-96fd63f56ed7

Get your tickets: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496

‘Really compelling symbol’ Chicago Choral Artists will explore the theme Hope with Passion when the chorus performs at 7:30 p.m. March 16 and 3 p.m. March 17 at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest.

Here comes the last repertoire deep-dive for our "Hope with Passion" concert series, happening this Saturday and Sunday at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL! Take advantage of one of our many discounts and reserve your place for this exceptional performance!

J.S. Bach Deep-Dive:

Part of this weekend's concerts pays homage to the legacy of Johann Sebastian Bach, commemorating his 300th anniversary of settling into Leipzig as the new Cantor at St. Thomas Church. During this time, Bach's compositions, including his sacred cantatas and motets, resonated with themes of hope amidst life's trials.

This weekend, we will delve into Bach's profound motets, BWV 227 "Jesu, meine Freude" and BWV 228 "Fürchte dich nicht". Whether or not the motets were written for the funerals of important figures in Leipzig remains a mystery. However, their themes of hope and faith in the midst of death beautifully complement the ethereal presentation of David Lang’s "The Little Match Girl Passion", as we introduced in our previous newsletter and will feature in this concert.

The motet "Jesu, meine Freude" (Jesus, my joy) is like a suite of mini motets, which themselves are diverse interpretations of hymn texts and scripture. Most likely written for a funeral service, this work draws listeners close and provides words of comfort at the time of death.

"Fürchte dich nicht" (Fear not) is in a completely different style, beginning first with an antiphonal setting of a text from Isaiah (Fear not, for I am with you...) and develops into a complex fugue-like structure that supports the soprano’s presentation of a chorale by hymnist Paul Gerhardt. The work concludes with the comforting words du bist mein (you are mine).

We invite you to immerse yourself in the beauty and depth of these masterpieces, as we come together to celebrate the enduring power of music.

Get your tickets now: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496?performanceId=11328204

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We are now one week away from our concert weekend! It has been an absolute joy working on our program which includes pieces by J.S. Bach, David Lang, Melissa Dunphy, and Kim André Arnesen, and we can’t wait to share it with you.

A reminder that we have discounted tickets for teachers ($20), students ($10 for ages 13+, free 12 and under), and seniors ($35). In addition, for every ticket you purchase, you can get another ticket for $22.50! This offer also applies to previously purchased tickets. To secure your additional discounted tickets, please call the box office at (773) 658-9799 or purchase them at the door.

We hope to see you this Saturday, March 16th at 7:30 and Sunday, March 17th at 3:00 at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL.

Buy tickets online: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496?performanceId=11328204

Today we are exploring "Even When He is Silent," a tender piece by Kim André Arnesen. This piece will be featured in our upcoming concerts on March 16th and 17th. A world-renowned composer from Trondheim, Norway, Arnesen is one of the most frequently performed contemporary choral composers of our time.

CCA alto Christina Bernardoni offers a compelling insight into the work:

"Kim André Arnesen’s compositional style has a brilliant way of appealing to a large, diverse audience. To those who are apprehensive about contemporary classical music, Arnesen’s music is the perfect introduction that would be enjoyable and engaging while more easily digestible. His compositions are unpretentious; they are stunning and simple without being simplistic. 'Even When He is Silent' uses a simple harmonic structure, but captures the audience by creating a setting appropriate for the powerful text."

"One thing to pay attention to in 'Even When He is Silent' is his choice of a tonal center to create a musical painting of this text. C Major is known to be completely pure and innocent, descriptors often used for that which is closest to God. Some would describe this key as “bright.” Arnesen’s composition maintains this tonal center throughout the entire work. Even though C is buried in dissonance, or in stacked chords, its brightness shines through. This is a perfect representation of the duality in the text: maintaining faith and hope, even in the darkest of times."

"The text was found on the wall of a concentration camp after the Second World War. It seems fitting for the Chicago Choral Artists to perform this work at this time because it fits the wartorn state of the world."

We invite you to join us for our upcoming concerts and experience the spiritual and emotional depth of "Even When He is Silent" firsthand. Concerts will take place on Saturday, March 16th at 7:30pm at Sunday, March 17th at 3:00pm at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL. Get your tickets today: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496?performanceId=11328206

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We are honored to have world-renowned musician and educator Karen Brunssen share such a glowing review of our ensemble.

Experience our warm choral sound firsthand and join Karen Brunssen in her patronage of Chicago Choral Artists by purchasing tickets for our March 16th and 17th concerts: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496. Both concerts will be held at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL.

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This week we are diving into Melissa Dunphy's delightful "Suite Remembrance", part of the repertoire for our upcoming concert “Hope with Passion".

Presented as a contrasting set of "memorial dances", Dunphy draws from scripture as well as poetry from Emily Dickinson and Nathaniel Scott to pull the listener into either a rousing or tender scene filled with movement. "Suite Remembrance" is shaped by four traditional dance forms: saltarello, gavotte, sarabande, and gigue. Whether energetic or lyrical, Dunphy masterfully showcases the spirit and nuance of each dance through her attention to rhythm and movement. Throughout the work, she gives the listener the sense that the singers themselves are partners in the dance by alternating between duet sections of either treble or bass voices that then weave together before splitting again.

We cannot wait to share this beautiful work with you on Saturday, March 16th at 7:30pm and Sunday, March 17th at 3:00pm! Both concerts will be held at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL. Get your tickets now (and take advantage of our many discounted rates!) through our website: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496

More about Melissa Dunphy:

Born in Australia and raised in an immigrant family, Melissa Dunphy herself immigrated to the United States in 2003 and has since become an award-winning and acclaimed composer specializing in vocal, political, and theatrical music. She first came to national attention when her large-scale work the Gonzales Cantata was featured in The Wall Street Journal, The Atlantic, National Review, and on Fox News and the Rachel Maddow Show, where host Rachel Maddow described it as “the coolest thing you’ve ever seen on this show.”. She lives in Philadelphia with her husband, Matt; the Dunphys are currently the owners and developers of the Hannah Callowhill Stage, and co-hosts of the popular podcast The Doghouse about their adventures in Philadelphia colonial archaeology. You can learn more about her on her website: https://www.melissadunphy.com/about

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In Hans Christian Andersen’s tale “The Little Match Girl”, a young girl attempts to sell matches on New Year's Eve. Unsuccessful in her efforts, she uses the matches to keep warm as the night grows colder. As she burns each match, she recalls precious memories of her deceased grandmother while slowly freezing to death.

David Lang's “The Little Match Girl Passion” skillfully illustrates the innocence, horror, beauty, and suffering at the heart of Andersen's tale. As Lang himself describes, the narrative is "constantly suffused with their opposites," creating a delicate balance between suffering and hope.

Composer, educator, and CCA soprano Marybeth Kurnat offers a compelling insight into the work:

"David Lang's setting of 'The Little Match Girl Passion,' not unlike the St. Matthew Passion, is a deeply immersive experience in the undeserved suffering of the human spirit - in this case, the suffering of a child. Both of these figures die at the hands of the people around them, but unlike Jesus, who died by their persecution, the little match girl dies by their apathy."

"As a composer myself, I took an immediate interest in trying to understand David Lang's compositional approach to this grim tale, and it took a few laps through the score, both listening and singing through. What he did is incredibly intelligent and creative: The text across each voice is frequently set very out of alignment with one another, in a way that is difficult to hear or understand upon first listen, and the dissonance between voices is especially exposed. I believe this is a musical illustration of the neurological decline that occurs as a person begins to freeze to death. It's like a cognitive 'smear' - double vision, slurred speech, reduced mobility, etc. as the body begins to shut down. The vocal solos in which a single word of text accelerates is the chattering of the little girl's teeth, trying to warm herself with the tiny fire of a single match. There are moments of long, bordering on uncomfortable moments of silence in the little girl's heartbreaking isolation - alone in the world, without shelter, slowly dying as others ignore her on the street. As the fate of the little match girl is told from the perspectives of people around her, the guilt of realizing one's capability and failure to help someone in need is deeply felt. One can argue that Lang chose this story as a musical endeavor as a means to raise awareness of the children in this world who need us, and remind those who can help that they should."

We invite you to join us for our upcoming concerts on March 16th and 17th and experience the emotional depth and artistic mastery of "The Little Match Girl Passion" firsthand.

Tickets can be purchased at: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496

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Are you interested in singing with Chicago Choral Artists?

We are holding auditions for our 2024–25 Season on April 6 (9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.), April 7 (2:00–6:00 p.m.), and April 8 (5:00–8:00p.m.). All artists receive an hourly stipend.

Please visit our website to learn more about our ensemble and the audition process:

chicago choral artists - Auditions Auditions for 2024–25 Season Chicago Choral Artists is holding auditions for its 2024–25 Season on April 6 (9:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m.), April 7 (2:00–6:00 p.m.), and April 8 (5:00–8:00p.m.). Please read the information below to learn about the process of scheduling an audition. Inclusive diversi...

We are excited to announce that for the rest of our season, all teachers and students can purchase concert tickets at a discounted rate!

Teachers: $20
Students 13+: $10
Children 12 and under: Free

Get your tickets for our upcoming March 16th and 17th concerts today: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496

Teachers and students must present a school ID at the door and children 12 and under must be accompanied by a ticket-holding adult.

If you’ve already purchased tickets for the rest of our season but would qualify for one of these discounts, let us know and we’ll give you a promo code to bring a guest at this price instead!

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We are back from our winter recess and are so excited to be preparing "Hope with Passion," the next concert in our 2023-24 season!

It is a truly unique and poignant program, featuring works from David Lang, J. S. Bach, Melissa Dunphy, and Kim André Arnesen. Over the next four weeks, we will be taking a closer look at each piece and composer to further explore this wonderful music.

With an ensemble of just 13 singers for this concert, this will be the smallest configuration of Chicago Choral Artists yet. It was thrilling to explore this new chamber sound in our last rehearsal and we can't wait for you to experience it in our next concert.

"Hope with Passion" will be held at Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL on Saturday, March 16th, at 7:30pm and Sunday, March 17th, at 3:00pm.

Thank you for all of the support you have shown our organization so far this season, get your tickets now if you haven't already, and we'll connect with you again soon!

Tickets can be purchased at: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171496

See you tonight!

Get your tickets at the door or online here: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171495

Photo by Greg Rohlfing

We had a blast at our dress rehearsal on Tuesday - when you come to our concert this weekend, you'll understand why we’re so excited!!

“Yearn for Peace
Saturday, December 16th at 7:30pm
Sunday, December 17th at 3:00 pm
Grace Lutheran Church in River Forest, IL

Get your tickets at the door or online here: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171495

Photos by Greg Rohlfing

We are so thrilled to see this article about our Artistic Director, Michael Costello, featured in Oak Park and River Forest’s Wednesday Journal!

Learn more about Michael’s musical journey, how he came to this area, and all of the wonderful things he’s up to now.

Read a snippet of the article that talks about our upcoming concert!: “Costello described the upcoming concert as a mixture of secular and religious tunes associated with the holidays: ‘Traditional carols [Away in a Manger, O Little Town of Bethlehem, the Coventry Carol], and some anthems if those people happen to have a religious affiliation or background. There are also some things that are distinctly secular, that speak about peace in a general sense. One piece in particular that has been a pretty big project for us to pull off, called Gloria Kajoniensis [by Hungarian composer, Levente Gyöngyösi.] It’s based on a 17th century collection of prayers. And it’s written in a way that it almost sounds Latin in its kind of background, but it’s two violins, bongos, and choir. It is fast and furious. It’s a wild ride,’ Costello said.”

Read the whole article here: https://www.oakpark.com/2023/12/11/how-a-river-forest-cantor-spends-his-decembers/

Get your tickets for our December concert here: https://ci.ovationtix.com/36082/production/1171495

CCA is being recommended on "WFMT Presents: A Chicagoland Holiday Preview" tonight during this 8:00 o'clock hour! Tune in to learn about our December programming along with other fabulous performances happening in the area ✨

A Chicagoland Holiday Preview | WFMT A roundup of select concerts for the holiday season.

This Giving Tuesday, we hope you’ll consider making a tax-deductible donation to Chicago Choral Artists and become a part of our musical family! Your generosity will not only support the arts but will also contribute to the cultural vibrancy of Chicago.

To donate, please visit our website: www.chicagochoralartists.org/support-us

Every dollar makes a difference. Your generosity enables us to continue creating powerful music and fostering a deep appreciation for the arts in our community, and for that we thank you!