 The Chicago Sinfonietta, the nation’s most diverse symphony orchestra, proudly marks the start of its 21st season in tribute to the great Edward Kennedy “Duke” Ellington. The Sinfonietta, joined for the first time ever with the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, under the Artistic Direction of Jon Faddis, will fuse a popular selection of Classical and Jazz works in exploration of the great man’s work. The Sinfonietta will begin its first concert of the 2007-08 season with selections from Edvard Grieg’s dramatic Peer Gynt Suite. Grieg wrote the incidental music for Henrik Ibsen’s poetic drama Peer Gynt in 1876 and arranged the suite for full orchestra in 1888. Peer Gynt Suite has become one of Grieg’s best-known works and can be heard in popular movies, television shows and even advertisements. The Chicago Jazz Ensemble will then perform selections from Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn’s delightful 1960 adaptation of Peer Gynt Suite. This collaborative effort will give patrons a comparative taste of Classical and Jazz as musicians, both symphonic and jazz, bounce between the two works.
Also on the bill, Sinfonietta timpanist Robert Everson will present Russell Peck's Harmonic Rhythm: Concerto for Timpani and Orchestra in a performance of brilliant sticking and a kaleidoscope of rhythmic and harmonic sounds. The writing of this concerto, which premiered in 2000, was inspired by the largest commissioning consortium (39 orchestras) in music history to date. Influenced by percussion techniques found in jazz and rock music, Harmonic Rhythm is an unforgettable work. To conclude the concert, the Chicago Sinfonietta, together with the Chicago Jazz Ensemble, will perform Duke Ellington’s symphonic work for jazz ensemble and orchestra, Harlem. This bluesy, upbeat masterpiece was originally scored for his annual jazz concert series at New York's Carnegie Hall, making Ellington the first African American to conduct a jazz concert at the world-renowned venue. Concerts on Sunday, September 16, 2007 at 2:30 p.m. at Lund Auditorium, Dominican University, 7900 W. Division in River Forest, and Monday, September 17, 2007 at 7:30 p.m. at Orchestra Hall, Symphony Center, 220 S. Michigan Avenue in Chicago. Tickets range from $26-$96 for concerts at Orchestra Hall and $26-$40 for concerts at Lund Auditorium at Dominican University. Special pricing for children, students and groups are available. For tickets, call 312-236-3681 ext. 2 or visit www.chicagosinfonietta.org
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