Bienen School of Music Orchestral and String Concerts Begin April 17

Victor Yampolsky will conduct the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra performance at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, May 30, at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago's Millennium Park. The outdoor event is admission free.

EVANSTON, Ill. --- Prime seats are available for six spring orchestral and string performances by Northwestern University student ensembles. Ticketed events on the Evanston campus include a showcase of French music, a guitar ensemble program of songs from around the globe, and a concert featuring Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring." A free outdoor Memorial Day weekend music celebration at Chicago's Millennium Park will highlight American composer John Corigliano's avant-garde composition "The Red Violin."

All of the Henry and Leigh Bienen School of Music events are open to the public and will be held at Northwestern's Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, 50 Arts Circle Drive; Lutkin Hall, 700 University Place, or Millennium Park's Jay Pritzker Pavilion, on Michigan Avenue between Randolph and Monroe Streets, in downtown Chicago, as noted.

Bienen School of Music faculty member Alan Chow will be the featured soloist during the Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra program at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 17, in Pick-Staiger Concert Hall. Chow, an award-winning pianist, is coordinator of Northwestern's piano program, and has performed throughout the United States and East Asia. His program will include Bela Bartok's Piano Concerto No. 3 in E Major and Josef Suk's Symphony No. 2 in C Minor ("Asrael"), under the direction of Victor Yampolsky. Tickets are $9 for the general public; $7 for seniors and Northwestern faculty and staff; and $5 for students with valid IDs.

The Northwestern University Chamber Orchestra will present "Une soiree francaise" at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 29, in Pick-Staiger Concert Hall. Conducted by Robert G. Hasty, the French program features soprano Juli Bunyak, winner of the Northwestern Concerto/Aria Competition. Featured works include "A vos jeux, mes amis" from Ambroise Thomas's opera "Hamlet"; "Le boeuf sur le toit" by Darius Milhaud; Symphony No. 5 ("Di Tre Re") by Arthur Honegger; and Ballet Music from Charles Gounod's opera "Faust." Tickets are $7 for the general public; $5 for seniors and Northwestern faculty and staff; and $4 for students with valid IDs.

The Northwestern University Guitar Ensemble will perform music from Paraguay, Cuba, Spain, Italy, France and Japan at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 2, in Lutkin Hall. The ensemble will be directed by music faculty member Anne Waller. Tickets are $7 for the general public; $5 for seniors and Northwestern faculty and staff; and $4 for students with valid IDs.

The Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra will perform under the direction of faculty member Victor Yampolsky and graduate student Daniel Black at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, May 8, in Pick-Staiger Concert Hall. The progam will feature Rimsky-Korsakov's "Capriccio Espagnol," Prokofiev's Piano Concerto No. 2 in G Minor and Stravinsky's "The Rite of Spring." Wei-Han Wu, Northwestern Concerto/Aria Competition winner, will be the piano soloist. Tickets are $12 for the general public; $9 for seniors and Northwestern faculty and staff; and $6 for students with valid IDs.

"Fate and Destiny" is the theme of the Northwestern's Philharmonia program at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, May 23, in Pick-Staiger Concert Hall. Conducted by faculty member Robert G. Hasty and graduate student Sandra Gebram, the concert will include Verdi's overture to the opera "La forza del destino," Liszt's "Les Preludes" and Beethoven's Symphony No. 5 in C Minor. Tickets are $7 for the general public; $5 for seniors and Northwestern faculty and staff; and $4 for students with valid IDs.

The Northwestern University Symphony Orchestra performance at 6:30 p.m. Sunday, May 30, at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Chicago's Millennium Park, will conclude the Bienen School of Music's weeklong John Corigliano Festival, which begins May 12 on the University's Evanston campus. The May 30 outdoor concert will be conducted by Victor Yampolsky and will feature internationally acclaimed violinist Maria Bachmann, tenor Grant Knox and Northwestern's University Chorale. The program will include Corigliano's "The Red Violin": Chaconne for Violin and Orchestra (a set of variations based on the composer's Oscar-winning score for the 1998 film "The Red Violin") and Liszt's "A Faust Symphony." Admission is free.

For more information, call the Pick-Staiger Concert Office at (847) 491-5441 or visit the Pick-Staiger Web site at www.pickstaiger.org.  To order tickets by phone, call the Pick-Staiger Ticket Office at (847) 467-4000.