Chamber Music in Chicago

Featuring Benjamin Firer (conductor), MingHuan Xu (violin), Traci Huff (viola), and Jose Viera Calles (violin, CCPA Solo Competition winner)

The British vocal octet VOCES8, described as a “purring musical machine” by The Arts Desk , is equally at home with the intricate polyphony of Bach, the soaring melodies of Benjamin Britten, and the introspective lyricism of Ben Folds. Their ethereal collective voice finds its perfect home in the majestic Rockefeller Memorial Chapel for their early music-rooted program, Devotions. Please see Rockefeller Memorial Chapel Venue Updates for Fall 2026 . Ticket Rates (inclusive of fees) $14-$50 See Special Offers page for how to book Free Youth, $14 Student, $25 Under 35, and UChicago Faculty & Staff tickets. VOCES8 performs Samuel Barber's setting of the 'Agnus Dei' at the VOCES8 Centre in London. Praise for VOCES8 “VOCES8’s gorgeous sound, impeccable ensemble and intense responsiveness to text, harmony and melodic shape is all of the highest quality. Hearing them sing is a joy.” — BBC Music Magazine “VOCES8 is the Rolls-Royce of British a cappella ensembles.” — The Arts Desk “The singing of VOCES8 is impeccable...They bring a new dimension to the word ‘ensemble’ with meticulous timing and tuning.” — Gramophone Program - Devotions Please note, text and translations will not be provided at the request of the artists. Gibbons: O Clap Your Hands Monteverdi: Lagrime d’Amante al Sepolcro dell’Amata Britten: A Hymn to the Virgin Weelkes: As Vesta Was Tallis: God Grant with Grace di Lasso: Dessus le marché d’Arras Pärt: The Deer’s Cry Kate Rusby/arr. Clements: Underneath the Stars Stephen Paulus: Pilgrims’ Hymn Spiritual/arr. Blackwell: Steal Away Rachmaninoff: Bogoroditse Devo Holst: Nunc Dimittis Mendelssohn: Richte mich, Gott Caroline Shaw: and the swallow Victoria: Regina Caeli Intermission

Fresh off their first touring performances in Washington, D.C. and New York City, the Grossman Ensemble returns to its home at the UChicago Center for Contemporary Composition to open the 26/27 season with “Poetic Inspirations,” a chamber music potpourri of commissioned works for small ensembles drawing inspiration from the evocative imagery of the written word, visual art, the natural world, and more. Composers Alexandre Lunsqui , Ana Lara , Jonathan Bailey Holland , Leah Reid , Juri Seo , Pierce Gradone , and Zoë Martlew all receive world premieres. All audience members are invited to an after party with the musicians, composers, and conductor. Presented by the Chicago Center for Contemporary Composition in partnership with UChicago Presents. Ticket Rates (inclusive of fees) FREE-$25 See Special Offers page for how to book Free Youth and Student tickets. Small II by Franco Donatoni Praise for Grossman Ensemble “The Grossman Ensemble filled the evening with wonder and, at times, awe. In premiering four new works, it demonstrated high class musicianship and offered big promises of what is to come.” — Third Coast Review "Some of the best contemporary players in the city...the record rewards repeat listenings." — Chicago Reader " Ensemble Project Sparks Surge Of Creative Energy " — Classical Voice North America

Bach in the City’s co-music director School of Music faculty member Jason Moy has mapped out a “Fantasticus” voyage for those attending the “Fantasticus: Bach and Before” period-instrument chamber concert. Experience the untamed freedom of Stylus Fantasticus through the works of Bach and his predecessors! For more information on Bach in the City and this program, visit their website.

Hidden deep in the archives of the Library of Congress lay an octet, unpublished, unrecorded, and unheard since 1897, until clarinetist Graeme Steele Johnson rediscovered it in 2020. Once hailed as “the dean of American composers,” Charles Martin Loeffler’s music is brought back to life as Johnson and his ensemble reveal an octet more than worthy of resurrection. Ticket Rates (inclusive of fees) $14-$47 See Special Offers page for how to book Free Youth, $14 Student, $25 Under 35, and UChicago Faculty & Staff tickets. Sneak peek of the world-premiere recording of Charles Martin Loeffler's forgotten Octet for two clarinets, harp, string quartet and double bass, written in 1897 and left unpublished, unrecorded and unheard for over 125 years. Praise for Loeffler's Rediscovered Octet “A lost octet by a forgotten master shines new light on American music” — The Washington Post “I’ve been obsessed with this 1897 Octet by Charles Martin Loeffler for months. It’s like a gloriously happy marriage between Brahms’s Clarinet Quintet and Ravel’s Introduction and Allegro. I’m eternally grateful to clarinettist Graeme Steele Johnson, who discovered the manuscript in the Library of Congress and who leads this exquisite performance.” — Gramophone Program Francis Poulenc : Sonata for Two Clarinets, FP 7 Johannes Brahms: Quintet for Clarinet, Two Violins, Viola and Cello in B Minor, Op. 115 Charles Martin Loeffler: Octet for Two Clarinets, Harp, Two Violins, Viola, Cello and Double Bass

Savor a musical feast by Chicago Symphony Orchestra musicians! Inspired by the theme of "gastromusicology," this program explores the intersection of food and music. Whet your appetite with Martinu's kitchen utensil-inspired ballet suite La revue de Cuisine , and indulge in other musical food for thought by Brahms, Beethoven, and Schoenfield. Join us for a pre-concert lecture (2:00 PM) with Assistant Professor Paula Harper and post-concert discussion with the artists moderated by Professor Harper. Supported by the Office of the Provost and Mary Lou Gorno. Ticket Rates (inclusive of fees) $14-$39 See Special Offers page for how to book Free Youth, $14 Student, $25 Under 35, and UChicago Faculty & Staff tickets. Gastromusicology Program: Beethoven: Piano Trio No. 4 in B-flat Major, Op. 11, “Gassenhauer” Martinu: La revue de Cuisine Schoenfield: Allegro from Café Music for Piano Trio Brahms: Trio in A Minor for Clarinet, Cello, and Piano, Op. 114

Chamber Music Program Director Heather Wittels and violinist Eleanor Bartsch from the Lyric Opera of Chicago, and violist Max Raimi and cellist Stephen Balderston , currently and formerly of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, present two works for string quartet: Pisachi (Reveal) by Jerod Impichchaachaaha’ Tate of the Chickasaw Nation and the celebrated “American” Quartet by Antonín Dvořák Tea and cookies are served at 4:15 p.m., with music beginning at 4:30 p.m. Free admission