2009

Tuesday, June 9 - Wednesday, June 10

Click here to register!

Click here to book hotel!

All events take place at the Palmer House Hilton Hotel unless stated

Tuesday, June 9

9:30am-5:00pm
Orchestra Leadership Academy seminars (click for OLA schedule)

Wednesday, June 10

8:00am-12:30pm
Orchestra Leadership Academy seminars (click for OLA schedule)

12-1:00pm
Exhibit Hall Opening and Welcome (4th floor of the Palmer House Hilton)

Come join us for our official Exhibit Hall Opening from 12pm-1pm.  Pre-purchased boxed lunches and snacks are available.  More than 90 of the companies that you do business with throughout the year will be present.

Fanfare for this event provided by musicians from the Chicago Youth Symphony Orchestras


1:15pm-2:30pm
Constituency Meetings 1

2:45pm-4:00pm
Toolbox and Perspectives (click title for full descriptions)

Your “Underwater” Endowment: What to do? (T)
Towards Greater Diversity and Inclusion (T)
Protecting Musicians’ Hearing (T)
Music in Our Schools and in Our Future (T)           
The Hall Says It All: Increasing the Vitality of the Symphonic Experience (T)
Philanthropy and the Arts: What Lies Ahead? (P)
Orchestras and New Music: New Idioms, Instruments, and Ideas (P)
Making the Case for our Non-profit Status (P)           

4:15pm-6:00pm
Opening Session

Ibarguen_photo.png

Keynote Speech: Opportunities in Adversity
Alberto Ibargüen (
pdf bio)
President & CEO
John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

As orchestras – and newspapers – both face uncertain futures, John S. and James L.
Knight Foundation President and CEO Alberto Ibargüen draws parallels between the two –
and lends insight on how both can embrace the future.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra: An Essential Partner in a Vibrant Community
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra shares how their enduring institution plays a central role in the cultural, social, and economic life of the city.

Presenters: Deborah Rutter (pdf bio), President & CEO, Chicago Symphony Orchestra; Martha Gilmer (pdf bio), Vice President, Artistic Planning & Audience Development, Chicago Symphony Orchestra; James Cuno (pdf bio), Director, Art Institute of Chicago; Jim Vincent (pdf bio), Artistic Director, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago

rutter
gilmer
Cuno
vincent

From L-R: Deborah Rutter (photo: Todd Rosenberg), Martha Gilmer, James Cuno,
Jim Vincent

Performance by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Percussion Scholarship Group
Patricia Dash (pdf bio) and Douglas Waddell (pdf bio), co-directors

Marimba SpiritualMinoru Miki
Arranged by Douglas Waddell & inspired by "Blast"
Featuring: Amanda Chow, Eric Goldberg, Shuya Gong, Joshua Jones, Lucia Leon, Eugene Mason, John Ringor, Marcelina Suchocka, Zuri Wells

Alborada del graciosoMaurice Ravel
Arranged by the Safri Duo
Featuring: Joshua Jones and John Ringor, marimbas

About the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Percussion Scholarship Program:

Launched in 1995 under the direction of CSO percussionist Patricia Dash and Douglas Waddell, percussionist with Lyric Opera of Chicago and the Grant Park Symphony, the Percussion Scholarship Program offers intensive, individual, weekly percussion instruction on a full scholarship basis.  The 19 currently participating students, all Chicago residents in grades four through twelve, were selected for the group through a rigorous application and personal interview process, through which 5-10 new students are identified annually.  The standards of the program are unwaveringly high, with the intention of equipping young musicians – both as individual and ensemble players – with near-professional abilities.  Students who are successful in the program over the long term are those with exceptional promise and discipline as well as the family support necessary to develop their abilities with speed and consistency.   

As an ensemble, the Percussion Scholarship Group has had numerous compositions arranged especially for them by nationally known artists.  The group has performed at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention, performs twice annually at Symphony Center and has appeared at Marshall Field’s Day of Music, DePaul University, the Chicago Cultural Center, on WTTW, on WGN and WFMT radio, and as soloists with members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra as part of CSO Youth Concerts, the Kraft Family Matinee Series and Welcome, Yule! Concerts.

The ethnically diverse Chicago community is reflected in the students taking part in the Percussion Scholarship Program, with the following ethnic groups represented: African American, Asian American, Caucasian, Filipino, Polish, and Latino. 

7:30pm-10:00
Orchestra Hall at Symphony Center
Conference Concert

Chicago Symphony Orchestra
Sir Mark Elder, conductor
Alisa Weilerstein, cello

Elder
Weilerstein

 From L-R: Sir Mark Elder, Alisa Weilerstein (photos: Sheila Rock)

  • Antonín Dvořák        In Nature’s Realm, Op. 91
  • Antonín Dvořák        Cello Concerto in B Minor, Op. 104,
                                    Alisa Weilerstein, Cello
  • Antonín Dvořák        Symphony No. 8 in G Major, Op. 88

Twenty-five-year-old American virtuosa Alisa Weilerstein is featured in Dvorák’s Cello Concerto, one of the most beloved concertos ever written. The pastoral Eighth Symphony is a late-Romantic treasure. A portrait of country life, complete with rustic dances and birdsong, this is one of the Czech composer’s most infectious and familiar works.

Tonight’s performance is part of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra’s three-week Dvořák Festival.

Festival links:

The Dvořák Festival receives support from the following generous donors:  Mr. & Mrs. Joseph B. Glossberg • Chet Gougis and Shelley Ochab • Mr. & Mrs. Thomas C. Heagy • Judy and Verne Istock • The Kapnick Family • Nancy and Donald Kempf • Kirkland & Ellis, LLP • Robert Kohl and Clark Pellett   Jim and Kay Mabie • James and Susan Matson • Molex, Inc. • The Elizabeth Morse Charitable Trust • National Endowment for the Arts • Mr. & Mrs. T. Paul B. O’Donovan • Cathy and Bill Osborn • Mr. & Mrs. Albert Pawlick • Jerry Rose • Mr. John Schmidt and Dr. Janet Gilboy • In honor and loving memory of Alice Welsh Skilling • And from a major challenge grant from The Jentes Family.

10:00pm
Tune-Up Party
Art Institute of Chicago
Hosted by the Chicago Symphony Orchestra

Be among the first to experience one of the most talked about venues in all of the art world, the new Modern Wing at the Art Institute of Chicago -- a $200-million project designed by architect Renzo Piano, which is scheduled to open only a few short weeks before the League conference.

The Chicago Symphony Orchestra invites League delegates to enjoy an elegant wine & cheese reception directly following the concert on June 10.  The festivities will be held in Griffin Court, a striking two story glass and steel atrium amid the museum’s collection of 20th- and 21st-century art, including the world renowned collection of modern European painting and sculpture, contemporary art, architecture and design, and photography.  Partygoers will also have an opportunity to view the Art Institute’s renowned Impressionist and Post-Impressionists galleries.

Immediately following the concert, League delegates can cross Michigan Avenue and use the front entrance to the Art Institute.  Staff will direct you to the Grand Staircase and through the galleries to the Modern Wing. 

more...Thursday, June 11