Written in 1940 when Messiaen was a prisoner of war, “Quartet for the End of Time” is a piece brimming with the triumph of the human spirit in that the work uses a mystical and ethereal interpretation of the biblical apocalypse as its starting point but looks beyond war, suffering and indeed, all of human time and space, to conceive of an “end” that transcends all earthly bounds. The Tashi reunion performance of this piece at Ravinia a few weeks ago was a Messiaen milestone, but Chicago Symphony clarinetist and Chicago Pro Musica founder John Bruce Yeh, CSO violinist Cho-Liang Lin, cellist Gary Hoffman and pianist Christopher Taylor will have a go at this endlessly fascinating piece in a program that also includes music of Debussy and Ravel, both significant influences on Messiaen. The New Budapest Orpheum Society performs songs of Viktor Ullmann at 2pm. (Dennis Polkow)
October 5 at University of Chicago’s Mandel Hall, 1131 E. 57th, (773)702-8068. 3pm. $5-$32.
Jerusalem on Lake Michigan: Chicago’s Birthright Claim To Gospel Music Festival With the occasional exception of crossover artists like Sir the Baptist at Lollapalooza—gospel isn't going to make a significant showing at any festival that’s not exclusively gospel-dedicated. Fortunately for Chicago, the gold standard in that regard occurs annually on our lakefront.
Drop and Go: A Review of Chris Greene Quartet’s “PlaySPACE” Chris Greene Quartet isn’t the first music act to drop a surprise album; over the past several year’s we’ve seen out-of-nowhere releases from everyone from Beyoncé to Wilco. As a marketing gimmick, it’s got something to recommend it; you can’t really listen to “PlaySPACE,” for instance, without ending up wanting to go see CGQ …, well, play SPACE.
World Class: Spektral Quartet’s New Season Takes a Global Perspective The Quartet's new concert season, called "The World Around Us," is a kind of call to action, a ringing alarm to rouse us from our collective torpor. Luckily, they're talking about the world both physical and metaphysical, not any given political landscape.
Time-Release: Sunshine Boys Celebrate a New Album—One Year On Sunshine Boys’ CV is the music they make; it’s solid, poppy rock that never rocks too hard or too soft. It’s never too alien to not be groovy and never too familiar to sound like received wisdom.
Further, Deeper, Infinity: A Preview of The Church at Lincoln Hall The Church has embarked on several retrospective projects like its current “Starfish” thirtieth anniversary tour, taking the opportunity to explore its massive back catalog (twenty-five studio albums and counting), but the band has never been one to rest on its reputation.
