2023-24
Concerts

With one foot in the real world and the other in a charmed dimension of his own making, Amos Lee creates the rare kind of music that’s emotionally raw yet touched with a certain magical quality.

Thirty years after her formative busking days Peyroux is the proud curator of nine beguiling albums and an accomplished performer with sold-out worldwide tours under her belt. Her atmospheric version of Serge Gainsborough’s La Javanaise was used in the soundtrack of the Oscar winning film The Shape of Water and her countless accolades include the coveted BBC International Artist Of The Year honor. 2023 finds the prolific musician continuing her world tour around the 2021 release of Careless Love Deluxe Anniversary Edition.

Enjoy a hilarious night of comedy with YouTube sensation ItsAlexClark! Alex Clark is a comedian and Youtuber most known for his self-titled, animated channel where he has amassed 4 million subscribers. He’s a Streamy nominee and a 4 time People’s Choice Award winner. The Chicago Tribune said, “his viral videos are funny” and the Huffington Post called him “brilliant”. Warming up the evening will be Brent Terhune. The writer of the syndicated radio show “The Bob And Tom Morning Show”, Brent has been seen on FOX, Amazon, Sirius XM and the DryBar Comedy Special and has been named by variety magazine as a “comic to watch” in 2020. Expect a fantastic evening of side-splitting humor and all for a good cause! A percentage of the ticket sales will go to Gilda’s Club of Grand Rapids. Tickets $22/advanced, $25/week of show, and $30/door.

Haydn is well known for his 104 symphonies and 68 string quartets, but his piano trios supply equal delight for listeners and inspiring challenges for performers. In this program, we hear the direct effect of Haydn’s genius on Beethoven, as three familiar and formidable CMS musicians tackle a four-work juxtaposition of seminal trios by both composers. We will hear each composer’s trios evolve, as they did side-by-side in Vienna, where Haydn and Beethoven enjoyed a cordial if somewhat competitive relationship. Beethoven’s “Ghost” Trio concludes, its eerie slow movement reportedly inspired by the witches’ scene from Macbeth.

Dobro master and 15-time GRAMMY winner Jerry Douglas is to the resonator guitar what Jimi Hendrix was to the electric guitar, elevating, transforming, and reinventing the instrument in countless ways. Additionally, Douglas is a freewheeling, forward-thinking recording and touring artist whose output incorporates elements of country, bluegrass, rock, jazz, blues, and Celtic into his distinctive musical vision.

The Blind Boys of Alabama are recognized worldwide as true living legends of Gospel music. In the Christmas Show, the Blind Boys present holiday standards from their Grammy winning 2004 Go Tell It On The Mountain and 2014 Talkin' Christmas albums. The holiday tour debuted in 2003 and has included sellout shows at such prestigious venues as Benaroya Hall in Seattle, Davies Symphony Hall in San Francisco and Walt Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles, among others.

Allison Russell — poet, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, activist, and co-founder of Our Native Daughters and Birds of Chicago — embarks upon her next chapter in The Returner, a body-shaking, mind-expanding, soulful expression of Black liberation, Black love, of Black self-respect. Written and co-produced by Allison along with dim star (her partner JT Nero and Drew Lindsay), The Returner was recorded over Solstice week in December 2022 at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles, CA. It features Russell's "Rainbow Coalition" band of all female musicians along with special guest appearances from the legendary Wendy & Lisa, Brandi Carlile, Brandy Clark, and Hozier.

Blue Note Records is celebrating their 85th Anniversary with a U.S. Tour starring “The Blue Note Quintet” – A group brought together to honor the label’s rich history and pave the way for the eclectic artists of today’s roster. Six-time Grammy Award nominee Gerald Clayton leads the band as Musical Director and Pianist; “Gerald Clayton is one of the most accomplished, distinctive and innovative pianists performing today” says Don Was, the The Blue Note label’s President since 2012. Rounding out the group is vibraphonist Joel Ross, Saxophonist Immanuel Wilkins, Drummer Kendrick Scott, and Bassist Matt Brewer.

“Rachael & Vilray” has been a musical act ever since Rachael Price saw Vilray play a very short set of covers and said she wanted in. In the years since they began, their configuration has ranged from an intimate duo, to the 9-piece formation heard on their newest album, ‘I Love A Love Song!’ No matter the set-up on stage, friends Rachael and Vilray sing right to each other, tell stories about how these original songs came to be, and relate them to the many old love songs they love to love.

In a celebration of instrumental odd couples, three duo teams highlight the extremes of possibility for their ensembles. Maurice Duruflé’s post-Romantic trio augments the duo format, and all join for the concluding Septet by virtuoso pianist Johann Hummel, who was a pupil of Mozart and Haydn and was admired by Beethoven. Featuring Juho Pohjonen, piano; Paul Neubauer, viola; Nick Canellakis, cello; Nina Bernat, double bass; Sooyun Kim, flute; James Austin Smtih, oboe; Radovan Vlatkovic, horn.

With her GRAMMY-Award winning and chart-topping album, Linger Awhile, 23-year-old Samara Joy makes her case to join the likes of Sarah, Ella, and Billie as the next jazz singing sensation. The New York Times praised the “silky-voiced rising star” for “helping jazz take a youthful turn” while NPR All Things Considered named her a “classic jazz singer from a new generation.” In February 2023, Samara Joy took home two GRAMMYs - Best Jazz Vocal Album and the auspicious Best New Artist award.

After winning a Grammy for his soulful ballad “Walking in Memphis,” Marc Cohn solidified his place as one of this generation’s most compelling singer-songwriters, combining the precision of a brilliant tunesmith with the passion of a great soul man. Rooted in the rich ground of American rhythm and blues, soul and gospel and possessed of a deft storyteller’s pen, he weaves vivid, detailed, often drawn-from-life tales that evoke some of our most universal human feelings: love, hope, faith, joy, heartbreak.

The deeply human voices of violins, violas, and cellos have inspired much of the greatest music ever composed. From Beethoven’s earliest all-string work to Francaix’s effervescent trio, this program offers a rich feast of string sonorities from the 18th century to the modern age. Featuring violinists Chad Hoopes and Bella Hristova; violists Matthew Lipman and Timothy Ridout and cellist Sihao He.