Thoughts from the Executive Director: Why 30 Minutes?

On July 27, 2009

Here we are at the middle of the 2009 season. This season marks 10 years of Rush Hour Concerts at St. James Cathedral in our lives and yours, and that is something to celebrate! So while you’re settling in and savoring your last bite of birthday cake, I’d like to address a question I have been surprised with several times this year: “WHY are the concerts only 30 minutes long?” It’s a simple question with many answers.

My answer is that I like to think I’m a rebel. After all, I don’t always remember to floss and occasionally leave a dish in the sink overnight. The thought of doing things that bend the rules a bit leaves me breathless. Rush Hour is “bendy!” Sneak out of work “early” at 5:15: check! Sip a free glass of wine and delicious snacks: check! Hear a free, world-class concert: check again! Why, if you’re careful, you can be on a train and get home right around the regular time with a secret smile on your face, and no one the wiser.

Here are some of the other answers, culled from observations and conversations with patrons, artists, and staff.

It’s by design:
Rush Hour is “Great Music for Busy Lives.” Rush Hour was designed specifically to meet the needs of people who cannot afford to take the time or expense to participate in classical chamber music—and by that I mean taking two to four hours over a leisurely evening, going to dinner, paying for parking and a babysitter—whatever it is. In as much time as you might slip into a coffee shop, read a section of the paper and sip your favorite brew, you can come to Rush Hour and incorporate great music into your life.

It’s spontaneous:
Rush Hour is an entry point to classical music, in a traditional setting. It’s a minimal investment of time, but it’s meaningful: so much so that I often meet someone who stumbled across it the first time and then keeps coming back. Occasionally these are people who were avid musicians in high school or college and are coming back to the fold, so to speak. But sometimes they’re people who enjoy the peace and the love of that solitary hour each week. Would that person walk in the door for a longer concert? Hard to know, but I believe that “I’ll just drop by” has hooked many people into returning again and again.

It’s logistics:
But wait, there’s more. It’s not enough for us to present the opportunity. We also go to great and sometimes ridiculous lengths to secure musicians you will see performing in exalted venues throughout the world. For example, whenever we bring together our large “cello celebration,” it’s a foregone conclusion that most of that group will be racing off to perform elsewhere as soon as the concert is over. What I see is that the mission of Rush Hour—to provide free access to great music and artists—is so important to these wonderful artists that they work it into their schedules, and help us in every way to honor our tight budget and shorter performance times. (All while connecting with you on a personal level!) Everyone wins.

It’s the best kind of appetizer: Appetizers at Rush Hour
Some have said, hold on now! I love classical music, I’m a connoisseur of it, I come to Rush Hour because I know that I will hear things like the Gran Partita performed by great artists, and it’s not fair that you will give me a taste of this and then send me on my way.

A perfectly done appetizer can take the edge of your hunger, activate your taste buds, and get you ready for dinner. But sometimes, an appetizer is all you need. When you’re hungry, the first bite is far better than any subsequent one.

I have both the attention span of a cocker spaniel and a deep love for beautiful music, so that 30 minutes of great music often satisfies me perfectly. I get excited when I know that I would gladly sit still for another hour or so to listen. So, I go to dinner with a friend. I put the CD on in my car. I start a conversation. I recognize that we have to grab the perfect moments as they come. It’s no coincidence that a show business adage is “Leave them wanting more.” (I’m delighted that you do.)

It’s “turning off” for 30 minutes:
Most of us feel we must respond to every message and phone call immediately. Though none of my “time-saving” technology connects me to a button that will detonate a nuclear device or change the course of humankind, it seems that letting my battery run out on the Blackberry—being unreachable—is quite possibly a criminal act.

But I gleefully turn that darned thing off so that I can relax into a concert and what’s more, I take a strange delight in admonishing all the rest of you to do so. As the mother of two and a busy professional, it is unrealistic for me to think I can unplug completely. But I can afford a 30 minute rebellion, and I know that you can as well.

Some of the best moments in my life have been fleeting, but seem suspended in time and space while they are happening. Rush Hour has created this feeling in me many times—and those moments that touch my soul have done as much for me as 3 hours of something else. All too often, we tell ourselves that we are too busy to eat right, to exercise, to take a 10 minute break, or to simply take a deep breath and enjoy those around us. Taking the extra few minutes to make a meal from start to finish, or walk the dog, or have coffee with an old friend are the kinds of simple joy that life is ultimately all about.

We know you’re busy because we are too. And like us, you may hunger for more beauty in your lives. But I also know that every summer Tuesday evening between 5:15 and 6:15 p.m., I have a respite that is just right; a guilty pleasure that even I can’t really feel guilty about.

Thank you for celebrating this wonderful 10th anniversary with us, 30 minutes at a time.

- Megan Balderston
Executive Director

7/21 – Concert Recap

On July 23, 2009

This week, Rush Hour presented “SPIRITED FRENCH.” Fifth House Ensemble’s Melissa Snoza, flute; Crystal Hall, oboe; Jennifer Woodrum, clarinet; Karl Rzasa, bassoon; DeAunn Davis, horn; and Adam Marks, piano, offered a thrilling rendition of Francis Poulenc’s Sextet for piano and winds.

Special thanks to the Consulate General of France in Chicago and Alliance Française de Chicago for their sponsorship in part of Tuesday’s concert event.

Artistic Director Deborah Sobol interviews members of Fifth House Ensemble for an episode of podcast series “Rush Hour Conversations”

Another full house at St. James Cathedral

Melissa Snoza, flute, and Crystal Hall, oboe

Audience members at Fanfare’s post-concert happy hour at Farmerie 58

Thoughts from the Artistic Director: The Rise of the Mixed Ensemble

On July 22, 2009

Celebrating Rush Hour’s 10th anniversary this year gives me pause occasionally to stop and remember. On a recent muse, I found myself thinking back to 1983 when I was heavily involved with the envisioning and founding of The Chicago Chamber Musicians (CCM). At the time, most people’s concept of “chamber music” was a string quartet, a piano trio, or a woodwind quintet. The idea of a “mixed ensemble” – one with a variety of instruments, working and playing together like the more traditional chamber music ensembles – was novel, if not intriguing. The notion of hearing a string quartet, a piano quintet, and perhaps a piece for strings and winds together all on the same concert program caught on; people loved the variety, the expanded sound palette, the new repertoire.

CCM was one of the first “mixed ensembles” of its kind, modeling itself in part on the grandfather of this genre, The Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center, founded in 1969. Over the last twenty some years, more and more young musicians have been following the CCM model – a group of eight to fifteen musicians representing the string, woodwind, piano and often brass families. The groups morph into smaller combinations, offering their audiences a vast expanse of repertoire. Our artists this week, Fifth House Ensemble, are one such group. It gives me great pleasure to invite them to play again on Rush Hour. I know you will enjoy their energy, enthusiasm, and spirit. And there is no better piece to showcase these attributes than Poulenc’s Sextet for piano and winds.

Enjoy!

- Deborah Sobol
Artistic Director

Rush Hour Featured by the NewsHour with Jim Lehrer

On July 21, 2009

Rush Hour was recently featured on Art Beat, the arts blog of the Online NewsHour.

Click here to read “In Chicago, ‘Rush Hour’ Is Time for Music,” by reporter Mike Melia.

7/14 – Concert Recap

On July 17, 2009

This week Rush Hour celebrated Bastille Day with “ELEGANT FRENCH.” Garry Clarke, violin, Craig Trompeter, viola da gamba, and David Schrader, harpsichord, performed two works by French composer, organist, and harpsichordist François Couperin.

Special thanks to the Consulate General of France in Chicago for its sponsorship in part of Tuesday’s concert event.

Musicians Garry Clarke, violin, Craig Trompeter, viola da gamba, and David Schrader, harpsichord, rehearsing for Tuesday’s concert

Artistic Director Deborah Sobol interviewing Tuesday’s artists for a new episode of podcast series Rush Hour Conversations

Volunteers enthusiastically preparing food for the pre-concert reception

Brochures, posters, and tourism materials provided by the French Government Tourist Office

Thoughts from the Artistic Director: In Memory of Norman Pellegrini

On July 13, 2009

Early in the morning of July 2, Chicago lost a musical icon… not a famous conductor, violinist, or opera star, but one whose voice and passion shaped more than a generation of music lovers’ access to great music in our city and beyond.

Many of you have by now read of or heard of the untimely death of Norman Pellegrini less than two weeks ago. Most of you who love music in Chicago knew him as the founding program director of WFMT, the city’s great classical music station. He didn’t just “co-found” a radio station devoted to classical music; he created a whole new way of experiencing classical music on the airways. People would turn WFMT on in the morning and leave it on all day long…thanks to Norm, it became part of the fabric of their daily lives, a continual stream of enrichment and beauty.

Others of you know his voice from the Lyric Opera radio broadcasts, which were distributed across the country.

Most of you may not know this: Norm was a key advisor to Rush Hour during its founding years. Long before Rush Hour had a board of directors, we operated with a small Advisory Committee, of which Norm was a cornerstone. He continued his perennial involvement with Rush Hour after the board’s founding as an active member of the expanded Advisory Committee, ensuring that Rush Hour maintained its commitment to the highest artistic quality possible, while broadening approaches to great music for ever-growing audiences. I worked with Norm year-round on this – it was particularly a highlight of the winter months – and I was so pleased that he came to every Rush Hour concert from the beginning, the last one being June 2 of this year, the opening concert of our 10th anniversary season.

Norm Pellegrini’s passion for music – and especially live music-making – knew no bounds. He was an artist and a friend to artists. His zeal for excellence was uncompromising; his zest for life and earthy humor contagious. Chicago’s musical life is diminished by his death – but is greatly in his debt for the richness and vibrancy of its cultural life.

Chicago has lost an icon, and Rush Hour has lost a beloved mentor and friend.

It is with great gratitude for his life and gifts that we at Rush Hour dedicate today’s concert to his memory.

Thank you, Norm. We will miss you.

- Deborah Sobol
Artistic Director

7/7 – Concert Recap

On July 9, 2009

This week, Rush Hour presented “SWISS ORIGINALS.” Native Swiss artists Sam Burckhardt, tenor saxophone, and Stephan Grieder, organ, performed a program primarily featuring their original compositions, alternating between solo and duet turns. The performers took full advantage of the acoustics of St. James, utilizing the full range of the organ and performing from varied locations in the Cathedral.

Rush Hour especially thanks the Consulate General of Switzerland in Chicago, the Swiss Benevolent Society of Chicago, and Airway Records for their sponsorship in part of Tuesday’s concert event.

Stephan Grieder, organ, and Sam Burckhardt, tenor saxophone, in rehearsal

Artistic Director Deborah Sobol interviews Stephan Grieder and Sam Burckhardt for a “Rush Hour Conversations” podcast

Artists Sam Burckhardt and Stephan Grieder with Rob Dillon of Third Coast Percussion

Supporters Mary Jo Barton, John and Norma Bramsen, and Chuck Hamilton enjoy the pre-concert reception

Thoughts from the Executive Director: Celebrating Culture & Collaboration

On July 6, 2009

Collaboration makes me happy. If something is going well, I like to see how others’ ideas might make it better. So it is with our ongoing collaborations with the consulates in Chicago and with musicians of diverse backgrounds.

There is nothing more precious to a country’s cultural legacy than its artistic traditions. It means a great deal to Rush Hour to preserve the legacy of chamber music performed as it was meant to be: for a smaller audience, in innovative ways, in a shared “neighborhood of minds,” as one of Rush Hour’s dear poetic friends calls it. That’s why our “Swiss Originals” program fits the chamber music mold beautifully. This program successfully juxtaposes the old with the new (organ and saxophone, classical and blues) in form and format.

Our Swiss artists Stephan Grieder and Sam Burckhardt bridge the artistic and cultural traditions of Switzerland with those in the United States. It gives our audiences the opportunity to hear something new: a combination of instruments, composition, and a shared sense of the commonality that ties us all together in our global neighborhood. Swiss cultural life is likewise a fascinating combination of longstanding cultural traditions and global progressiveness. Switzerland’s four national languages remind me of the many “dialects” of music—and you will hear several of the artists’ native musical languages in the concert.

During this Rush Hour concert we celebrate the culture of Switzerland, the spirit of collaboration, and our new and continuing friendships with our audiences and sponsors. Partnerships of this sort remind me of the beauty of Rush Hour. We are working behind the scenes all year to make sure that our audiences have a rich cultural tradition to enjoy—and your ideas, your enthusiasm, and your joy give our neighborhood of minds a beautiful home.

- Megan Balderston
Executive Director

6/30 – Concert Recap

On July 2, 2009

This week at Rush Hour, CINCO brass quintet, composed of veteran Rush Hour performers Ryan Barwise, Michael Sapienza, Anna Mayne, Brian Risinger, and Jared Bulmer, performed Anthony DiLorenzo’s crowd-pleasing Fire Dance and Dmitri Shostakovich’s moving String Quartet No. 12, Op. 133, arranged for brass quintet by noted horn player and composer Verne Reynolds.