In honor of the legacy of Norman Pellegrini

August 31, 2010
Franz Schubert: String Quartet No. 14 in D minor (“Death and the Maiden”)
Sponsored in part by the NIB Foundation

Today’s program honors the legacy of Norman Pellegrini and his lifelong contributions to the musical life of Chicago. Norm was very involved with Rush Hour from its inception eleven years ago, as a principal programming advisor and the author of our weekly program notes. He very much believed that Rush Hour’s mission to provide “Great Music for Busy Lives” was having an impact in growing new audiences for great classical music. The fact that he was able to witness Rush Hour’s place on the summer cultural landscape of Chicago gives us at least some small comfort in dealing with the shock of his sudden death last summer.

Rush Hour thanks the NIB Foundation and other private donors for helping to make today’s concert dedication possible.  Norm loved all kinds of music, as Chicagoans know from his decades-long career at WFMT, but the human voice and the string quartet were particularly special to him, as was the music of Franz Schubert. He understood what the Viennese say about Schubert’s music:  “One eye is laughing while the other is crying.”

- Deborah Sobol