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Andrew Grams to conduct ESO's season finale, 'Bernstein & Mahler' April 30 and May 1

Music Director Andrew Grams conducts the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, named 2016 Illinois Orchestra of the Year by the Illinois Council of Orchestras, in their season finale concerts on April 30 and May 1.

The program holds Bernstein's Symphony No. 1, "Jeremiah" and Mahler's Symphony No. 4, both featuring soprano Laura Wilde, a member of the Chicago Lyric Opera's Ryan Opera Center.

The concerts will be 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 30, and 2:30 p.m. Sunday, May 1, at the Hemmens Cultural Center, 45 Symphony Way in Elgin. For tickets, which start at $30, see ElginSymphony.org or call (847) 888-4000. Saturday night concertgoers are invited after the performance to attend "Mingle with the Musicians" at the Elgin Public House.

"I programmed these two works together because Bernstein and Mahler were conductors who also composed," says ESO Music Director Andrew Grams. "While they were celebrated as conductors during their lifetimes, their genius as composers, especially Mahler's, was recognized years later. Bernstein was a great admirer and proponent of Mahler's music and twice recorded his complete symphonies. His second cycle, digitally recorded in the 1980s, is called by some as Bernstein's finest achievement."

Andrew Grams, 2015 Illinois Conductor of the Year, became music director of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra in June 2013 after an international search. A graduate of the Julliard School and Curtis Institute of Music, where he studied with Otto-Werner Mueller, Grams holds degrees in violin performance and conducting, and has already appeared with many of the great orchestras of the world. He served as assistant conductor for the Cleveland Orchestra for three years under the guidance of Franz Welser-Möst. Grams' superb musicianship and technique, charismatic conducting and easy accessibility have made him a favorite with Elgin Symphony audiences. He recently extended his contract through the 2020-21 ESO season.

Opera News praised American soprano Laura Wilde as having, "a ravishingly beautiful sound, [and] a fine sense of style and character." Wilde is in her final year of The Patrick G. and Shirley W. Ryan Opera Center at the Lyric Opera of Chicago, where she studies with Julia Faulkner. At the Lyric Opera of Chicago during the 2015-16 season, Wilde sang Marianne Leitmetzer in "Der Rosenkavalier" and covered Marschallin. She also covered the Countess in "Le Nozze di Figaro," Hanna in "The Merry Widow" and sang the role of Anna in Nabucco. This summer she will make her European debut as the title role in Leo Janáek's "Jenfa," with English National Opera.

Named the 2016 Illinois Orchestra of the Year, the Elgin Symphony Orchestra offers programming unmatched for an entertaining, informative and relaxing cultural experience. Known for their high-quality performances, ESO musicians represent some of the most talented musical artists in the region. In addition to magnificent music, patrons can also enjoy a drink, spend time with friends and even shop in the lobby of the Hemmens Cultural Center. From start to finish, the ESO brings world class, big city entertainment without the hassles of the big city.

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