Bring the family to free concert with ESO woodwind quintet Nov. 20
The Elgin Symphony Orchestra Family Concert Series will feature the woodwind quintet, with Jean Bishop, flute, Gene Collerd, clarinet, Debra Freedland, oboe, Sharon Jones, horn and Collin Anderson, bassoon, at 2 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 20, in Meadows Community Rooms at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave. in Elgin.
The quintet will present "A Musical Tour of Chicago," performing music that represents many of Chicago's cultural icons and ethnic communities, like the lakefront, the Art Institute, Chinatown, the Lyric Opera, and more.
The free program also will include instrument demonstrations and a question-and-answer session. The audience is invited to meet the artists and enjoy refreshments after the performance.
ESO Family Concerts are presented in partnership with the Gail Borden Public Library. Free tickets are available at the Main Library and the Rakow Branch. For more information, call the library at (847) 742-2411.
Jean Bishop is the principal flutist of Elgin Symphony Orchestra. Other orchestra positions she holds include second flute with Mendelssohn Chamber Orchestra, principal with Light Opera Works, and principal piccolo of Rockford Symphony Orchestra. She is a member of the Judson University faculty, and she also has several private flute students. She has performed with many of the Chicago area's orchestras, including Grant Park Symphony, Illinois Philharmonic, Illinois Symphony and Chicago Chamber Orchestra. She holds a bachelor's degree from Chicago Musical College of Roosevelt University. She lives in suburban Chicago with her husband and daughter, who are also musicians.
Gene Collerd earned bachelor and master's degrees from Yale University where he studied clarinet with Keith Wilson and conducting with Otto-Werner Mueller. He also was a clarinet student of Robert Marcellus and Anthony Gigliotti. He is professor of music, emeritus at the University of Illinois at Chicago where he was active as a conductor, served as coordinator of music, and now teaches clarinet, chamber music, and theory. Principal clarinet with the Elgin Symphony, Chicago Opera Theater, and the New Sousa Band, he plays assistant principal clarinet with the Grant Park Symphony Chicago, and is a member of the Chicago Philharmonic. He performs as guest with Music of the Baroque, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Rembrandt Chamber Players, the Lyric Opera Orchestra, and the Chicago and Milwaukee Symphony Orchestras.
Debra Freedland is principal oboe of the Elgin and the Rockford Symphony Orchestras, Light Opera Works, and is professor of oboe at Harper College and Elgin Community College. She is a former principal oboe of the Tulsa Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic, Duluth Superior Symphony Orchestra, and the Israel Sinfonietta Beer-Sheva, and second oboe of the Illinois Philharmonic, the Richmond and the Sacramento Symphony Orchestras.
Sharon Jones, horn, is a member of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra and an active freelance musician, and frequently can be seen performing as a pit musician in numerous productions with Drury Lane Theater Oak Brook, Broadway in Chicago, the Paramount Theater in Aurora and Chicago Shakespeare Theater at Navy Pier. After earning a bachelor's degree from Indiana University-Bloomington and a master's from Northwestern University, she began her career with the Civic Orchestra of Chicago (the training orchestra of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra), performing under the direction of conductors such as Pierre Boulez, Esa-Pekka Salonen and Daniel Barenboim.
Since 2009, bassoonist Collin Anderson has been a member of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra. He has been a member of the Lake Forest Symphony since 2000. He also has appeared with the Grant Park Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago, and the Chicago Opera Theater. Collin is an adjunct bassoon instructor at Northeastern Illinois University, and North Park University. Collin attended the Eastman School of Music earning a bachelor of music degree in bassoon performance and a master's degree in bassoon. Also a composer, Anderson earned a master of music degree in composition from DePaul University and a doctoral degree from Northwestern University. His works have been performed throughout Chicago, at the Aspen Music Festival, and on WFMT Radio
Now in its 66th season, the ESO offers programming unmatched for an entertaining, informative and relaxing cultural experience. The ESO has won Illinois Professional Orchestra of the Year an unprecedented four times - in 1988, 1999, 2005 and 2016. The ESO works to create an enjoyable entertainment experience that goes beyond the magnificent music performed by some of the best musicians in the region.
Area student musicians often perform in the lobby before concerts and patrons can purchase gifts at the Elgin Symphony League Boutique. Preconcert chats are given by Andrew Grams, guest artists and others one hour before most performances and Saturday night patrons are invited after concerts to Mingle with the Musicians at the Elgin Public House. In addition, free Listeners Club lecture/discussions presented by music historian Jim Kendros are offered before ESO concert weekends at 1 p.m. Wednesdays at the Gail Borden Public Library. Flex passes are available for purchase so that you can choose your concerts at a later date based on your own schedule. And if a patron can't make a concert, the ESO offers free exchanges to subscribers and to single ticket buyers for a $5 fee. There is accessible, free parking around the Hemmens Cultural Center and valet service available. Visit ElginSymphony.org.
The ESO is a world-class orchestra providing quality musical explorations that are entertaining, hassle-free and conveniently located close to home in the western suburbs.