ESO trombone section to perform in Chamber Music on the Fox's 'Crime Classics' Oct. 4
The Chamber Music on the Fox opens their third season with an evening of old-time radio dramas scored by the great film composer, Bernard Herrmann, at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 4, at the Kimball Street Theater, Kimball Street and Dundee Avenue in Elgin.
Featuring the talents of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra trombone section and Radio Players West, "Crime Classics" includes true crime stories along with live music and theater.
The program holds "Death of a Picture Hanger" and "Coyle and Richardson - Why They Hung in a Spanking Breeze," composed by Herrmann and written by Morton Fine and David Friedkin. Steven Ingle will conduct, with ESO musicians Reed Capshaw, Mark Fry and Adam Moen on trombone and Faye Seeman on harp. Tickets are $20 or $10 for students. For tickets, visit chambermusiconthefox.com.
The performance is part of a project of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Music on the Fox and the Gail Borden Public Library called "A Celebration of Music from the Golden Age of Cinema & Radio," an exploration of the work of composer and conductor Bernard Herrmann, and filmmaker, actor and composer Charlie Chaplin, brilliant contemporaries who left their marks in radio and film.
Herrmann biographer Steven C. Smith will lead a guest lecture on the Oscar-winning composer's career from 2 to 3:30 p.m. at the library, 270 N. Grove Ave. in Elgin. From 1 to 3 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 5, the author will return to the Elgin library to discuss the musical score to Charlie Chaplin's silent film, "City Lights," which Chaplin himself composed. The film, which has received many accolades and awards, will be shown with the ESO performing the score live on Oct. 7-9. For more information about "A Celebration of Music," visit gailborden.info/bernardherrmann and for City Lights tickets, visit ElginSymphony.org or call (847) 888-4000.
Mark Fry, a Chamber Music on the Fox co-artistic director, is currently the bass trombonist of the Elgin Symphony Orchestra and Lake Forest Symphony. Mr. Fry performs regularly with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Chicago Philharmonic, Joffrey Ballet, Chicago Sinfonietta and Chicago Opera Theater. He has performed with the Chicago Symphony in Carnegie Hall during the fall of 2001 and the Houston Symphony during their 2010 tour of England and Scotland. He has long been involved with contemporary music, performing with such groups as Fulcrum Point New Music Project and on the Chicago Symphony's Music Now series. He has recorded with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, Mannheim Steamroller, New Black Music Repertory Ensemble and the Spoleto Festival Orchestra, as well as for radio and television commercials. He is also on the faculty at Elgin Community College.
Reed Capshaw currently holds the position of principal trombone with the Elgin Symphony, Lake Forest Symphony, and South Bend Symphony. He is also a member of the Chicago Philharmonic and Tower Brass. He regularly performs with many of the area's great orchestral ensembles, including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Lyric Opera. He has performed and toured with the Cleveland Orchestra, Detroit Symphony, and the Chicago Symphony. He graduated with a bachelor's degree in trombone performance at Roosevelt University, where he studied with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra's principal trombonist, Jay Friedman. In 2005, he received a master's degree in trombone performance from Northwestern University, where he studied with Michael Mulcahy, Charles Vernon, and Randy Hawes. He is a member of The Chicago Trombone Consort. He holds the position of artist-teacher of trombone in the Music Conservatory at the Chicago College of Performing Arts at Roosevelt University and also teaches applied trombone at the University of Illinois-Chicago.
Adam Moen joined the Elgin Symphony Orchestra in 2001. He also serves as trombonist with the Chicago Philharmonic and the Stonegate Brass Quintet. He also performs regularly with the Joffrey Ballet of Chicago, Chicago Opera Theater and the Illinois Philharmonic. He served as second trombone/assistant principal with the Lyric Opera for the 2007-09 seasons. In addition to performing in orchestral setting, he has extensive experience performing in chamber and contemporary ensembles. The list includes Chicago Brass Quintet, Chicago Chamber Musicians, Fulcrum Point, ICE, Pink Martini, Music Now, Contempo and The Rembrandt Chamber Players. Mr. Moen has also performed with popular artists such as Frank Sinatra, Barry White, Al Jarreau, Steely Dan, Yes!, Joni Mitchell and The Three Tenors. He studied at Northwestern University with Frank Crisafuli and Arnold Jacobs and also with Per Brevig at The Aspen School of Music.
Bernard Herrmann was born in New York City. He studied composition and orchestration at New York University and became a student at the Juilliard School of Music studying under Bernard Wagenaar and Albert Stoessel. In 1933, Herrmann went to work at the Columbia Broadcasting System (CBS). He started as a composer, writing music for the Columbia Workshop radio programs and soon after, he became first music adviser and later staff conductor at The American School of the Air, directing symphonic programs. In 1940, Herrmann became Conductor-in-Chief of the Columbia Symphony Orchestra and in this role, he championed new works to American radio audiences. He was introduced to the world of motion picture music by Orson Welles, who gave him his first film music assignment on Citizen Kane. Hermann wrote the scores for nearly fifty motion pictures, including "Psycho," "North by Northwest," "The Man Who Knew Too Much," "Vertigo," "Citizen Kane," "Cape Fear" and "Taxi Driver." He composed the scores for several fantasy films by Ray Harryhausen, and many TV programs, including Rod Serling's "The Twilight Zone."
One of Elgin's newest arts organizations, Chamber Music on the Fox is a classical chamber music series serving Elgin and the greater Fox Valley region, whose mission is to present engaging, enriching, and immersive performances and cultural experiences that enhance and enrich the cultural offerings of the area. For more information, visit www.chambermusiconthefox.org.
Now in its 66th season, the ESO has won Illinois Professional Orchestra of the Year an unprecedented four times - in 1988, 1999, 2005 and 2016.
Local 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 lectures presented by music historian Jim Kendros are offered before concert weekends at 1 p.m. Wednesdays at Gail Borden Public Library, 270 N. Grove Ave. in Elgin.
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 Elgin Symphony.org.