2022-23 Season

Elissa Lee Koljonen, violin

CUSO begins the season with exciting new sounds and old musical friends. The brilliantly talented Elissa Lee Koljonen returns to the Foellinger Great Hall stage to perform the mesmerizing Violin Concerto by the Persian composer Bezhad Ranjbaran. First championed by violinist Joshua Bell, this concerto has been praised for its exotic sounds and lustrous harmonies. The Symphony No. 1 of Brahms is among the composer’s most beloved works. Its big-shouldered and majestic outer movements are contrasted by the singing lyricism of its inner movements. Join CUSO for a night of memorable music-making!
 

TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

COVID-19 Safety Protocols:

At this time, neither masking nor proof of vaccination or a negative test are required to attend performances at Krannert Center. Changes would take place if and when appropriate and would be posted on the Krannert Center website, accessed here.

Stephen Alltop, conductor, organ and harpsichord

CUSO presents Baroque music at its most spectacular! Stephen Alltop will perform Bach’s formidable Toccata and Fugue in D Minor on FUMC’s magnificent organ. The program includes works by Handel and Telemann’s Water Music, a sparkling a dance suite portraying aquatic gods of mythology. Stacy Garrop’s Spectacle of Light draws its inspiration from the final work on the program, Handel’s thrilling Music for the Royal Fireworks.
 

TICKETS
General Admission Adults: $32
Youth and Students of any age: $10


COVID-19 Safety Protocols:

Currently, Faith United Methodist Church does not require masking to enter. If this policy changes due to community conditions, ticket holders will be notified by CUSO, and the updated information will be posted here.

Central Illinois Youth Chorus, Andrea Solya, Director
University of Illinois Chamber Singers, Andrew Megill, Conductor
Katelyn Lee, soprano
Joe Shadday, tenor
Stephen Alltop, Conductor and chamber organ
Andrew Megill, Guest Conductor
Nathan Sawyer, Assistant Conductor

CUSO’s joyous welcome to the holidays presents a delightful mix of traditional and contemporary music for the whole family to enjoy. The University of Illinois Chamber Singers will join CUSO to perform Bach’s resplendent Cantata No. 191, Gloria in excelsis Deo. The program also features a sparkling organ concerto of Handel and the beautiful voices of the Central Illinois Youth Chorus in songs of the season. The finale will make spirits bright as Maestro Alltop leads a sing-along of favorite carols and the “Hallelujah Chorus.”
 

TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

COVID-19 Safety Protocols:

At this time, neither masking nor proof of vaccination or a negative test are required to attend performances at Krannert Center. Changes would take place if and when appropriate and would be posted on the Krannert Center website, accessed here.

Dr. Jeffrey Sposato, Musicologist
University of Illinois Oratorio Society and University of Illinois Chamber Singers, Andrew Megill, Director
Stephen Morscheck, Elijah
Michelle Areyzaga, soprano
Leah Dexter, mezzo-soprano
Steven Soph, tenor
Maggie McCabe, treble

Mendelssohn’s portrayal of the prophet Elijah is one of the most dramatic works in the oratorio repertoire. In a flow of stirring choruses, heart-felt arias and theatrical interplay, Mendelssohn’s considerable gifts as a composer of vocal music are on full display. CUSO is joined by a stellar cast of soloists and the University of Illinois Oratorio Society to perform Elijah in all its force and majesty at what is sure to be one of the season’s greatest musical events.
 

TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age

 

Panel Discussion on Mendelssohn’s Elijah
Saturday, March 4, 2023, 2:00–3:30 p.m.

Orchestra Rehearsal Room, Krannert Center
Dr. Jeffrey Sposato, Musicologist
Dr. Stephen Alltop, Music Director and Conductor, CUSO
Dr. Andrew Megill, Director of Choral Activities, Univ. of Illinois

Learn more about Mendelssohn and his music! Dr. Jeffrey Sposato, Professor of Musicology and Director of the School of Music, University of Illinois, will lead an in-depth discussion about the historical background of Mendelssohn’s Elijah and its meaning in today’s musical world. Dr. Sposato is a Mendelssohn scholar and the author of “The Price of Assimilation: Felix Mendelssohn and the Nineteenth-Century Anti- Semitic Tradition” (Oxford, 2006), which was named a Choice Outstanding Academic Title for 2006 and a Royal Philharmonic Society Music Award finalist.

COVID-19 Safety Protocols:

At this time, neither masking nor proof of vaccination or a negative test are required to attend performances at Krannert Center. Changes would take place if and when appropriate and would be posted on the Krannert Center website, accessed here.

Rochelle Sennet, piano

CUSO’s season finale is a celebration of scintillating rhythms, beginning with George Gershwin’s brilliant symphonic tone poem, An American in Paris. The program also features soulful and syncopated music for strings from Sinfonietta No. 1 by Coleridge-Taylor Perkinson. CUSO is thrilled to welcome the immensely talented pianist Rochelle Sennet, performing Gershwin’s I Got Rhythm Variations. For the grand finale, CUSO presents the exciting tour de force of orchestral colors, Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, as orchestrated by Maurice Ravel.
 

TICKETS
$40 standard/$36 senior/$10 youth, student of any age
Concert tickets are on sale now and must be purchased online through Krannert Center’s ticket office.

COVID-19 Safety Protocols:

At this time, neither masking nor proof of vaccination or a negative test are required to attend performances at Krannert Center. Changes would take place if and when appropriate and would be posted on the Krannert Center website, accessed here.