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|| Venue Information ||
Chicago, IL
Date: May 28, 2006
Venue: Orchestra Hall
Venue Web Site: www.cso.org
Seating Capacity: 2521
|| Highlights ||
The Library of Congress traveled to Chicago, Illinois, in May to bring the "Song of America" inaugural tour to the Windy City, the ninth stop on the schedule. On Saturday, May 27, 2006, the National Vietnam Veterans Art Museum hosted the Library's Veterans History Project, which was led by Bob Patrick, Director. Deputy Librarian General Donald Scott also participated in the program. Tom Weiner, the Veterans History Project author and historian, collected oral histories from three veterans for the Library's archives. Later that afternoon, Dr. Gregory Lukow, Chief of the Library's Motion Picture, Broadcasting and Sound Recording Division, hosted a Curator's Choice symposium at Chicago's Gene Siskel Film Center. The program consisted of several film shorts from the Library's collections, including "Jammin' the Blues" and the Warner Brothers classic "What's Opera, Doc?", all of which have been restored and preserved by the Library of Congress.
The "Song of America" concert was held on Sunday, May 28, 2006, at the Chicago Symphony and featured baritone Thomas Hampson and pianist Daniel Barenboim. A display of rarely seen treasures from the collections of the Music Division was available for concert attendees prior to the performance and during intermission. In honor of the Memorial Day holiday, several manuscripts of patriotic stature were displayed, including the short score of John Phillip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever," the piano/vocal score of Irving Berlin's "God Bless America," and the orchestral introduction to Aaron Copland's "Fanfare for the Common Man."
The educational component of the "Song of America" tour took place at the Music Institute of Chicago on Saturday, June 10, 2006. Specialists from the Library's Educational Outreach team collaborated with local composer Lita Grier to present a one-day Teachers' Institute, "Making a Statement Through Song and Poetry." The inclusion of a Chicago composer was a unique feature of this institute, as was the live performance of several songs by Alicia Berneche, vocal soloist, and Abe Stokman, pianist.