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George Lepauw makes Beethoven belong to Chicago
George Lepauw lives his life according to a precept he picked up as a very young child studying piano with Aida Barenboim, mother of...
Singer Frank D'Rone hits a high note late in his career
As his old friend Frank Sinatra might have put it, it was a very good year for Chicago singer Frank D'Rone.
'Battle of the Saxes' raises the curtain
For years, the "Battle of the Saxes" that played the Green Mill Jazz Club each New Year's Eve was less a contest than a lively exchange of...
Third Eye Blind sees end of the album road
You wouldn't be reading this if you weren't already familiar with Third Eye Blind. The band was a pop star in the '90s, and its career has...
For latest album 'Year,' what's old is new again for Azita Youssefi
Azita Youssefi's new album is actually old. "Year," which was released last month on her longtime home label, local indie Drag City, isn't...
A muted show from trumpet star Roy Hargrove
Roy Hargrove, one of the great trumpeters of the under-50 generation, has made a tradition of closing each year with a residency at the Jazz...
Glorious sounds soar above season of economic gloom
No musical news story in 2012 drew greater media attention, inside and outside Chicago, than the strike that silenced the Chicago Symphony...
Jazz pianist, educator Ken Chaney dead at 73
Pianist Ken Chaney wasn't as famous as many of his Chicago colleagues, but the high caliber of his playing, the originality of his...
Riff Raff wanders through show at Reggie's
The last time Riff Raff -- a Texas rapper now based in Los Angeles, but at home on the Internet -- performed in Chicago, he was booed off...
Christopher McBride and Isaiah Spencer light up Andy's
First the disappointing news: Jimmy Ellis, the veteran alto saxophonist who had been listed as guest soloist with drummer Isaiah Spencer's...
Martina McBride brings dreams of Christmas to Chicago
Like Bing Crosby and Andy Williams before her, Martina McBride understands what it takes to deliver a Christmas show. You have to have an...
Big hooks, big thrills from The Killers at UIC Pavilion
Glitzy, overblown, fun, proudly cheesy: The Killers shared much in common with their Las Vegas hometown Friday at a sold-out UIC Pavilion....
World ends with a jazzy bang in Rouse concerto for CSO's Martin
Contrary to supposed Mayan prophesy, the world did not end on Friday. The end actually arrived at about 8:40 the previous evening, at...
A low-key party for Thrill Jockey at 20
As they do nearly every evening, bands played into the late hours Thursday at Empty Bottle. This time, however, the live performances...
Music review: Andrew Bird at Fourth Presbyterian Church
Holiday concerts needn't necessarily involve traditional carols or religious references. Just ask Andrew Bird. Wednesday at the first of...
Graham Parker's Rumour reunion a victory lap
In the new Judd Apatow movie "This Is 40," Graham Parker plays a slightly past his prime British rocker, reunited with his old band and...
Heartfelt 'Messiah' upholds Apollo Chorus' venerable holiday tradition
In times of national distress and reflection, performances of Handel's "Messiah" seem more necessary than ever.
DuSable High School a landmark with jazz as catalyst
No high school in America did more to shape the sound of jazz than a magnificent edifice at 49th Street and Wabash Avenue, on the South Side...
Of Monsters and Men expansive at Riv
During Of Monsters and Men's performance at Riviera Theatre on Sunday, the first of two sold-out shows, the sextet only played a brief 75-...
Sufjan Stevens' Christmas revelry turns poignant
"You know, to be honest, I hate Christmas," Sufjan Stevens remarked at his sold-out show at Metro on Saturday. Given the show was billed...
A cannily constructed night of modern works
"Hard Music Hard Liquor" was Friday night's program for the holidays by Ensemble Dal Niente that brought works by nine contemporary and...
Dave Douglas' 'Be Still' sounds weak at Green Mill
No doubt there's a certain spiritual appeal to "Be Still," the most recent recording of trumpeter Dave Douglas.
Cedar Walton's low-key, less-is-more brand of pianism
Pianist Cedar Walton always plays it straight – no flash, lots of substance.
Carrie Underwood delivers a buffed, epic show at United Center
Carrie Underwood isn't waiting for Hollywood to call. She's ready for a leading role now. Wednesday at a near-capacity United Center, the...
Ravi Shankar's impact went beyond the Beatles
The Fox News Web headline Wednesday morning captured something in the air despite its utter wrongness:
Obama's next four years: Tune in to jazz
Any president's second term offers another shot at fulfilling dreams that got away the first time around.
Sinfonietta reaches out to city's Latino community with new concert series
The Chicago Sinfonietta, long a national model for promoting diversity and inclusiveness in orchestral performance, is reaching out to...
Hoodie Allen: the 'American Pie' approach to rap
The 24-year-old rapper Hoodie Allen is part of an offshoot of hip-hop that has been saddled with the tag "frat-rap," though the term...
Classical CDs full of aural pleasures
My 10 selections are not the "best" recordings of 2012, only ones that represent some of the recordings that have given me particular...
All styles, all of them great
Miguel Zenon and Laurent Coq: "Rayuela" (Sunnyside Records). Puerto...
Thinking inside the classical box
From the bounty of boxed sets released during the past year, here are six classical albums sure to please gift givers and receivers alike:
Vasily Petrenko proves he's the real deal in debut with CSO
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra does a thorough job bringing to local attention gifted young conductors who are creating a stir in the podium...
Larry Coryell storms the heavens at Jazz Showcase
Guitarist Larry Coryell has performed with drummer Paul Wertico and bassist Larry Gray so often that when they reunited Thursday night at...
After 25 years, Public Enemy still ferocious
Public Enemy hasn't mellowed much with age. Wednesday at a near-capacity House of Blues, the reengaged rap ensemble stormed through a 70-...
Chicago singer Tony Adriacchi loved performing
In the 1980s, Tony Andriacchi was almost as famous in Chicago as his heroes Tony Bennett and Frank Sinatra were around the world.
Ward Stare returns to Lyric Opera, with a baton
You've heard of pianist-conductors, violinist-conductors, even the occasional cellist-conductor. But how many conductors can you name who...
'Funkin' With Electric Soul' takes on legends Jimi Hendrix, James Brown
You usually don't hear jazz singers taking on James Brown's "Sex Machine" or Jimi Hendrix's "Purple Haze."
Lyric's kid-friendly 'Pasquale' delights grownups too
"Don Pasquale" isn't exactly the first show that springs to mind when you're looking for an opera to hook young children on opera. Look a...
Gustavo Dudamel storms through Orchestra Hall program
As the world's most famous media personality in classical music, Gustavo Dudamel presides over events that share the atmosphere of rock...
Kreayshawn's mixed bag of tricks
In the mainstream hip-hop world, the 23-year-old Oakland rapper Kreayshawn is a punch line — a woman who got signed to a record deal...
Review: Alabama Shakes testifies to its power at the Riv
"I don't wanna wait!" shouted Brittany Howard Saturday at a sold-out Riviera, her head titled toward the ceiling and body shivering with...
Trumpeter Tom Harrell's quintet hits hard from the outset
Tom Harrell always has been a singular voice on trumpet, a fervently lyrical player with an uncommonly sensitive ear as composer-arranger,...
Review: A swaggering Who blasts through 'Quadrophenia'
"Hope I die before I get old." Pete Townshend will never escape those fantastically fatalistic words he wrote - and Roger Daltrey first sang...
Keeping up with The Coup
Sporting a frizzy Afro, thick mutton chops and insurgent rhetoric, Boots Riley would've easily fit in
Duo Qwel & Maker making beautiful music together
Though they both have separate thriving careers in the underground rap scene, Qwel & Maker are perhaps best loved as a team. Maker works...
Irma Thomas is and will always be the queen
In the third season of the New Orleans television drama "Treme," disc jockey/songwriter Davis McAlary (Steve Zahn) recruits Irma Thomas to...
Lyric gives kids an afternoon at the opera with 'Popcorn & Pasquale'
Not many people take their 5-year-olds to the opera. Operas are long. Operas make you read English supertitles. Operas are nothing like...
