The second concert of the Illinois Symphony Orchestra’s 2021-2022 season was held this past Saturday at the UIS Performing Arts Center and proved to be an exciting evening of contrasting moods and surprising choices, including renditions of major works by two very different Russian masters and the debut of a new piece by a contemporary […]
Scott Faingold
Scott Faingold is a journalist, educator and musician. He has been director of student media at University of Illinois Springfield, founding editor of Activator magazine, a staff reporter for Illinois Times and co-host of Old School Bleep, a music-centered podcast.
Posted inMusic
ISO is back…and beautiful
The Illinois Symphony Orchestra made its triumphant return to the UIS Performing Arts Center stage this past Saturday, for the first time since February of 2020. Of course, the remaining two concerts of that seemingly long-ago season were canceled – along with pretty much everything else in the known world – due to the COVID-19 […]
Posted inMusic
Symphony embraces technology
“Previous to the pandemic, things had been looking good and positive,” said Illinois Symphony Orchestra executive director Trevor Orthmann, during a phone conversation last week. “We had great concerts up until February – the season was going well.” Suddenly the ISO was faced with having to cancel 2020’s final two performances – and all other […]
Posted inMusic
Romance and bombast
The Illinois Symphony Orchestra returned to the UIS Performing Arts Center Saturday, Feb. 15, with a spirited Valentine’s Day-themed program entitled “Love Notes.” Things got underway with an enthusiastic performance of Richard Strauss’s 17-minute tone poem “Don Juan” (1888), introduced in amusing fashion by ISO music director Ken Lam, who illustrated each stage of the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
SAA film series offers hope and vision
Each year for almost three decades, the Springfield Art Association has provided a public service to the area’s cultural and cinematic landscape in the form of the Molly Schlich Independent and International Film Series. Starting in January and lasting through March, with Sunday matinees and Tuesday evening screenings at AMC’s Parkway Pointe 8 (3025 Lindbergh […]
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Cello and chill
The Illinois Symphony Orchestra began its 2019-2020 season with “Beautiful and Bold” at the UIS Performing Arts Center on Saturday, Oct. 19. After a rousing rendition of “The Star Spangled Banner,” the concert proper got underway with Wagner’s “Forest Murmurs” (drawn from the opera Siegfried, part of the Ring of the Nibelungen cycle). Typical of […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Making an art gallery out of Enos Park
A giant paper spiderweb containing an oversized morning glory flower covering the front of an abandoned house. A series of synchronized video monitors flashing various leisure activity options from an upper porch. A palm frond waving maniacally at passersby from a storefront window. A series of bright pink lawn ornaments made out of thrift store […]
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Rebounds against racism
“I think we’re more polarized now than we have been for a while as a society, especially when it comes to race,” said Al Klunick, co-organizer of the upcoming Community Unity 2 On 2 Tournament, which aims to pit integrated basketball duos against each other in an attempt to bridge racial gaps. Klunick coached high […]
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ISO’s fantastic finale
The Illinois Symphony Orchestra closed out its 2018-2019 season with “Nature’s Beauty,” a soaring and varied concert at Sangamon Auditorium on Saturday, May 4. ISO executive director Trevor Orthmann, in his opening remarks, accurately described the program as encompassing both “some of the most beautiful and most bombastic” music. The evening’s music started with the […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Five presidents and a funeral
“If you want this job, there’s something deeply wrong with you.” – Ronald Reagan in Five Presidents When former president Richard M. Nixon died in 1994, his funeral brought together the four living ex-presidents, along with current commander-in-chief Bill Clinton to attend the funeral. When writer Rick Cleveland, who has contributed scripts to politically themed […]
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Symphony “Incredibly Inspiring”
“Forgive me if I seem a bit at sea / but you woke me from a dream of words / I was setting to music I’ll want you / to transcribe for me…” – Opening lines of “The Gate of Horn” by L.S. Asekoff As part of its ongoing celebration of the Illinois bicentennial, the […]
Posted inNews
Cold and classical
The frigid trudge of determined music lovers from the sleet-covered parking lot to Sangamon Auditorium lent verisimilitude to this past Saturday’s “Nordic Nights” concert by the Illinois Symphony Orchestra. Featuring works by major composers from Finland, Denmark and Norway, the evening’s program managed to be energetic, challenging and good fun. The evening got underway with […]
