Music Features

As the holidays come closer, we all know how much music is a part of the celebration from Rudolph to Bethlehem, Santa to jingle bells and herald angels to your two front teeth. Songs about the “most wonderful time of the year” are ubiquitous, ever-present and undeniable. So get out there and enjoy it all […]

Yes, you read that right, pilgrim, we are now into the merry month of December for the year twenty and twenty-one. That puts us into the holiday season which, if you go practically anywhere, means a shift in music toward the ubiquitous sound of Christmas-related songs. We have our share of live performances connected to […]

What a lovely sight it is to be at Thanksgiving for 2021. A glance backward at last year’s Now Playing lists mostly activities found only in the digital domain. We can certainly say the times have changed, and that’s something to be thankful for. Since Thanksgiving always falls on a Thursday, and being reasonable and […]

Hello there. Won’t you come on into our mid-November, pre-Thanksgiving episode of Now Playing, covering the last weekend before the holiday rush of 2021. We have plenty going on in our live music world and some tidbits from those out there doing something out there. From festivals with all local bands to concerts by the […]

Bring it on home, folks, and let’s get it going. There’s much to do and talk about in our music scene. So let’s have at it, shall we. First, we have an announcement to make about a helpful and hopeful happening that concerns musicians and venues, and thereby, our community of music. A new deal […]

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 […]

Well, here we are rolling our way into November of 2021 heading toward the upcoming holiday season. Yeah, I said it. The last of the outdoor shows are likely done for the year, barring a ridiculous heat wave which could happen, so we’re now settling into our indoor music accommodations. Just in time for an […]

What’s happening out there, all you crazy kids? Everything at once and nothing at all with a little something left in the middle would be a fine answer to a question of such nature. Let’s go see what’s going on in the Springfield region of live music-making. First, a moment of reflection on the life […]

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 […]

As we delve into the second weekend of October, reminders of seasonal changes are all around us. To music-goers in Springfield, that means we’re nearing the end of the year for our many outdoor beer/music garden spaces and popular open-air festivals. Let’s do our best to enjoy the sweet sounds under the skies, trees, tents […]

Hello, all you happy people. Let’s dig right in to see what there is to see and to hear this week in our hip and happening music scene. Thursday pops out right away as an exceptional night of local live music. We can start with Rogers & Nienhaus at the Curve Inn, as these two […]