Ravinia Festival, one of the Chicago area’s favorite summer concert series, has officially released its full 2023 lineup, featuring performances ranging from Jethro Tull to John Legend, to a six-week residency from the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
The long-awaited summer concert series was announced on Thursday.
“The 2023 season of Ravinia has something for everyone,” said Jeffrey P. Haydon, president and CEO of Ravinia in a press release.
“From spotlighting female composers across multiple genres to bringing the best in pop, rock, jazz and classical to our varied stages,” Haydon’s statement continued. “Ravinia’s summer offerings reflect the broad musical tastes of Chicago and beyond. Whether it’s your first time or your fiftieth, a concert here is a special experience that we hope our audiences will cherish.”
The Chicago Symphony Orchestra also returns this year for a six-week summer residency, beginning in July. According to the organizers, most CSO programs this summer will feature at least one piece by a female composer.
The season runs from June 6 to September 10 and ticket sales start on May 1.
Below you will find the full line-up, broken down by genre. Performances can take place in the main Pavilion stage, the indoor Martin Theater and Bennett Gordon Hall, or the outdoor Carousel stage.
Pop, Rock R&B, Indie, Hip Hop County and DJs
- Mrs Lauryn Hill, June 17
- Chicago, June 18
- Counting crows And Dashboard ConfessionalJune 23
- charlie puth, 24th of June
- Santana, June 30 and July 1
- Right No Chaser And Ambrosia, July 2nd
- Ne Yo, July 7
- John Fogerty And Sincerely, July 9
- Mike BrandsJuly 13, Merry-go-round
- Jason Mraz and his SuperBand, August 2
- Blues traveler And Big Head Todd and the MonstersAug 12
- john legend, August 13 and 14
- Jethro Tull, Aug 18
- Kenny Login And Yacht Rock Revue, August 19
- Classic albums live dark side of the moon, August 25
- Boyz II men And The Isley BrothersAugust 26
- Train And Parmalee, August 30
- Brandi Carlile, August 31th
- Carrie Underwood, 1 and 2 Sept
- Queen! with resident DJs Derick Carter, Michael SeraphimAnd Garret Davidwith hosts Lucy Stoole, Nicoand special guests, Sept. 9
Jazz, Blues, Folk, Gospel, American Songbook, Global and Latin
- Michael Feinstein & Jean Yves Thibaudet, 14th of June
- Jacob Collier And Lawrence, with a pre-concert performance at the Carousel by little habits, June 16
- Pat Metheny, June 20
- Melody Gardot, June 22
- Adrian Dunn Singers, July 14 (before that night’s CSO concert)
- Maria Schneider OrchestraJuly 23
- rebirth brass band, July 26
- Elvin Bishop & Charlie Musselwhite, 3 August
- Boz Scaggs And Keb’Mo’August 6
- The Special ConsensusAug 8,
- Buddy dude And George BensonAugust 23
- Stans Music Institute Jazz Directors Billy Childs, Rufus ReidAnd Steve Wilsonplus Sarah Caswell And Christian Euman, of Kurt Ellen, September 8
Family and movies
- Ralph’s world, 24th of June
- National Seminario Ravinia Orchestra side by side with Chicago Philharmonic, 8 July
- Laurie Berkner, July 30
- Opera for Youth: Rossini’s The hairdresser of Seville, Aug 12
- Okay Dokee Brothers, August 26
- Charm At concert, complete movie with live score performed by Chicago Philharmonic with conductor Thiago Tiberio, Aug 27
- Jurassic Park 3rd anniversary in concert, complete movie with live score performed by Chicago Philharmonic with conductor Scott Terrell, August 29
Recitals and chamber music
- Arnaud Susman, violin, and Michael Stephen Brown, piano; June 18
- Karim Sulayman, tenor, And Sean Shibe, guitar21st of June
- Jorge Federico Osorio, piano, in a program by Brahms and Beethoven, June 20
- Heat Quartet, full Beethoven program; June 29
- Steans Music Institute faculty Miriam Fried and Mark Steinberg, violin, Paul Biss and Kim Kashkashian, viola, Marcy Rosen, cello, and Alessio Bax, piano, in a program by Haydn, Busoni and Brahms; July 1st
- Apollo’s Fireprogram of Irish folk music, July 8
- Ariel Quartet, Ayano Ninomiya, violin, Matthew Lipman, viola, Karen Ouzounian, cello, Henry Kramer, pianoJuly 20
- Danish string quartetprogram ranges from Haydn and Bach to Shostakovich and Nordic folk music, July 27
- Ailyn Perez, soprano, And Kevin Murphy, pianoAugust 15
- Laura Downes, piano, And Nicole Cabell, soprano, with a program of music by women composers ranging from Clarice Assad to Florence Price and Billie Holiday to Missy Mazzoli; August 22
- Misha Poet, piano, program by Brahms, Beethoven Debussy and Liszt; August 27
- Jory Vinikour, harpsichord, September 2nd
- Tessa Lark, violin, in a program of Ysaÿe’s Sonatas interspersed with Lark’s own compositions; September 3
- baroque music, Jane Glover, conductor, And James Ehnes, violin; 5 September
- Ensemble Black Oak plays instruments from Violins of Hope, a concert project featuring a private collection of violins, violas, and cellos that belonged to Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust, featuring music by composers who lost their lives at the time; September 9th
Dance
- Ruth Page Civic Ballet & Friends, June 15
- Ruth Page Civic Ballet & FriendsJune 17
- Chicago Black Dance Legacy Project: Metamorphosis, September 7
Chicago Symphony Orchestra
- 14th of July: Symphony No. 9 by Beethoven, with new lyrics for the “Ode to Joy” and jazz and drum interludes between movements
- July 15: Symphony No. 9 by Beethoven, with new lyrics for the “Ode to Joy” – commissioned by former American poet Tracy K. Smith by Carnegie Hall – and jazz and drum interludes between movements
- 16th of July: Tony and Grammy Award-winning singer Heather Headley and the Ravinia Lawndale Chorus
- July 19: Mezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke takes part in a full Mahler program that opens with songs by Alma Mahler, who was a composer herself, and ends with Gustav Mahler’s Fifth Symphony.
- 21 July: Chicago Symphony Chorus with works by Roxanna Panufnik on a program that also includes music by Gabriela Montero, who plays her own piano concerto
- July 28: May-Ann Chen, a former TACF fellow known to Chicago audiences for her role as leader of the Chicago Sinfonietta, conducts the CSO in music by Price, Copland, and Beethoven, with piano soloist Jeremy Denk
- July 29: Guest conductor Ted Sperling salutes three iconic female singer/songwriters in a pop music program from Joni Mitchell, Carole King and Carly Simon
- August 4, 6: Full-length semi-staged Mozart operas at the Martin Theater
- aug 5: Van Cliburn Piano Competition gold medalist Yunchan Lim conducts Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 3, as well as works by former CSO Composer-in-Residence Augusta Read Thomas and Beethoven
- August 9: Guest conductor Jonathon Heyward — the newly appointed Music Director of the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra — makes his CSO debut performing works by Pulitzer Prize winner Tania León; Bruch, with violinist Benjamin Beilman; and Rachmaninoff.
- aug. 10: Teddy Abrams leads the CSO in a program with pianist Jeffrey Kahane, featuring music by TJ Cole, Gabriel Kahane and Prokofiev
- August 11: Wainwright joins the CSO for an evening of new orchestral arrangements of songs from his acclaimed albums “Want One” and “Want Two”
- August 17: Guest conductor Joshua Weilerstein makes his CSO debut with a program featuring music by Still, Shostakovich and Elgar, featuring renowned cellist Alisa Weilerstein as a soloist
- Aug 20: Guest conductor George Stelluto conducts the CSO’s annual Tchaikovsky Spectacular
According to the organizers, tickets will go on sale to the public on May 1. Ravinia guests are allowed to bring their own picnic, including food and liquor.