Chamber and Jazz Collide in Orion Ensemble's 2011-2012 Season

The Orion Ensemble, Chicago's nationally recognized and critically acclaimed chamber music ensemble, presents Chamber Treasures Meet Chicago Jazz, its 19th season of concerts, featuring Spanish compositions, a tribute to women composers, a jazz-focused program and more.

Orion will perform each of its four concert programs at venues spanning the Chicagoland area: Ganz Memorial Hall at Roosevelt University, where Orion is Ensemble-in-Residence at the Chicago College of Performing Arts (Chicago); the Music Institute of Chicago's Nichols Concert Hall (Evanston); and Fox Valley Presbyterian Church (Geneva).

The season opens with "Spanish Flair," featuring two piano trios by Catalan composers and two additional early 20th century works. The program includes Trio in C Major for Violin, Cello and Piano (1926) by Gaspar Cassadó; Trio for Clarinet, Violin and Piano (1932) by Aram Khachaturian; Three Pieces for Clarinet Solo (1920) by Igor Stravinsky; and Trio for Violin, Cello and Piano, Op. 50 (1910) by Enrique Granados. Performances take place September 25 (Evanston), October 5 (Chicago) and October 9 (Geneva).

"Classical Romance" describes the season's second concert program, featuring three pieces for three instruments each: Trio in B-flat Major for Clarinet, Cello and Piano, Op. 11 by Ludwig van Beethoven; Trio in B-flat Major for Violin, Viola and Cello, D. 581 by Franz Schubert; and Trio in D Major ("Ghost") for Violin, Cello and Piano, Op. 70, No. 1 by Ludwig van Beethoven. Performances are November 20 (Evanston), November 27 (Geneva) and November 30 (Chicago).

In honor of Women's History Month, Orion will be "Celebrating Women Composers" in March, performing Silver Dagger for Violin, Cello and Piano (2009) by Stacy Garrop; Trio in E-flat Major for Clarinet, Cello and Piano, Op. 44 by Louise Farrenc; Air and Variations for Violin, Clarinet and Piano (1957) by Phyllis Tate; and Trio in D Minor for Violin, Cello and Piano, Op. 11 by Fanny Mendelssohn. Performances are March 4 (Geneva), March 11 (Evanston) and March 14 (Chicago).

Guest pianist Miguel de la Cerna contributes a work commissioned for Orion and performs with the Ensemble for the final program, "All That Jazz!", which also features Quartet in C Minor for Violin, Viola, Cello and Piano, Op. 15 by Gabriel Fauré and Rhapsody in Blue for Clarinet and Piano (1924) by George Gershwin, arranged by Timofei Dokshitser. Performances are May 6 (Evanston), May 9 (Chicago) and May 13 (Geneva).

Also during the season, Orion will appear on the broadcast series "Live from WFMT" December 5, 2011 and March 12, 2012 and in the Chicago Cultural Center's Lunchbreak Series "Classical Mondays" October 31 and November 21, 2011. Orion also tours, performing in chamber music series across the country. Its most recent CD is Twilight of the Romantics.

Founded in 1992, the Orion Ensemble boasts a roster of five superb musicians-Kathryne Pirtle (clarinet), Florentina Ramniceanu (violin), Diana Schmück (piano), Judy Stone (cello) and Jennifer Marlas (viola)-who have performed with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony, Moscow Philharmonic, San Francisco Symphony, Chicago Lyric Opera Orchestra and Chicago's Music of the Baroque orchestra, and at music festivals including Ravinia, Aspen, Mostly Mozart, Hollywood Bowl, Taos Chamber Music, Salzburg and Banff. The Chicago Tribune called Orion "one of Chicago's most vibrant, versatile and distinctive ensembles," and the Chicago Sun-Times said Orion is "what chamber music should be all about: Individual virtuosity melded into a group personality." The Orion Ensemble received a Chamber Music America/ASCAP Award for Adventurous Programming for its critically acclaimed millennium celebration, "An Inside Look at Contemporary Music." The group is also currently the Ensemble-in-Residence at Roosevelt University's Chicago College of Performing Arts. The Orion Ensemble is supported in part by grants from the MacArthur Fund for Arts and Culture, the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation and the Illinois Arts Council.

The Orion Ensemble performs each concert program during the 2011-12 season at three Chicago-area venues: Roosevelt University's Ganz Memorial Hall, 430 S. Michigan Avenue in Chicago on Wednesdays, October 5, November 30, March 14 and May 9 at 7:30 p.m.; the Music Institute of Chicago's Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Avenue in Evanston on Sundays, September 25, November 20, March 11 and May 6 at 7:30 p.m.; and Fox Valley Presbyterian Church, 227 East Side Drive in Geneva on Sundays, October 9, November 27, March 4 and May 13 at 7 p.m. Single tickets are $26, $23 for seniors and $10 for students; children 12 and younger are free. A four-ticket flexible subscription provides a 10 percent savings on full-priced tickets. For tickets or more information, call 630-628-9591 or visit orionensemble.org.