Ravinia Festival Announces Lineup for its 2010 Season, 6/3-9/7

Offering up greater variety, including more than 50 debuts from Sting to Wagnerian tenor John Treleaven, Ravinia Festival Chairperson Pamela B. Strobel and President and CEO Welz Kauffman today announced details of the 2010 season, including a Chicago Symphony Orchestra residency that celebrates major anniversaries of Mahler, Chopin, Schumann, Barber, Bernstein and Copland, as well as milestone birthdays of Music Director James Conlon, Christoph Eschenbach and Stephen Sondheim. The season, featuring 117 separate events, runs from June 3 through September 7.

"Audiences expect great variety from Ravinia, so what thrills me most about this season is not just the great breadth of options, but that every aspect of the festival glitters with audience favorites-in many cases artists, such as The Moody Blues, that concert-goers have clamored for in phone calls, letters and emails since I first arrived here in 2000. It all came together in one season that puts me in mind of Leonard Bernstein, whom we recognize in this 20th anniversary of his passing. In Bernstein's first year leading the New York Philharmonic, he mixed things up, celebrating the standard repertoire such as our complete Beethoven Piano Concertos, programming other formats such as music theater as we're doing with Annie Get Your Gun, and engaging the biggest stars in the world just as we have Renée Fleming, Joshua Bell and Frederica von Stade. I'm also reminded of the more recent New York phenomenon, the multimedia cabaret Le Poisson Rouge, which might put up a chamber orchestra like The Knights one night, and a cutting edge indie act like Rodrigo y Gabriela the next, or Gabe Kahane or Zuill Bailey, both of whom have played Ravinia previously," Kauffman said.

To help accommodate the great variety of events (over 60 percent classical compared to the historic 50/50 ratio), Ravinia will expand the use of its most intimate performance space, Bennett • Gordon Hall, in part so the festival can offer two or more concert options on several dates throughout the summer. Use of the hall also helps extend the classical season beyond the CSO residency and move more events outside the month of June, which has been cold and wet for the past several seasons. Offerings in this 450-seat venue include the Ravinia debut of Mexico's ambassadorial Delfos Danza Contemporánea, the fashionable dance troupe the New York Times describes as "gutsy," leading Ravinia's commemoration of the 200th anniversary of Mexican independence.

Most Bennett • Gordon Hall performances will be priced at $10 for reserved seats, one of the many measures Ravinia has taken to create economical options. Audiences will also find savings with 25 specially priced concert/dinner/parking packages, as low as $35, that sample the great variety of the many genres of music presented at the festival. Reserved pavilion seats to four Chicago Symphony Orchestra concerts, including an all-French evening led by Christoph Eschenbach, are priced at only $25 each. All concertgoers can get 20 percent off their orders (with some exceptions) when they purchase their tickets in person at Ravinia's box office on Customer Appreciation Day, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday,

May 22. Value-added events include a discussion of the works of Copland, Bernstein and Gershwin by popular musicologist Robert Greenberg, a series of recitals by the Steans Institute for Young Artists and Steans master classes with such stars as Kiri Te Kanawa.

The 2010 summer residency of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra will be in full celebration mode in 21 concerts from June 28 through Aug. 15 as Ravinia recognizes Music Director James Conlon's 60th birthday, former Music Director Christoph Eschenbach's 70th birthday, Stephen Sondheim's 80th birthday, the 200th anniversary of Mexican Independence and the 100th anniversary of the Mexican Revolution, the 20th anniversary of the deaths of icons Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland, the 150th anniversary of the births of Gustav Mahler and wild-West legend Annie Oakley, the 100th anniversary of the birth of Samuel Barber and the 200th anniversary of the births of Frédéric Chopin and Robert Schumann. 

"Just a few days ago, I joined an enthusiastic room of music lovers to hear Riccardo Muti make his first season announcement as music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Muti-who like his predecessors Artur Rodzinski, Fritz Reiner, Jean Martinon and Sir Georg Solti, first conducted the CSO at Ravinia-noted that his goals included attracting the symphonic audience, building and educating new audiences and incorporating opera into the standard rep. Ravinia believes in these goals. We're connecting the audience to the orchestra with our video screens, keeping prices reasonable, bringing music into the communities with the Lawndale conservatory and new student orchestra and programming opera in our CSO residency," Kauffman said.

"Ravinia, like the rest of the symphonic world, desires to turn all listeners onto this great music and to rebuild what the recent NEA survey noted as dwindling audiences," Kauffman said. "Even as conservatories and universities turn out so many brilliantly talented young musicians, arts education has been sorely missing from so many pre-college schools, and therefore we are missing this ideal exposure moment that helps build audiences. Organizations like Ravinia-in fact, all of us who work for classical music-need to find that ‘international adapter' that connects kids and other folks that love music to the concerts themselves. At the same time, since we know there isn't any one solution to the problem, we continue to work hard to improve the concert-going experience, to improve the amenities in the park, to keep the prices for the CSO reasonable, to keep the repertoire popular, now we need to focus on the long-term strategies."

Guest stars with the CSO include violinist Joshua Bell; soprano Renée Fleming; violinist Pinchas Zukerman; pianist Denis Matsuev essaying Rachmaninoff's Second Piano concerto; mezzo-soprano Frederica von Stade in Mozart's Così fan tutte, and baritone Nathan Gunn and bass Ildebrando D'Arcangelo in The Marriage of Figaro, both operas conducted by James Conlon in the Martin Theatre; and Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, George Hearn and Michael Cerveris reunited for the hits from Ravinia's acclaimed Sondheim productions as the annual Women's Board Gala. LuPone returns later in the season to tackle her third Ethel Merman role in three performances of Annie Get Your Gun, co-starring Brian Stokes Mitchell.

Season highlights include Yo-Yo Ma's 10th Anniversary Celebration of his Silk Road Project and rare, up-close and personal performances by classical superstars in our intimate indoor performances spaces, including violinist Midori on July 19; Dame Kiri Te Kanawa on Aug. 18; baritone Matthias Goerne, joined by Eschenbach on piano, singing Schumann and Brahms on July 22; violinist Leila Josfowicz on Aug. 25; and the revolutionary chamber orchestra The Knights in its Ravinia debut on Sept. 2. The season features the Ravinia debuts of Sting, performing his greatest hits with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra; Train; The Levon Helm Band on a bill with John Hiatt & The Combo; Nelly Furtado; Steve Martin performing with the Steep Canyon Rangers; Crosby, Stills & Nash; Rodrigo y Gabriela; The Moody Blues; Earth Wind & Fire and Dave Grusin. Returning favorites include Carrie Underwood, Cheap Trick and Squeeze, Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club, Bobby McFerrin, The Backstreet Boys, and The Dave Brubeck Quartet and Nancy Wilson with the Ramsey Lewis Trio.

As started last season, all pavilion concerts will again be videocast on screens flanking the stage. Video screens on the lawn will be erected for select performances, including the Sondheim Gala and Arnie Roth conducting the CSO's performance of the international sensation Distant Worlds/Final Fantasy, with Nobuo Uematsu's music from the wildly successful video games and films. Following in the long tradition of symphonic music's use in popular movies, this promises to be an ideal concert for introducing listeners to the symphony-especially younger ones familiar with the videogames. Also on the technology front, Ravinia has created an iPhone app, available now at the iTunes store, that will feature up-to-the-minute scheduling, transportation information and the ability to help audience members find each other on the lawn. Wi-Fi will again be available throughout the park. A 40x60-foot dance floor will be added to the lawn for the June 26 concert by Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club, and the Women's Board will host its annual dance contest.

UBS returns as the lead sponsor of Ravinia Festival's 2010 season. UBS has supported the not-for-profit festival as lead sponsor since 2004.

"We are grateful to the patrons, donors, audiences and artists of Ravinia Festival who have allowed us to grow even in a tough economic environment," Strobel said. "Even though the economy's not out of the woods, we're looking forward to our biggest season ever in 2010. I offer a special note of thanks to UBS for its consistent support of Ravinia and the arts around the country."

Tickets are on sale now www.ravinia.org.

Season Highlights

MUSICAL MILESTONES: Ravinia's 2010 season is rich with special commemorations of important movers and shakers from history and of leaders closer to home.

JAMES CONLON'S 60th BIRTHDAY: Ravinia Music Director James Conlon, who will lead the CSO at Symphony Center in the spring of 2011, presides over several concerts this summer, including the "Conlon Showcase" in the Martin Theatre on July 27, when he will lead the Ravinia premiere of Milhaud's The Ox on the Roof, a pantomime farce with T. Daniels Productions. One of the world's most admired opera conductors, Conlon also brings the CSO into the Martin Theatre, as he did in 2008, for two performances each of two Mozart operas-this time Cosí fan tutte with Frederica von Stade and Ana Maria Martinez and The Marriage of Figaro with Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, Nathan Gunn and Lisette Oropesa as Susanna, a role that's just earned her rave reviews at the Metropolitan Opera.

CHRISTOPH ESCHENBACH's 70th BIRTHDAY: Ravinia's former music director celebrates his milestone with a residency July 22-25 that features concerts with some of his greatest friends and collaborators. He joins Matthias Goerne on July 22 for a Martin recital of songs by Schumann and Brahms. He joins the CSO at the piano for a performance of Mozart's Concerto in A Major on July 23. He conducts the CSO in a July 24 program that features Schumann's Concertstück with horn soloists from the CSO; the same composer's Introduction and Allegro Appassionato with pianist Tzimon Barto; Richard Strauss's Don Juan; and, from her celebrated recording with Eschenbach, Renée Fleming singing Strauss's Four Last Songs. He concludes the celebration with the July 25 CSO concert of all-French music, featuring his discoveries violinist Erik Schumann and cellist Leonard Elschenbroich, including Ravel's Boléro.

RAMSEY LEWIS'S 75th BIRTHDAY: The artistic director of Jazz at Ravinia has scored great success with original compositions for the festival over the past several
years, and last season's Proclamation of Hope, his contribution to Ravinia's Lincoln celebration, is headed for Kennedy Center. The jazz great celebrates this birthday

STEPHEN SONDHEIM'S 80th BIRTHDAY: A decade ago Ravinia Festival created the Sondheim 75 series to present one of his great theater works each year until the celebrated composer reached his diamond jubilee year. To honor him on his 80th birthday, Ravinia will mine the greatest songs from these productions and reunite the headliners. The Gala concert stars Patti LuPone, Audra McDonald, George Hearn and Michael Cerveris performing hits from Gypsy, Sunday in the Park with George, Sweeney Todd, A Little Night Music and others.

CHOPIN'S 200th BIRTHDAY: Ravinia acknowledges the bicentennial of one of the all-time greatest piano composers by presenting three of his renowned interpreters. Garrick Ohlsson gives an all-Chopin recital featuring nocturnes and the complete preludes on June 24. Ohlsson returns on June 28 to join the CSO in an all-Chopin evening featuring both his piano concertos. Denis Matsuev, who created a sensation with his 2008 Ravinia debut, returns to play Chopin's Ballade No. 4 on a Martin program that includes Schumann and Prokofiev on July 29. Finally on
Aug. 10, pianist Jeffrey Kahane performs three Mazurkas, the Etude in E-flat Minor, Nocturne in E-Flat Major and the Polonaise-fantaisie in A-Flat Major in a Martin Theatre recital.

SCHUMANN'S 200th BIRTHDAY: Ravinia celebrated Schumann when his Scenes From Childhood-juxtaposed with Ravinia's commissioning of New Scenes from Childhood from seven composers of distinctly different styles-was selected as the 2006 One Score, One Chicago masterwork. Now his bicentennial puts him back in the spotlight. The celebration begins when the Juilliard String Quartet performs his Quartet in A Major in a Martin performance on June 29. Pianist Vladimir Feltsman then plays the Arabesque in C Major and Carnaval on a program that also features this year's One Score selection, Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. Christoph Eschenbach and Matthias Goerne return after last year's highly acclaimed concerts of the Schubert song cycles for a July 21 Martin recital featuring Schumann's
Liederkreis and other songs. Eschenbach then takes Schumann to the pavilion stage with the CSO, with soloists Renée Fleming and Tzimon Barto along with the CSO horn players, for a concert that includes Schumann's Concertstück and Introduction and Allegro Appassionato. Perhaps his best-loved work, Scenes From Childhood, will be performed by Denis Matsuev in a Martin recital on July 29. The Pacifica Quartet joins forces with pianist Orion Weiss for the Piano Quintet in E-flat Major on

Aug. 3. On Aug. 10 pianist Jeffrey Kahane presents a concert of Chopin and Schumann that includes Schumann's Forest Scenes and his Sonata No. 1 in F-Sharp Minor. The Claremont Trio makes its Ravinia debut in a Bennett • Gordon Hall concert that features Schumann's Trio in F Major. On Sept. 1 pianist Alon Goldstein will illuminate the Schumann/Brahms love triangle with his take on Schumann's Fantasy.

MAHLER'S 150th BIRTHDAY: Long regarded as a favorite among Ravinia audiences, Mahler is celebrated on July 13 in a CSO concert that features the Adagio from his unfinished final work, Symphony No. 10.

BARBER'S 100th BIRTHDAY: The centennial of one of America's most significant composers, Samuel Barber, is celebrated on the July 7 program "Leon Fleisher and Friends" with a performance of his String Quartet Op. 11, featuring violinists Miriam Fried and Ida Kavafian, violist Kim Kashkashian and cellist Laurence Lesser. On July 13 the CSO offers the orchestral arrangement of the Adagio for Strings from the Op. 11 Quartet-a masterwork that found new audiences with film scores for Platoon and The Elephant Man, among others. That program also features Joshua Bell performing Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto in E Minor. Barber's Hermit Songs is performed in the Aug. 11 "Voices of the Future" program of solos, duets and quartets performed by participants in the Steans Institute for Young Artists.

BERNSTEIN/COPLAND-20 YEARS AFTER: It was 20 years ago that America lost not one, but two of its all-time great musical talents, Leonard Bernstein and Aaron Copland. Their work is remembered in a variety of events all summer long. Ravinia's Ruth Page Festival of Dance opens on June 10 and 11 with Concert Dance, Inc. performing the world premiere of Venetia Stifler's choreography to El Salón México, featuring music composed by Copland and arranged by Bernstein. James Conlon conducts the CSO in a concert that explores the work of three American masters on July 11, with Bernstein's "Age of Anxiety" Symphony, Copland's Appalachian Spring Suite and Gershwin's Concerto in F. One of Bernstein's music-theater masterpieces gets its due when the Candide vocal suite is performed by the CSO on July 23, with Anna Christy as Cunegonde, Kim Criswell as the Old Lady, Nicholas Phan as Candide and the Grammy-winning John Aler as the Governor. The inventive chamber orchestra The Knights' Ravinia debut program on Sept. 2 includes selections from Bernstein's West Side Story and the original 13-instrument version of Copland's Appalachian Spring. Finally on Sept. 6, Hershey Felder stars as Bernstein in Maestro, a one-man show in the vein of Felder's recreations of Gershwin and Beethoven, presenting key scenes from the composer's life accompanied by piano performances of his greatest works.

200th ANNIVERSARY OF MEXICAN INDEPENDENCE: Before the summer season even begins, Ravinia is already starting its celebration of Mexico by teaming with the Auditorium Theatre for the March 13 and 14 performances of the Ballet Folklórico de México. Summer brings recognition of the 200th anniversary of Mexican Independence, with Ravinia Festival teaming with the city of Highland Park, which maintains a strong Sister Cities relationship with Puerto Vallarta. Puerto Vallarta will send a cultural delegation, including its mayor, to the festival for the July 15 and 16 CSO performances of Beethoven's complete Piano Concertos played by Jorge Federico Osorio. Osorio was born in Mexico and makes his home in Highland Park. One of Puerto Vallarta's favorite chefs, Thierry Blouet, will preside over the Park View restaurant those two nights. Making their Ravinia Festival debut on Aug. 28, the Mexican duo Rodrigo y Gabriela fuse classical guitar with heavy metal and traditional flamenco flavors. The Mexico celebration is bookended by dance events. Concert Dance, Inc. performs the world premiere of Venetia Stifler's choreography to El Salón México on June 10 and 11. Closing the series is the Ravinia debut of the "gutsy" (New York Times) Delfos Danza Contemporánea in three performances, Aug. 27-28 plus a Kraft Kids Concert on Aug. 29.

SILK ROAD 10th ANNIVERSARY: Yo-Yo Ma comes to Ravinia on Aug. 20 with his Silk Road Ensemble for the 10th anniversary of his world-famous project celebrating the cultures that lined the old Silk Road routes.

MUSIC THEATRE

From intimately staged Mozart operas in the Martin Theatre to Patti LuPone's third take on an Ethel Merman role, variety is the hallmark of Ravinia's music theater season.

ANNIE GET YOUR GUN (Aug. 13-15): Wild-West legend Annie Oakley, who
famously ran her own exposition along with Buffalo Bill Cody when they were excluded from Chicago's historic Columbian Exposition, turns 150 on the very day Ravinia opens its production of Irving Berlin's Annie Get Your Gun. In her third role originated by Ethel Merman (following Anything Goes and Gypsy, which began its journey to Broadway at Ravinia), LuPone stars as the sharpshooter along side Brian Stokes Mitchell, whom the New York Times has dubbed "the last leading man." The show, directed by Lonny Price with Paul Gemignani leading the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, boasts one of Broadway's most scintillating scores, with hits like "There's No Business Like Show Business," "Anything You Can Do," "It's Wonderful" and "You Can't Get a Man With a Gun."

SONDHEIM GALA (July 31): Ravinia's 2010 Gala Benefit Evening celebrates the 80th birthday of the great American composer Stephen Sondheim with a program that reunites the stars from Ravinia's acclaimed Sondheim series-Patti LuPone, George Hearn, Audra McDonald, Michael Cerveris accompanied by the great Chicago Symphony Orchestra. The program will be selected from "Worst Pies," "Epiphany," "A Little Priest" and "Pretty Women" from Sweeney Todd; "You Must Meet My Wife," "Send in the Clowns," "Every Day A Little Death" and "In Praise of Women" from A Little Night Music; "Happiness" and "I Read" from Passion; "Finishing the Hat," "Color and Light" and "Children and Art" from Sunday in the Park with George; the title song from Anyone Can Whistle; and "Everything's Coming Up Roses" from Gypsy. In addition to the permanent screens in the pavilion, this concert will also feature video screens on the lawn.
COSÍ FAN TUTTE: Frederica von Stade, acclaimed as "one of America's finest artists and singers" by the New York Times, stars as Despina in one of the best-loved Mozart/Da Ponte operas. Ana Maria Martinez, who thrilled Ravinia audiences opposite Placido Domingo on the gala stage, co-stars. James Conlon, who achieved great success by bringing the CSO into the Martin Theatre for Mozart's The Abduction at the Seraglio and Don Giovanni in 2008, conducts. The opera will be presented with supertitles at 7 p.m. Aug. 5 and in a special matinee performance at 1 p.m. Aug. 7.

THE MARRIAGE OF FIGARO: Sought-after baritone Nathan Gunn, whose recent recording of Britten's Billy Budd won a Grammy Award, stars as the Count, while internationally acclaimed, Italian bass Ildebrando D'Arcangelo, who won rave reviews in Ravinia's 2008 performances of Don Giovanni, portrays Figaro. Conlon again conducts the CSO. Performances, with supertitles, are set for 7 p.m. Aug. 6 and 1 p.m. Aug. 8.

KELLI O'HARA IN CONCERT: By popular demand, Kelli O'Hara, who thrilled audiences in Ravinia's Rodgers and Hammerstein Tribute last summer, returns on Aug. 4 in the Martin Theatre. O'Hara was launched to international attention with her performance in the Lincoln Center production of South Pacific and her Tony-winning star turn in The Light in the Piazza.

HERSHEY FELDER IS MAESTRO: It's not enough for Hershey Felder to perform the piano masterworks of the world's great composers; he goes deep into character to create full-bodied portrayals that share personal stories while he shares their music. Following his hit one-man shows on Beethoven, Chopin and Gershwin, Felder stars as Leonard Bernstein in Maestro on Sept. 7 in the Martin Theatre.

CANDIDE VOCAL SUITE: Commemorating the 20th anniversary of the death of Leonard Bernstein, Ravinia presents his Vocal Suite from Candide featuring the CSO conducted by John Axelrod with the Lakeside Singers and a cast of vocalists on July 23. The Vocal Suite features soprano Anna Christy, last seen in Ravinia's 2008 production of Mozart's The Abduction from the Seraglio, as Cunegonde; vocalist Kim Criswell, who has been featured as soloist with orchestras and on the Broadway stage, making her Ravinia debut portraying the Old Lady; Ravinia Steans Institute alum tenor Nicholas Phan, who has performed at the New York City Opera, L.A. Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Atlanta Opera and more, as Candide; legendary tenor John Aler, who recently performed at the Cincinnati May Festival in Mozart's Requiem and Weill's Seven Deadly Sins, as the Governor/Vanderdendur; mezzo-soprano Kathryn Leemhuis, currently appearing in Lyric Opera of Chicago's production of Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, making her festival debut playing Paquette; and baritone Jonathan Beyer, who has appeared at Pittsburgh Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, Fort Worth Opera and Opera Santa Barbara, portraying Maximillian. This concert will also feature supertitles. Wagnerian Voices: Two of the great Wagnerian singers at work today, soprano Christine Brewer and tenor John Treleaven, join forces with one of the world's foremost opera authorities, Ravinia's own James Conlon, who leads the CSO in a program of excerpts from the "Ring," including Götterdämerung's Immolation Scene and the final scene from Siegfried. The June 30 concert will feature supertitles.

REACH*TEACH*PLAY EDUCATION PROGRAMS

Under the umbrella REACH*TEACH*PLAY, Ravinia Festival serves more than 75,000 people through its education programs. The Jazz Scholars Program draws together Chicago Public High School's most talented musicians into a working ensemble. Artist-in-residence programs in 24 schools not only teach music to children beginning in kindergarten, but it also demonstrates to teachers how to bring music into the classroom. The Ravinia Lawndale Community Music Conservatory gives free lessons to children and families in one of Chicago's underserved communities.

REACH ORCHESTRA: Ravinia's newest education initiative, created by the Women's Board in conjunction with People's Music School of Chicago, is the establishment of the student orchestra called REACH, for children 8 to 12 years old at the William G. Hibbard Elementary School in the Albany Park neighborhood of Chicago. The free orchestra program started this winter with 72 beginners. It is inspired by the successful "El Sistema" orchestral education plan utilized in Venezuela.
ONE SCORE, ONE CHICAGO: The most public of Ravinia's REACH*TEACH*PLAY education programs was inspired by the Chicago Public Library's One Book, One Chicago. Ravinia's One Score promotes the enjoyment of classical music and creates a cultural touchstone to enable people at different levels of understanding classical music to engage in community-wide discussion of a single masterwork. This year's selection is Modest Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition.

Public School children in Cook and Lake counties are learning about the piece and

will attend a free performance of the orchestral arrangement by Midwest Young Artists on May 20. The original piano version will be performed by Vladimir Feltsman at Ravinia on July 3 and in its orchestral arrangement by Ravel with James Conlon leading the CSO on July 8 (a concert that also features Pinchas Zukerman playing the Bruch Violin Concerto. No. 1). A resource guide on the piece is being prepared for Ravinia's website, and a download of the complete orchestral version is available for free now at www.ravinia.org.

ECONOMIC SOLUTIONS/VALUE-ADDED EVENTS

Ravinia has devised several stimulus packages to assist audiences in enjoying the festival even in a tough economy, including discount opportunities, free events and value-added programming. There's even a free parking option for every concert.

CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA-$25: Ravinia already presents one of the world's greatest orchestras at the best ticket prices to be found, but in its efforts to build audiences for the CSO, the festival has reduced pavilion prices for four concerts to just $25 per seat. They are the June 30 concert of "Ring" excerpts, featuring brilliant Wagnerian singers soprano Christine Brewer and tenor John Treleaven; the July 11 performance of Gershwin's Concerto in F and Copland's Appalachian Spring; the July 15 concert by Jorge Federico Osorio performing Beethoven's first three piano concertos; and the July 25 all-French evening, including Boléro, led by Eschenbach. Beethoven-lovers can save even more when they purchase the back-to-back CSO concerts of the Complete Beethoven Piano Concertos with Osorio, July 15 and 16, for only $50.
LAWN TICKETS: Many consider the Ravinia lawn the best bargain in town. Not only can music-lovers hear the incomparable CSO for as little as $9 when they purchase a 10-punch pass, but the family-friendly environment allows for guests to bring their own food and beverages. The average lawn price is $12-$22.

BENNETT • GORDON HALL: Recitals in Bennett • Gordon Hall are offered this year as an economical opportunity to enjoy Ravinia. The festival's most intimate performance space is soundproof, allowing the presentation of more than one concert on a single night. Tickets for most events in Bennett • Gordon Hall are $10 for reserved seats. The lineup includes Concert Dance, Inc., June 10-11; a Jazz in June Showcase, featuring original compositions and classic pieces performed by soloists and combos from the Steans Institute, June 17; Voices of the Future, a concert of art songs performed by Steans artists, Aug. 11; National Chopin Competition winner pianist Claire Huangci, Aug. 19; violinist Tianwa Yang,

Aug. 20; the Claremont Trio, Aug. 24; violinist Leila Josefowicz, Aug. 25; the aforementioned Delfos Danza Contemporánea, Aug. 27-29; pianist Andreas Klein, Aug. 22; and pianist Alon Goldstein in a program reflecting the Brahms/Schumann love triangle.

STEANS INSTITUTE EVENTS: Ravinia's professional studies wing, the Steans Institute for Young Artists, gives its masterful participants from around the world a chance to hone their performance skills before Ravinia's audience at events throughout the summer.
Piano and Strings concerts: Participants in the piano and strings program will give preview concerts in Bennett • Gordon Hall, free to those with paid park admission, on June 28 and 30; July 9, 11, 13, 16, 18, 20 and 23. Postlude concerts are set for July 11 and 24.
Vocal concerts: Participants in the vocal program will give concerts at 1 p.m. Aug. 1, 4:30 p.m. Aug. 6 and 1 p.m. Aug. 15.

Open master classes: Master classes, at which the public can witness the young artists working with their mentors, are set for 2 p.m. July 2, Kim Kashkashian; 2 p.m. July 8, Leon Fleisher; 2 p.m. July 15, Pamela Frank;
7 p.m. Aug. 4, James Conlon; 1:30 p.m. Aug. 7, baritone Nathan Gunn and pianist Julie Gunn; and 2 p.m. Aug. 17, soprano Kiri Te Kanawa.

CUSTOMER APPRECIATION DAY (May 22): Before the music even begins, Ravinia opens the park with a day of discounts. Pending availability after donor orders are filled, reserved and lawn tickets to all shows priced over $25 (with some exceptions) will be sold at a 20 percent discount. Ravinia's vendors will also be on hand to pass out free samples to the customers from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m. WFMT, the official classical radio station of Ravinia Festival, will broadcast live from the park from 9 a.m. until 1:30 p.m.

FREE DISCUSSION (July 11): "Melting Pot, Schmelting Pot: American Concert Music Comes of Age." Popular and highly entertaining musicologist Robert

Greenberg discusses Gershwin, Bernstein and Copland, 2:30-4:30 p.m., prior to the 5 p.m. CSO program of music by these masters.

FREE PARKING: There is always a free parking option at Ravinia Festival. Parking is free on the Ravinia grounds for Martin Theatre, Bennett • Gordon Hall, Kraft Kids and dance performances. On all other nights, those seeking free parking
can use the free Park 'N' Ride shuttle system, which is handicap-accessible.

CONCERT/DINING/PARKING PACKAGES: Patrons can save money by purchasing special packages planned for 25 nights this summer. The complete packages are priced from $35 to $90 each. Dinners are usually themed to match the flavor of the concert. Packages include Vince Gill/James Otto (June 5); Lewis/Brubeck/Wilson (June 18); Buena Vista Social Club (June 26); CSO Opening Night/Chopin (June 28); CSO/All Wagner (June 30); Emerson String Quartet (July 2); Leon Fleisher and Friends (July 7); Pinchas Zukerman and the CSO (July 9); Peter and Paul Tribute to Mary (July 20); Goerne/Eschenbach (July 22); CSO All-French Evening (July 25); Dichter/Rachmaninoff (July 26); Matsuev/Rachmaninoff (July 28); CSO/Distant Worlds/Final Fantasy (Aug. 1); Chanticleer (Aug. 2); Mozart opera matinee and brunch (Aug. 7 and 8); Voices of the Future (Aug. 11); Baroque Band (Aug. 17); Delfos Danza Contempránea

(Aug. 27-28).

"CLASSICAL GRASS" LAWN PASS: Getting 10 concerts for the price of eight with Ravinia's 10-punch represents at least a 20 percent discount off lawn admission to classical concerts including the Chicago Symphony Orchestra residency (except for the July 31 Gala).
PICNIC CONTEST: Patrons can enter a free picnic contest on July 24 in which they can show off their approach to a night at Ravinia, whether that includes
elaborate table decorations or even costumes. The winner will be chosen by HGTV star Monica Pedersen.

DISCOUNTS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE: College students are admitted free with a valid college I.D. to the lawn for performances by the CSO and other classical artists (excluding the July 31 Gala). Children 5 and under are admitted free to the lawn for CSO concerts; children 6-10 are admitted to the lawn for $5. Children pay half-price for lawn admission to non-classical events.

ESPECIALLY FOR KIDS: Ravinia's family-friendly environment makes it the perfect venue for introducing young listeners to live music. Our party planners can create birthday events around Kraft Kids Concerts, and there is a new child's menu with value pricing at the Mirabelle restaurant.
Kraft Kids Concert Series: The popular concert series costs only $10 for a reserved seat or $5 for lawn (except June 26). The schedule includes: Milkshake, June 12; Synergy Brass Band, June 19; The Golden Dragon Acrobats from China, June 23; Ralph's World, June 26 ($15 reserved); Ko-Thi Dance Company, July 10; New Millennium Orchestra, July 24; and Delfos Danza Contemporánea, Aug. 28.

Chicago Children's Choir: The family event of the summer has the popular and acclaimed choir with park activities, including a package with face-painters and more on June 4.
Family Space: Ravinia turns its North Lawn into a family space filled with music opportunities, including stories, crafts and an instrument petting zoo where kids can try out the instruments of the orchestra prior to select CSO concerts and Kraft Kids Concerts.

GUEST ROSTER

Ravinia will present a vast array of guest artists in 2010. A complete chronological listing of programs and artists is available separately. An asterisk (*) denotes Ravinia Festival debut.

Baritones: Matthias Goerne (July 22); Nathan Gunn (Aug. 6, 8); Rodion Pogossov *

(Aug. 5, 7)

Bass: Ildebrando D'Arcangelo (Aug. 6, 8);

Bass/Baritones: Jonathan Beyer (July 23); John Del Carlo (Aug. 5-8);

Cellists: Leonard Elschenbroich* (July 25); Amanda Forsyth (July 8); Laurence Lesser* (July 7); Yo-Yo Ma (Aug. 20);

Clarinetist: David Shifrin* (July 2);

Conductors/Musical Directors: John Axelrod (July 23); James Conlon (June 28, 30, July 8, 11, 13, 15, 16, 28, Aug. 5, 6, 7, 8); Karen Lynne Deal (Sept. 6); Christoph Eschenbach (July 24, 25); Paul Gemignani (July 31, Aug. 13-15); Josephine Lee (June 4); Steven Mercurio* (July 17, 18); Francesco Milioto (July 24); Lonny Price (July 31, Aug. 13, 14, 15); Arnie Roth (Aug. 1); Pinchas Zukerman (July 9)

Dance Companies: Ballet Folklórico de México (March 13, 14); Concert Dance, Inc. (June 10, 11); Delfos Danza Contemporánea* (Aug. 27, 28, 29);

Ensembles/Orchestras: Baroque Band (Aug. 17); Chanticleer (Aug. 2); Chicago Symphony Orchestra (June 28, 30, July 8, 9, 11, 13, 15, 16, 23, 24, 25, 28, 31, Aug. 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 13, 14, 15); Chicago Children's Choir (June 4, 23); Claremont Trio* (Aug. 24); The Dave Brubeck Quartet (June 18); Emerson String Quartet (July 2); Illinois Symphony Orchestra (Sept. 6); Juilliard String Quartet (June 29); The Knights* (Sept. 2); Lakeside Singers (July 23); Millennium Orchestra (July 24); Pacifica Quartet (Aug. 3); Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra* (July 17, 18); T. Daniel Productions* (July 27);

Kraft Kids Concerts: Tom Chapin and Friends (Sept.2); Delfos Danza Contemporánea* (Aug. 28); Golden Dragon Acrobats from China* (June 23); Ko-Thi Dance Company (July 10); Milkshake* (June 12); Millennium Orchestra (July 24); Ralph's World (June 26); Synergy Brass Quintet* (June 19);

Mezzo-sopranos: Jane Bunnell* (Aug. 6, 8); Ruxandra Donose* (Aug. 5, 7); Kathryn Leemhuis* (July 23); Lauren McNeese* (Aug. 6, 8); Frederica von Stade (Aug. 5, 7);

Pianists: Ozgur Aydin* (July 19); Marta Aznavoorian (July 26); Tzimon Barto (July 24); Cipa Dichter (July 26); Misha Dichter (July 26); Christoph Eschenbach (July 23); Hershey Felder (Sept. 7); Vladimir Feltsman (July 3); Leon Fleisher (July 7); Alon Goldstein

(Sept. 1); Dave Grusin* (Aug. 19); Jeffrey Kahane (Aug. 10); Welz Kauffman (June 10-11, July 26, Aug 11); Andreas Klein* (Aug. 29); Vakhtang Kodanashvili* (July 26); Alexander Kobrin* (Sept. 6); Josephine Lee (July 26); Denis Matsuev (July 28, 29); Adam Marks* (June 10, 11); John Novacek (Aug. 25); Garrick Ohlsson (June 24); Jorge Federico Osorio (July 15, 16); Lee Ritenour (Aug. 19); Edisher Savitski* (July 26); Nobuyuki Tsujii* (June 3); Orion Weiss (July 11, Aug. 3); Joyce Yang (July 11); Brian Zeger (Aug. 18)

Rock/Country/Folk/R&B/Jazz: All-Star Steans Jazz Band Quintet (June 18); A Prairie

Home Companion with Garrison Keillor (July 3); Arrival from Sweden (July 30); Backstreet

Boys (June 17); Beach Boys (Sept. 1); George Benson (Aug. 19); BoDeans (Aug. 7);

The B-52's (July 21); Colbie Caillat* (June 13); The Cat Empire* (July 6); Cheap Trick (July 10); Crosby, Stills & Nash* (Aug. 22); Sheryl Crow (June 13); Earth, Wind & Fire* (June 6); Nelly Furtado* (Sept. 3); The Four Tops (Aug. 8); Vince Gill* (June 5); Buddy Guy (June 19); John Hiatt & The Combo (July 1); Jethro Tull (June 20); JJ Grey & Mofro* (June 19); The Levon Helm Band* (July 1); Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers* (June 12); Raul Midon* (July 6); The Moody Blues* (June 25); James Otto* (June 5); Orquesta Buena Vista Social Club* (June 26); Poi Dog Pondering (Aug. 27); Omara Portuondo* (June 26); Procol Harum (June 20); Ramsey Lewis Trio (June 18); Rodrigo y Gabriela* (Aug. 28);

Soulive* (July 6); Squeeze (July 10); Sting* (July 17, 18); The Swell Season* (July 14); Train* (Sept. 4); The Temptations (Aug. 8); Carrie Underwood (Aug. 29); Nancy Wilson (June 18); Peter & Paul (July 20);

Sopranos: Artists from the Steans Institute (Aug. 11); Christine Brewer (June 30); Anna Christy (July 23); Rebecca Evans (Aug. 6, 8); Renée Fleming (July 24); Kiri Te Kanawa (Aug. 17, 18); Ana Maria Martinez (Aug. 5, 7); Lisette Oropesa* (Aug. 6, 8); Lei Xu* (Aug. 6, 8); Arianna Zukerman* (July 9);

Tenors: Artists from the Steans Institute (Aug. 11); John Aler (July 23, Aug. 6, 8); Nicholas Phan (July 23); Saimir Pirgu* (Aug. 5, 7); John Treleaven* (June 30);

Vocalists: Michael Cerveris (July 31); George Hearn (July 31); Kim Criswell* (July 23);

Patti LuPone (July 31, Aug. 13,14, 15); Audra McDonald (July 31); Bobby McFerrin (June 27); Brian Stokes Mitchell (Aug. 13,14,15); Kelli O'Hara (Aug. 4);

Violinists: Joshua Bell (July 13); Pamela Frank (July 15); Miriam Fried (July 7); Leila Josefowicz (Aug. 25); Ida Kavafian (July 7); Midori (July 19); Erik Schumann (July 25); Tianwa Yang* (Aug. 20); Pinchas Zukerman (July 8);

Violists: Kim Kashkashian (July 7); Paul Biss (July 7).

ORDERING TICKETS 

Tickets to all Ravinia Festival events are on sale now exclusively at www.ravinia.org.

The Ravinia Festival Box Office officially opens for walk-up sales with a special Customer Appreciation Day broadcast live on WFMT 98.7 FM on Saturday, May 22. Phone sales at 847-266-5100 begin on May 23. There is a $5 surcharge added to lawn tickets for non-classical shows purchased after midnight on the day of the concert. Tickets may be ordered by mail at Ravinia Box Office, P.O. Box 896, Highland Park, IL 60035. A $7 service charge is added to all online, phone, fax and mail orders. Orders placed by Ravinia Festival contributors are filled before public sale begins. Lawn seats are $10 to $33. Reserved seats range on average from $10 to $115. All guests need a ticket, including infants. For all Chicago Symphony Orchestra concerts (except July 31 Gala), lawn tickets are free for children 5 and under and $5 for children 6-10 years old. Lawn tickets for children 10 and under are $5 for all other concerts. Senior citizens receive a 20 percent discount on lawn and reserved seats for CSO concerts (except the July 31 Gala). Free lawn passes are available to college students for all classical Martin Theatre and Chicago Symphony Orchestra concerts (excluding the July 31 Gala). Students must present a current student I.D. at the box office on the evening of the performance; one pass per valid I.D. Reserved-seat upgrades may become available at a reduced price for students.

GETTING TO RAVINIA

Ravinia is located at Lake Cook and Green Bay roads in Highland Park, about 20 miles north of Chicago. To obtain directions, visit www.ravinia.org/GettingToRavinia. Tune in to WBBM Newsradio 780 between 5 and 8 p.m., Monday-Saturday, and 4 and

7 p.m. Sundays, for alternate route suggestions. Ravinia's West (main) Lot opens one hour before the park opens. For pavilion events, parking costs $20 for non-classical shows and $10

for classical performances. Free remote parking with Park 'N' Ride shuttle bus service is available. For all other events, including Kraft Kids Concerts and Martin Theatre recitals, parking in the West Lot is free. Handicapped parking is available in all festival lots. Convenient Metra trains stop right at Ravinia's front gate. A specially priced roundtrip ticket is available for select departures Monday-Friday from downtown Chicago. Metra also offers a weekend pass available on the train. For complete schedule and fare information, please call 847-836-7000 or visit metrarail.com.

Photo Courtesy of Ravinia Festival