• Announcing Our 75th Anniversary Season, 2020–21

    CELEBRATING 75 YEARS of music making by and for our COMMUNITY

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  • Bach Concerto for Two Violins Yehudi Menuhin and David Oistrakh, Violins

    "This is a vintage performance of the Bach Double Violin Concerto. It features two virtuoso violinists of the time: Yehudi Menuhin and David Oistrakh. On the surface it would seem an unusual partnership, because Menuhin was known as a “gentle, beautiful sound, and musical warmth” violinist, whereas Oistrakh was known as a “muscular, virtuosic, profound” violinist. Admittedly, those generalizations are unfair, but still they were distinctly very different violinists. And yet, in this performance, they do come together, blend so well together, and it is a real testament to both of their artistries. I hope you enjoy!

  • ESO’s
    Share The Stage

    Share the Stage lets you sponsor a chair in the Orchestra. It’s our way of recognizing that the ESO Community is made up of Orchestra Members and Supporters.

     

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2020–2021 SERIES: 75th Anniversary

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Musical Insights

Free Pre-Concert Preview Series!

Friday, at 1:30 pm

Enhance your concert experience with a sneak preview — Composers come alive and their passions take center stage when ESO General Manager David Ellis and ESO Maestro Lawrence Eckerling take you on an insider’s tour of the history and highlights behind the music.

Maestro Lawrence Eckerling and David Ellis will explore the concert program in depth.

The Merion
Friday, at 1:30 pm,
The Merion Crystal Ballroom at
1611 Chicago Avenue at Davis Street, Evanston.
FREE and open to the public.
Please RSVP to 847-562-5318.

Light refreshments will be served and casual tours of newly renovated apartments will be available after the program.

Give the gift of music

Treat a friend or relative to the ESO

Give the gift of music by ordering directly from our website and purchasing a custom gift certificate in any denomination of your choice! Certificates may be redeemed for single ticket or season subscriptions for any of our concerts.

You will receive an electronic gift certificate or we can mail the certificate to you or directly to the recipient.

SHOP and Support the ESO!

Are you looking to buy a gift for someone at Amazon? Need to stock up on supplies from Amazon?

Amazon has a special program called Smile, where the company donates a small amount of your purchase to your designated charity. Once you select the ESO as your Smile recipient, just point your browser to smile.amazon.com each time you want to shop at Amazon and the Evanston Symphony will benefit. It won’t cost you a thing!

Thanks, and happy shopping.

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Latest news

ESO’s Vince Flood named 2018 Board President of the Year

Vince Flood Receives llinois Council of Orchestras Award

Evanston Symphony Orchestra is proud to announce that Vince Flood won the award for Board President of the Year 2018 from the Illinois Council of Orchestras. Vince has been a strong and effective leader, who has taken this vibrant community orchestra to new heights of performance, while also pioneering initiatives to make it a more inclusive organization that truly serves the whole of its community.

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Improved Pick-Staiger Access

Breaking news (1/19/2015): Arts Circle Drive, leading up to Pick-Staiger Concert Hall, is now fully open. You can drive all the way up to the entrance now to drop people off. Both levels of the parking garage are open, with exits at the east and west ends.

If you park on the upper level, the eastern pedestrian exit is now on the same level as Pick Staiger. There are no steps at all between the parking and the concert hall, and no hill to climb.

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More about the ESO

ESO videos

We are happy to share videos of previous concerts with you until we can get back to sharing live concerts with you.

Watch the latest video we just added to our library. John Bruce Yeh, Assistant Principal Clarinetist with the Chicago Symphony Orchestra performing James Stephenson’s Liquid Melancholy with the Evanston Symphony Orchestra, from 2018.

HighNotes for Older Adults

Since April, the Evanston Care Network—a collaboration between the Evanston Community Foundation, Evanston 311, the Evanston Public Library, and the City of Evanston—has worked to address pandemic-related problems in our community, with one group focused on problems affecting seniors that are intensified by shelter-in-place protocols: social isolation, depression, monotony, boredom. An idea developed by the group was a senior activity packet to be delivered electronically or in printed form.

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KidNotes for Elementary and Middle School Students

All ESO subscription concerts are free for children 12 and under—a great opportunity to develop appreciation of symphonic music at an early age. Tickets for kids over 12 and college students with ID are $5. The original idea for KidNotes came from the desire of the ESO Board to encourage parents to bring kids to concerts. Recognizing the need to address the potential “fidget factor” in grade- and middle-school students during concerts, KidNotes started in 1997 as an eight-page booklet.

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Rick Greene Celebrates 55 Years With the ESO

Rick Greene

Rick Greene’s big sister was a horn player and music major at St. Olaf College, so it was no surprise he followed in her footsteps. Rick started horn lessons in fifth grade and when it was clear that he loved the instrument, his father bought him his own horn. “Learn to play that well,” his father said, “and you’ll be playing for a lifetime.” Prophetic words indeed!

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William (Bill) Dawson, Contrabassoon, 10 Years

Bill Dawson

What is or was your "day job”? Retired from medical practice 22+ years ago and from music teaching one year ago.

Most memorable performance with ESO: Too many to name just one.

Biggest challenge during the COVID-19 lockdown: Dealing with the sameness, restriction, and boredom of living in a gated retirement community.

It has been my privilege and pleasure to be a member of ESO this past decade. Looking toward a 15th commemoration.

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