Holy Name Cathedral Concert Series
2023-10-26 19:00 - 20:00 (America/Chicago) | Holy Name Cathedral, 730 N. Wabash, Chicago, IL, 60611, United States
Join us for an extraordinary evening of musical entertainment as we host the artistic talents of Johann Vexo, Choir Organist of the Cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris. Born in France, Johann’s musical talents have been influenced by the rich musical and cultural heritage of his upbringing. He is considered by some as one of the greatest French organists of our time. He will be performing on the Flentrop organ for the opening concert of the Holy Name Cathedral Concert Series for 2023-2024, playing the works of Bach, Bruhns, Rheinberger and French Romantic composers.

Evensong
2023-10-29 16:00 - 17:00 | St. Giles Episcopal Church, 3025 Walters Avenue, Northbrook, IL, 60062, United States
The Choir of St. Giles will lead Evensong (sung Evening Prayer) on Sunday afternoon, October 29 at 4:00. This service of prayers, scripture lessons, hymns, and canticles is a time of serenity and beauty. Lasting 45 minutes or less, it is perfect solace for a late Sunday afternoon. You are encouraged to come and bring friends and neighbors.
The choir will offer the Magnificat and Nunc dimittis in B-Flat by the Anglo-Irish composer Charles Villiers Stanford (1852-1924). Psalm 103 will be sung to two different Anglican chants. The Preces and Responses will be a new setting by Käthe Wright Kaufman, a very talented young musician who is making her place in the world. Now based in Atlanta, she was head chorister at St. Luke’s in Evanston, studied organ with me in high school, graduated with two degrees in organ from Eastman, and served as organ scholar at Peterborough and Truro Cathedrals in England. The anthem is “Evening Hymn” by H. Balfour Gardiner (1877-1950), one of the standard cathedral anthems for Evensong. The dark and mysterious middle section is a prelude to Halloween – Banish the dreams that terrify, and night’s fantastic company: keep us from Satan’s tyranny: defend us from unchastity. The organ prelude – Prelude in e-flat minor (Suite, Op. 5) by Maurice Duruflé – and postlude – Toccata (Suite Gothique) by Léon Boëllmann – also evoke the upcoming night of ghouls and goblins.

Stephen Buzard in concert at Winnetka Congregational
2023-11-03 19:00 - 20:30 | IL
Stephen Buzard will be playing the Pasi at Winnetka Congregational on Friday evening, November 3 at 7:00 p.m. His varied program will feature works by Bach, Byrd, Jongen, Muhly and Alain. This is the inaugural concert in a 3 – year concert series set up by the church to share their wonderful organ and wonderful space. This is a free concert and a reception will follow. Please come.

Organ Concert
2023-11-05 14:00 - 15:00 | St. Mary’s Lutheran Church, 2001 80th St., Kenosha, WI, 53143, United States
Kenosha organist Brian Schoettler presents an hour of organ music in the sanctuary of St. Mary’s Lutheran Church on Sunday, November 5 at 2:00pm. Selections include Bach’s epic “Passacaglia and Fugue,” a transcription of the first movement of Beethoven’s serene “Pastoral Symphony,” and other works by Dupré, Harris, Marchand, Mendelssohn, and Schoettler. The concert is free and open to the public.

Morgan Simmons Memorial Concert
2023-11-10 19:30 - 20:30 | Fourth Presbyterian Church, 126 E. Chestnut, Chicago, 60611, United States
Friday, November 10 | 7:30 p.m.
Fourth Presbyterian Church
The Fourth Church Choral Society is doing a concert on Friday, November 10 at 7:30pm to honor Morgan Simmons. Morgan was Organist and Choirmaster at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Chicago from 1968-1996 and a former dean of the North Shore AGO chapter. This free concert will feature music composed by Morgan for both choir, organ and other instruments. The church is located at the corner of Delaware and Michigan Ave across from the Hancock Building and parking is available in the back of the 900 Michigan Ave building. A reception honoring Morgan will follow the concert.

Organ Recital
2023-11-12 15:00 - 17:00 | St. Chrysostom’s Church, 1424 N. Dearborn Parkway, Chicago, IL, 60610, United States
Daryl Robinson – Organist
Daryl plays music by Jeanne Demmessieux, Gaston Litaize,
Louis Vierne, Melchior Schildt, J. S. Bach, Jason Roberts, and Rachel Laurin.
Organ by C. B. Fisk, Opus 123

Choir Concert
2023-11-17 19:30 - 20:30 | IL
On Friday, November 17th, the Festival Choir and Orchestra of First United Methodist Church of Evanston presents a concert of cantatas by Johann Sebastian Bach and Healey Willan. Healey Willan is considered the dean of Canadian composers. His cantata, The Mystery of Bethlehem, was written in 1923 and sets ancient responsories for Advent and Christmas in English. One of the best-known works of Bach is Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring which is from Cantata No. 147. The choir will present the complete cantata which received its premiere 300 years ago in 1723 during the first year of Bach’s tenure in Leipzig. The 7:30pm concert is free and open to the public.

Bach Organ Marathon
2023-11-19 12:00 - 18:00 | St. Giles Episcopal Church, 3025 Walters Avenue, Northbrook, IL, 60062, United States
BACH ORGAN MARATHON
Commemoration of the 30th anniversary of the Hellmuth Wolff organ
A Benefit for Hunger Resource Network and the Music Program at St. Giles
Johann Sebastian Bach is, of course, the most important composer for The King of Instruments, and an afternoon of his music to commemorate the fine organ by Hellmuth Wolff will be truly enriching. Twelve organists from the Chicago area will perform beginning on the half-hour from 12:00-6:00. There will be short breaks between performances for you to enjoy a quick refreshment in the narthex with thanks to Hunger Resource Network. A suggested donation of $10 per performance is encouraged, but any amount is welcome. Come for one or two performances or stay all afternoon – it’s up to you. Detailed information on the organists and Bach repertoire will be forthcoming.

Organ Concert
2024-01-21 15:00 - 16:00 | MADONNA DELLA STRADA CHAPEL, 1032 W Sheridan Road, Chicago, IL, 60660, United States
Organist Brian Schoettler presents a 60-minute concert on the Goulding & Wood organ at Loyola’s Madonna della Strada Chapel as part of the chapel’s monthly concert series. Admission is free and free garage parking is available (enter at Kenmore and West Sheridan Road).

John Schwandt Organ Recital
2024-02-25 15:30 - 17:00 | Chapel of Christ Triumphant, Concordia University Wisconsin, 12800 N Lake Shore Drive, Mequon, WI, 53097, United States
Organ recital by John Schwandt on the Steiner-Reck organ in the Chapel of Christ Triumphant at Concordia University Wisconsin.

Piano Duo Concert
2024-03-03 16:00 - 17:30 | First Presbyterian Church of Evanston, 1427 Chicago Ave, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
At 4pm on March 3, 1st Presbyterian Church, (Evanston,) the North Shore Choral Society is joined by the four hands and two pianos of Andrea Handley and Sharon Peterson for a family-friendly community concert featuring highlights from Brahms’ Requiem, Orff’s Carmina Burana, and Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals.
Please visit www.northshorechoral.org for ticket information
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Organ Concert
2024-03-15 19:30 - 20:30 | First United Methodist Church Evanston, 516 Church Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
Dr. Brian Schoettler presents an hour of organ music on FUMC Evanston’s 4-manual Austin pipe organ. The event is free and open to the public.

The Gift of Music (Organ Recital)
2024-04-22 14:00 - 15:00 | Elliott Chapel, 3131 Simpson Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
We are hosting the Organ Recital as part of A Gift of Music on April 22.
The Organist is David Troiano, a Music director, a tenor, and an organist from Detroit and he will be presenting music composed by J.S. Bach, E. Elgar and other American Composers.

Bach Week Festival: J. S. Bach: Mass in B Minor, BWV 232
2024-05-05 16:00 - 18:00 | St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, 939 Hinman Avenue, Evanston, IL, 60202, United States
Bach’s monumental Mass in B Minor will be the grand finale of the Evanston-based Bach Week Festival’s 50th anniversary and its farewell season.
“It’s truly been a half-century labor of love,” Richard Webster, the festival’s longtime music director, says. “And we’ll conclude this amazing journey with J. S. Bach’s final sacred masterpiece, the incomparable Mass in B Minor, amid joy and gratitude for all who have been part of Bach Week.”
Webster, a nationally prominent church musician, has been the festival’s music director and conductor since 1975.
He performed in and helped organize Evanston’s first Bach Week, May 5-12, 1974, during his senior year at Northwestern University’s School of Music, under his mentor, festival founder Karel Paukert. The latter was associate professor of organ and church music at NU and organist and choirmaster at St. Luke’s Episcopal Church in Evanston, the festival’s first home.
Shortly after launching Bach Week, Paukert moved to the Cleveland, Ohio, area, where he has enjoyed a long and distinguished music career that continues to this day. He is expected to attend Bach Week’s final concert May 5 at St. Luke’s featuring Bach’s B-Minor Mass.
Artists performing in the B-Minor Mass are:
Josefien Stoppelenburg, soprano
Kathleen Felty, soprano
Susan Platts, contralto
Geoffrey Agpalo, tenor
David Govertsen, bass
North Park University Chamber Singers
Bach Week Festival Orchestra and Chorus
Richard Webster, conductor
Jason Moy, organ

Vierne's Messe solennelle
2024-05-17 19:30 - 20:30 | First United Methodist Church Evanston, 516 Church Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
On Friday, May 17th, the Festival Choir of First United Methodist Church of Evanston presents a concert featuring two choral masterworks: Paul Winter’s “Earth Mass” and Louis Vierne’s “Messe solennelle.” The 7:30pm concert is free and open to the public.

Organ Concert - Matthew Doran, Organ
2024-05-19 15:00 - 16:00 | MADONNA DELLA STRADA CHAPEL, 1032 W Sheridan Road, Chicago, IL, 60660, United States
Works by Adolphus Hailstork, Dieterich Buxtehude, Johann Sebastian Bach, Marianne Kim, Olivier Messiaen, Ad Wammes, and Jean Sibelius

The Gift of Music (Organ Recital)
2024-05-20 14:00 - 15:00 | Elliott Chapel, 3131 Simpson Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
Steven Schnurr will be presenting the organ recital, featuring some works by Ch. Widor, M. Reger, and L. Vierne.

Cathedral Concert Series
2025-02-16 19:00 - 20:00 | Holy Name Cathedral, 730 N. Wabash, Chicago, IL, 60611, United States
Organ and Trumpet concert featuring Ross Beacraft, Trumpet and David C. Jonies, Director of Music & Organist.

All-Bach Organ Concert: Brian Schoettler
2025-03-21 19:30 - 20:30 | First United Methodist Church Evanston, 516 Church Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
In celebration of Bach’s birthday on Friday, March 21, Dr. Brian Schoettler, will present an all-Bach organ concert featuring FUMC Evanston’s mighty, Austin pipe organ (Opus 319). Included on the program is Bach’s monumental Passacaglia and, maybe the most famous work for organ, the Toccata and Fugue in D Minor. The 7:30pm concert is free and open to the public. A public parking garage is located across from the church at the corner of Chicago & Church and limited street parking is also available.
Friday, March 21, 2025 – 7:30pm
All-Bach Organ Concert: Brian Schoettler
First United Methodist Church
516 Church Street, Evanston, Illinois 60201
Phone: 847-864-6181

Bach in the City - 'Bach and the Venetians'
2025-03-21 19:30 - 21:00 | St. Vincent de Paul Church, 1010 W. Webster Avenue, Chicago, I, 60614, United States
Bach in the City, successor to the Chicago area’s long-running Bach Week Festival, will present “Bach and the Venetians,” the new organization’s inaugural concert program, at 7:30 p.m. March 21, 2025, at its home venue, St. Vincent de Paul Church, 1010 W. Webster Avenue, in Chicago’s Lincoln Park neighborhood.
The concert, on J. S. Bach’s 329th birthday, will feature one of the German Baroque composer’s choral works with continuo (strings and portative organ), another that adds brass to the mix, and a solo pipe organ work. The program also offers brass and choral works by Renaissance composer Giovanni Gabrieli, an a cappella vocal work by contemporary composer Paul Mealor, and a work for brass, choir, and continuo by Andrea Gabrieli, Giovanni’s uncle.
“Expect an evening of polychoral splendor,” says music director-conductor Richard Webster, who held the same post for 50 years with the former Bach Week Festival.
Webster plans to take advantage of “the spaciousness, resonant acoustics, and visual beauty of St. Vincent de Paul Church” by having multiple groups (choirs) of voices and instruments positioned around the church.
“This concert will conjure the rich, multi-dimensional, kaleidoscopic interplay of sounds that audiences experienced when listening to the Gabrielis’ polychoral masterworks at St. Mark’s Cathedral in Venice, where each composer served a term as principal organist,” Webster says.
Concert artists are Chicago’s celebrated Gaudete Brass with guest brass musicians; the Bach in the City Chorus; organ soloist Jacob Reed, who has been heard on organ and harpsichord with the Newberry Consort, Haymarket Opera, Bella Voce, and others; Nomin Zolzaya, principal cellist with the Illinois Symphony Orchestra; and contrabassist Ian Hallas of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
Listeners will hear J. S. Bach’s longest and most complex motet, the tender and lyrical “Jesu, meine Freude” (Jesus, my joy), BWV 227. The original version of Bach’s poignantly beautiful motet (O Jesu Christ, meins Lebens Licht” (O Jesus Christ, light of my life), BWV 118, scored for choir and brass accompaniment, was written to be played outdoors at a graveside service.
Bach’s Fantasy and Fugue in G Minor, BWV 542, for solo organ, known as “The Great G Minor,” opens with a noble, tragic-sounding prelude, followed by a rollicking and inventive take on a Baroque dance tune.
Works by Giovanni Gabrieli include the “Sonata pian’e forte” (Sonata soft and loud) for a brass ensemble split into two groups facing one another from opposite sides of the hall. His “Canzon septimi toni” No. 2 calls for similar placement of instrumentalists in dialogue with each other. In Renaissance Italy, a canzon was a short, upbeat secular song. “Septimi toni” means “seventh mode” and refers to what’s nowadays called the key signature.
Scott Tegge, Gaudete Brass’s founding tuba player, says he and his colleagues “relish the rare opportunity to perform these pieces in the way that Gabrieli intended,” as spatially separate brass choirs rather than as a single unit seated in front of the audience.
Gabrieli wrote his motet “Plaudite, Psalite” (Clap your hands, sing praises) for three mixed-voice choirs of sopranos, altos, tenors, and basses. The joyful “Alleluja” sections begin with one choir, then add a second, and end with all three.
Gabrieli’s dazzling motet “In ecclesiis” (In the congregation) a 14, C. 78 also calls for three distinct choirs: four soloists and continuo accompaniment, full choir and continuo, and a brass choir.
Welsh composer Mealor (b. 1975) wrote “Locus iste” (This place), a sacred motet for four-part choir, in 2011 to celebrate the 500th anniversary of the King’s College Chapel in Aberdeen, Scotland. He has composed music for some of the most important UK state, national, and Royal occasions of the past decade, including the wedding of The Prince and Princess of Wales in 2011.
Andrea Gabrieli’s “Gloria in excelsis Deo” (Glory to God in the highest), another Renaissance masterwork designed for the expansive acoustics of St. Mark’s, is composed in 16 parts, using voices and instruments in four four-part choirs. The work ends in a buoyant, triple-time rhythm.
Bach in the City describes the concert as a pilot project to gauge audience and donor interest in the new enterprise and help set the direction for future programming.
Tickets and information
Tickets for Bach in the City’s “Bach and the Venetians” concert are $45 for VIP admission, which includes reserved seating and a souvenir tote bag; $30 adult general admission; $25 seniors 65 and older; and $10 students (with valid ID). Tickets are available at bachinthecity.org and by phone, 312-273-9834.

Silent Movie - The General
2025-04-11 19:30 - 21:00 | EMMANUEL EPISCOPAL CHURCH, 203 S Kensington, LaGrange, IL, 60525, United States
The Friends of Casavant Op 3062 present the 1926 silent film “The General” starting Buster Keaton.
Following the sudden death of Jay Warren on February 24th, Emmanuel Episcopal would like to present the film ‘The General’ in memory of Jay’s life and legacy and support of the Silent Film Society, and are delighted that our very own Music Director, Rich Spantikow, will play the accompanying organ score with the blessing of Jay’s family. This event will be supported by your free-will donations; please note the donation opportunity in the billing process.
The General is a 1926 American silent Western slapstick romantic action comedy film released by United Artists. It was inspired by the Great Locomotive Chase, a true story of an event that occurred during the American Civil War. The story was adapted from the 1889 memoir The Great Locomotive Chase by William Pittenger. The film stars Buster Keaton, who also co-directed it along with Clyde Bruckman.

James Russell Brown - 40th anniversary Organ Recital
2025-10-05 16:00 - 17:00 | St. Giles Episcopal Church, 3025 Walters Avenue, Northbrook, IL, 60062, United States
A celebration of 40 years as Director of Music & Organist at St. Giles Episcopal Church, Northbrook
Organ by Hellmuth Wolff & Associates (1993)
Program:
Modus ludendi (S. Scheidt)
Passacaglia in d minor (D. Buxtehude)
Trio en passacaille (A. Raison)
Passacaglia in c minor (J.S. Bach)
Andante, from Trio Sonata IV (J.S. Bach)
Chorale in b minor (C. Franck)
Prelude & Fugue in B Major (M. Dupre)

Immanuel Lutheran Organ Scholar Award Recital
2025-10-18 15:00 - 16:30 | Immanuel Lutheran Church, 616 Lake Street, Evanston, 60201, United States
Undergraduate Organ Scholar Award Winner recital by David Devine, University of Iowa student of Gregory Hand, reception following

Evensong
2025-11-02 16:00 - 17:00 | St. Giles Episcopal Church, 3025 Walters Avenue, Northbrook, IL, 60062, United States
ALL SAINTS EVENSONG
The Choir of St. Giles Church
James R. Brown, Director of Music & Organist
Preces & Responses (Martin Neary)
Magnificat & Nunc dimittis in d minor (T. Walmisley)
Anthem: A New Song (J. MacMillan)

Lecture-Recital: Italian Organ Music
2025-11-13 16:00 - 17:30 | Garrett Seminary, 2121 Sheridan Road, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
Thursday, November 13, 2025
4:00 – 4:30 pm Lecture
4:30 – 5:20 pm Recital
Garrett Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Chapel of the Unnamed Faithful
2121 Sheridan Rd, Evanston, IL 60201
Dr. Corrado Cavalli, organist at St. John Cantius, presents a lecture on Italian organ music followed by the a recital featuring works by, Bergamo, Bossi, Capocci, Gambini Rosetta, and Somma.
https://www.cavallicorrado.org/

Immanuel Lutheran Graduate Organ Scholar Award recital
2025-11-15 15:00 - 16:30 | Immanuel Lutheran Church, 616 Lake Street, Evanston, 60201, United States
Graduate Organ Scholar Award winner, Katie Gunn, Indiana University, student of Chris Young, reception following

Pipe Organ Dedication and Recital
2025-11-16 15:00 - 17:00 | St. Giles, 1045 Columbian Ave, Oak Park, IL, 60302, United States
St. Catherine of Siena – St. Lucy & St. Giles Parish (Oak Park, IL) announces the dedication of their new Berghaus pipe organ, November 16 at 3 p.m. The event features Jonathan Oblander in recital; free and open to the public, with a reception following. The organ comprises three manuals and pedal, four divisions, 47 stops, 40 ranks, and 2,506 pipes. It was completed in late 2024, primarily using pipework from the 1901 Hutchings & Votey instrument that was removed from The Second Church of Christ, Scientist in Chicago before the church was repurposed into living space. Berghaus constructed a new mobile console along with new framework, slider and offset chests, winding and enclosures. The organ speaks through the grillework to the side of the altar.

Brian Schoettler - Organist
2026-03-01 13:30 - 14:30 | First United Methodist Church Evanston, 516 Church Street, Evanston, IL, 60201, United States
Organist Brian Schoettler will present a 60-minute concert featuring FUMC Evanston’s mighty, Austin pipe organ (Opus 319). The program will feature works by American composers including Samuel Barber, Aaron Copland, Charles Ives, Florence Price, and others.
The 1:30pm concert is free and open to the public.
Sunday, March 1, 2026 – 1:30pm
Organ Concert: Brian Schoettler
First United Methodist Church
516 Church Street, Evanston, Illinois 60201
Phone: 847-864-6181
Website: https://faithatfirst.org/event/organ-concert-brian-schoettler/

Trio de Chats Noir (horn, bass trombone, & organ)
2026-03-21 15:00 - 17:00 | St. Giles Episcopal Church, 3025 Walters Avenue, Northbrook, IL, 60062, United States
Album Preview and Benefit Concert
Donations to benefit Hunger Resource Network (https://www.hungerresourcenetwork.org/donate)
Trio de Chats Noirs—Rachel Velvikis (horn), Mark Fry (bass trombone), and organist Christopher Powell—invites you to an intimate album preview concert celebrating our upcoming recording project, Transcendent: Music for horn, bass trombone and organ.
This special performance takes place in the very sanctuary where we have conducted (and will have completed) multiple recording sessions, using the same breathtaking instrument and acoustics. The Hellmuth Wolff organ (Opus 37, 1994) at Saint Giles Episcopal Church is a masterpiece—2 manuals and pedal, 19 stops/25 ranks, mechanical action, classic French-inspired voicing, and a striking solid mahogany double case. Its expressive clarity and warmth, combined with the church’s superb natural resonance, make it the ideal partner for this brass-and-organ repertoire.
The program includes:
Matthias Spiegler – Canzone I
Anton Bruckner – Ave Maria WAB 7
Camille Saint-Saëns – Offertoire
César Franck – Prélude, Op.18
W.A. Mozart – Laudate Dominum
Arcangelo Corelli – Sonata in G Minor
Franz Liszt – Hosannah! (with chorale “Heilig ist Gott der Vater”)
Camille Saint-Saëns – Adagio and Andante
J. S. Bach – Fantasia in G minor BWV 542
Alan Hovhaness – The Prayer of Saint Gregory, Op. 62b
G.F. Handel – Concerto grosso in F Major, Op. 3 No. 4b, HWV deest

Immanuel Lutheran Church Music Endowment presents Vincent Dubois in recital
2026-04-25 15:00 - 16:30 | Immanuel Lutheran Church, 616 Lake Street, Evanston, 60201, United States
Vincent Dubois, organist of Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, plays works by Bach, Liszt, Poulenc, Verne, and Dupre, concluding with an improvisation. Champagne reception following.
