The Civic Orchestra expands its schedule of community concerts

When the Civic Orchestra of Chicago and its Principal Conductor Ken-David Masur reunite this fall, they will return to a familiar venue for their season opener: Senn High School in Chicago’s Edgewater neighborhood (Oct. 26).

Civic’s appearance at Senn High School marks the first of its seven full-orchestra concerts in venues across Chicago’s neighborhoods and suburbs in the 2025/26 season — a total that has steadily increased in recent years, in alignment with the ensemble’s strategic goals. Along with return visits to Fourth Presbyterian Church (Dec. 15), Kenwood Academy High School (Feb. 1), South Shore Cultural Center (March 1) and Naperville’s Wentz Concert Hall (March 29), the orchestra also gives debut performances at Vernon Hills High School (Feb. 15) and New Trier High School in Winnetka (May 3).

In Masur’s view, community concerts are mutually beneficial for audiences and musicians. “To be able to hear a full orchestra is a special event, regardless of where you are,” he said. For Civic members, playing in a variety of venues allows them to discover new things about the music, since each space has different acoustics and stage configurations.

“It makes it a richer experience when we come back to Orchestra Hall and play the same pieces with a renewed sense that our ears have been opened in a new direction,” Masur said. “It is an enrichment in many ways, because we get to build new audiences, and also because we are enriched by a new layer of understanding of what the work brings, both acoustically and in terms of its message.”

Under Masur’s leadership, Civic Orchestra concerts typically blend standard orchestral repertoire — pieces that young professional musicians are likely to encounter throughout their careers — with newer music. The upcoming season is no exception. Living composers featured include James Lee III, Reena Esmail, Joan Tower, John Harbison and Michael Abels, along with prominent composers of the last century such as Ulysses Kay, George Walker, Florence Price, Carlos Chávez and Tōru Takemitsu.

At Senn High School, the Civic pairs a contemporary work with a repertory standard. The musicians will perform Beethoven’s beloved Fifth Symphony alongside Iman Habibi’s Every Tree Speaks (2019), a Beethoven-inspired piece with an environmental focus; the program, which also features Hindemith’s Symphonic Metamorphosis (1943), will be reprised at Symphony Center on Oct. 27.

Two conductors will make their Civic podium debuts at community concerts this season. Alpesh Chauhan, principal guest conductor of the Düsseldorfer Symphoniker and music director of Birmingham Opera Company, leads Civic in Elgar’s In the South and Lutosławski’s Concerto for Orchestra at Kenwood Academy High School on Feb. 1 (also at Symphony Center on Feb. 2). Mallory Thompson, who was director of bands at Northwestern University for nearly three decades, conducts an eclectic program of wind ensemble music at Vernon Hills High School on Feb. 15 (also at Symphony Center on Feb. 16). In addition, Philadelphia Orchestra assistant conductor Naomi Woo makes her Civic debut at the Crain-Maling Foundation CSO Young Artists Competition Finals on Jan. 17 at Symphony Center.

“I think we’ve learned over the years that Civic thrives when there’s someone on the podium who can recognize them as young professionals but also has a point of view about the music and a capacity to teach,” said Jonathan McCormick, managing director of the Negaunee Music Institute at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. “The best feedback we get from the musicians indicates, ‘I feel respected by this person, I feel inspired by this person, and I feel like I learned a lot, too.’ That’s why we are so grateful for our work with Ken-David [Masur], but I think every conductor who’s coming this year, and who has come recently, fits that bill.”

Beyond performing as a full orchestra in neighborhood venues, Civic members engage with communities across the Chicago area through school partnerships, an annual chamber concert series, Notes for Peace songwriting workshops and artistic projects devised by the Civic Fellows. During the 2025/26 season, Civic mentors will make more than 300 visits to 10 Chicago Public High Schools, including Kenwood Academy, to work with student instrumentalists.

In November, Civic will partner with local social service organizations during the 12th annual Bach Marathon, engaging in volunteer activities and giving free performances of music by J.S. Bach. 

These programs highlight Civic’s two-fold approach to preparing young professionals for careers in music, by developing both their performance skills and their leadership abilities. “We talk a lot about training the musicians, but the other part of it is what they have to offer as artists to the Chicago community,” said McCormick. “I believe those two things are equally weighted.”