Please join us for next concert featuring the following masterworks, along with a holiday classic:
Respighi: “Flight into Egypt” from Church Windows
Liadov: Eight Russian Folk Songs, Op.58
Schubert: Symphony No. 8 “Unfinished”
Anderson: Sleigh Ride
Date: Sunday December 13, 2026
Time: 4 p.m.
LOCATION: St. Mathias Church, 2310 W. Ainslie, Chicago, IL 60625
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
A note for all concertgoers: We are thrilled to have you—and music lovers of all ages—with us in the hall. To help us create the best possible environment for our musicians and your fellow audience members, please take a moment to review a few guidelines before the music begins:
Silence all electronics: Please completely turn off or silence your cell phones, watches, and other devices.
Remain seated during the music: To minimize visual distractions, please stay in your seat while the orchestra is performing. If you must leave, please wait until intermission or a designated pause between pieces.
A note for families: We love welcoming children to our concerts! We kindly ask parents and guardians to ensure that little ones remain safely in their seats during the music. Even small movements near the stage or aisles can catch the eye of our performers and disrupt their concentration.
Thank you for your cooperation and for supporting live orchestral music. Enjoy the show!
Thank you to everyone who attended our annual Halloween concert!
Date: Sunday October 25, 2026
Time: 4 p.m.
LOCATION: St. Mathias Church, 2310 W. Ainslie, Chicago, IL 60625
Program Notes:
Malcolm Arnold: Tam O’Shanter, Op. 51
Tam O’Shanter is based on the famous narrative poem by Scotland’s Robbie Burns. While the hero, a hard-drinking farmer from Shanter is in town one market-day, wags clip the tail of his horse. To explain the missing tail to his superstitious wife he concocts a wild story about escaping a band of witches on his horse, Maggie.
Jean Sibelius: Swan of Tuonela from the Lemminkainen Suite No. 3, Op 22
Jean Sibelius composed The Swan of Tuonela in 1895 as part of the Lemminkäinen Suite. The suite is based on the Finnish mythological epic, Kalevala. The suite itself is based around the figure of Lemminkäinen, a youthful and reckless hero that is tasked with shooting a sacred, singing swan that glides across the dark river of Tuonela (the underworld). Instead of killing the bird, Lemminkäinen is ambushed, slain, and cast into the river
Gillian Rae Perry: A Ghost Story, A Love Story
World Premiere, Commissioned by the Ravenswood Community Orchestra
A Ghost Story, A Love Story is comprised of seven miniatures from the opera Desert Bloom, a love story about a young woman named Mia and the ghost of a young soldadera named Leo. In the heat of West Texas, these two young women confront the ramifications of grief, war, and loneliness as they share newfound love.
Selim Palmgren: Aus Finnland, Op. 24
Finnish composer Selim Palmgren wore many hats during his lifetime: composer, conductor, teacher, husband, and performer. Each of the roles he held outside of composition fed his compositional output. As a conductor and teacher, partsongs and piano pieces make up most of the composer’s oeuvre. However, Palmgren’s large-scale orchestral and operatic works, including Aus Finnland, Op. 24, play an important role not only in the composer’s oeuvre but in the compositional style occurring in the late 19th and early 20th centuries and in Finland’s musical heritage.
Edvard Grieg: Peer Gynt Suite No. 1, Op. 46 | Movement 4: Tanz in der Halle des Bergkonig
Grieg’s Peer Gynt Suite tells the story of a young boy – Peer Gynt, who falls in love with a girl but is not allowed to marry her. He runs away into the mountains but is captured by trolls who take him to their King. Peer Gynt tries to escape but is chased by the trolls and runs into the troll King but eventually gets away.
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
A note for all concertgoers: We are thrilled to have you—and music lovers of all ages—with us in the hall. To help us create the best possible environment for our musicians and your fellow audience members, please take a moment to review a few guidelines before the music begins:
Silence all electronics: Please completely turn off or silence your cell phones, watches, and other devices.
Remain seated during the music: To minimize visual distractions, please stay in your seat while the orchestra is performing. If you must leave, please wait until intermission or a designated pause between pieces.
A note for families: We love welcoming children to our concerts! We kindly ask parents and guardians to ensure that little ones remain safely in their seats during the music. Even small movements near the stage or aisles can catch the eye of our performers and disrupt their concentration.
Thank you for your cooperation and for supporting live orchestral music. Enjoy the show!
Thank you to everyone who devoted countless hours to practicing for this season’s concerts! And, thank you to all of our audience members who attended our concerts and made contributions — we appreciate all of the support you’ve given us this season — financial and otherwise!
2026-2027 will be the RCO’s 25th Anniversary Season! Stay in touch with us via this website, facebook or instagram for special announcements coming!
Please enjoy the video of our concert on May 17, 2026:
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
— Street parking is available and there is a parking lot on the northwest corner of Sunnyside and Western.
Accessibility information: The concert will take place in the lower level of the Queen of Apostles Church. There are three steps up to the building, and ten stairs down to the lower level. There is a ramp on the exterior and an elevator/lift down to the lower level. Please ask if you need assistance. There are bathrooms on the lower level as well.
Thank you to everyone who attended our adventure into early music! Please enjoy this video of the concert, and we’ll see you next time!
Please join us for our adventure into the world of Baroque music! For this program, the RCO collaborated with the Bach + Beethoven Experience. The BBE ensemble, under the direction of Brandi Berry Benson, worked with Principal Conductor Eli Chen and Music Director Richard Corrigan to develop the program and choose the music. Then, Brandi and fellow BBE ensemble members conducted sectional rehearsals with RCO members, sat in on full orchestra rehearsals and provided guidance and resources on Baroque music performance practices.
The RCO is grateful to BBE for their collaboration and support. Please consider making a donation to BBE to help support this work. The link to make a donation is here, or you can zelle or paypal to bbe@bbexperience.org
Sunday, March 8, 2026, 4 p.m.
Queen of Angels Church, 2330 W. Sunnyside, Chicago, IL
Program:
Byrd: Battell Suite
Telemann: Burlesque de Quixotte
Rebel: Les Elemens
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
— Street parking is available and there is a parking lot on the northwest corner of Sunnyside and Western.
Accessibility information: The concert will take place in the lower level of the Queen of Apostles Church. There are three steps up to the building, and ten stairs down to the lower level. There is a ramp on the exterior and an elevator/lift down to the lower level. Please ask if you need assistance. There are bathrooms on the lower level as well.
Thank you to everyone who joined us for our annual Halloween celebration!
Program:
Amy Beach: Bal Masqué
Doyle/Williams, arr. Brubecker: Suite from Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
Mussorgsky (rev. Rimsky-Korsakov): Night on Bald Mountain
Stravinsky Firebird (1919) – Ronde des Princesses
Schubert arr. Berlioz: Erlkoenig
Stravinsky Firebird (1919) – Berceuse and Finale
Eli Chen, Principal Conductor and Richard Corrigan, Music Director
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
— Street parking is available and there is a parking lot on the northwest corner of Sunnyside and Western.
Accessibility information: The concert will take place in the lower level of the Queen of Apostles Church. There are three steps up to the building, and ten stairs down to the lower level. There is a ramp on the exterior and an elevator/lift down to the lower level. Please ask if you need assistance. There are bathrooms on the lower level as well.
Thank you to everyone who devoted countless hours to practicing for this season’s concerts! And, thank you to all of our audience members who attended our concerts and made contributions — we appreciate your financial support!
Our next concert is slated for October 26 — check back soon for more information. If you love orchestral music, then we suggest you check here to find more concerts!
Sunday May 18, 2025, 4 p.m. at Queen of Apostles, 2330 W. Sunnyside, Chicago
Program:
Overture from Treemonisha, Words & Music by Scott Joplin, adapted, arranged and orchestrated by T.J. Anderson
Children’s Corner (Le coin des Enfants) by Claude Debussy
Doctor Gradus as Parnassum
Jumbo’s Lullaby (Berceuse des Elephants)
Serenade for the Doll (Serenade a la Poupee)
The Snow is Dancing (La Neige Danse)
The Little Shepherd (Le Petit Berger)
Golliwogg’s Cake-Walk
Idyll (1901), by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor, Edited by Rotem Weinberg
Suite, Op 39 by Maurice Moszkowski
Allegro molto e brioso
Allegretto giojoso
Intermezzo (Allegretto con moto)
Perpetuum mobile (Vivace)
Eli Chen, Principal Conductor and Richard Corrigan, Music Director
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
— Street parking is available and there is a parking lot on the northwest corner of Sunnyside and Western.
Accessibility information: The concert will take place in the lower level of the Queen of Apostles Church. There are three steps up to the building, and ten stairs down to the lower level. There is a ramp on the exterior and an elevator/lift down to the lower level. Please ask if you need assistance. There are bathrooms on the lower level as well.
Sunday March 9, 2025, 4 p.m. at Queen of Apostles, 2330 W. Sunnyside, Chicago
Tchaikovsky: Symphony No. 1
Max Bruch: Suite from Russian Folk Melodies, Op. 79b
Eli Chen, Principal Conductor and Richard Corrigan, Music Director
General Info:
— Concerts are free to attend, but consider a cash donation at the door
— Please stay for a post-concert reception with the musicians and RCO fans
— Street parking is available and there is a parking lot on the northwest corner of Sunnyside and Western.
Accessibility information: The concert will take place in the lower level of the Queen of Apostles Church. There are three steps up to the building, and ten stairs down to the lower level. There is a ramp on the exterior and an elevator/lift down to the lower level. Please ask if you need assistance. There are bathrooms on the lower level as well.
