Rush Hour Concerts

Now a beloved Summer tradition, the series brings free, world- class chamber music to Chicago, on Tuesdays, June through August during the evening rush hour at St James Cathedral.

Rush Hour Concerts

When: Tuesdays June 4 - August 20, 2024, 5:45 - 6:30 pm
Where: St. James Cathedral – 65 E Huron Street, Chicago
Cost: Free
Make summer nights classic with concerts featuring Chicago’s best classical musicians and ensembles. Founded by Deborah Sobol in 2000, Rush Hour Concerts are the perfect way to relax after a workday and soak up some beautiful music in a short but lovely format. The best ensembles in the city perform programs designed to enliven commuters and make the most of summer. Each concert is live streamed through the CMC website and excerpted performances are often broadcast on 98.7 WFMT radio.

Rush Hour Concerts - 2024 Season

June 4, 2024 - 25th Season Opener - 
Deborah Sobol Memorial Concert

Camille Pépin - The Road Not Taken 
Johannes Brahms - Piano Trio No. 2, Op. 87
Heather Wittels, violin 
Paula Kosower, cello
Kuang-Hao Huang, piano

June 11, 2024 - Chicago Harp Quartet

Alexander Borodin; arr. Maerz - Introduction and Dance of the Maidens
Harriet Adie - Sun, Moon and Stars
Margaret Bonds, arr. Mallory McHenry - Benediction from Montgomery Variations
Nicholas Davies - selections from Five Portraits
Aram Khachaturian; arr. Harriet Adie - Waltz & Mazurka from Masquerade Suite
Gavin Greenaway - Suite for Harp Quartet

Emily Granger, Eleanor Kirk, Catherine Litaker and Julie Spring, harps

June 18, 2024 - Grant Park Music Festival Vocal Fellows

Program to include works by Eric Whitacre, Veronika Krausas, Astor Piazzolla and more

Veronica Mak, soprano
Emily Amesquita, mezzo-soprano 
Alexi Ortega Chavez, tenor
Lifan Deng, bass

June 25, 2024 - CSO Brass Quintet

G.F. Telemann; trans. Carlier - Trio Sonata in g minor 
James Mattern - Sonata Breve
Derek Bourgeois - Sonata
Dmitri Shostakovich; trans. Sipe - String Quartet No.3 Enrique Crespo - Suite Americana No. 1

Esteban Batallán, trumpet 
John Hagstrom, trumpet 
David Griffin, horn 
Michael Mulcahy, trombone 
Gene Pokorny, tuba

July 2, 2024 - Kontras Quartet - Reverence

Quincy Porter - In Monasterio
Frederick C. Tillis - selections from Spiritual Fantasy No. 12
Stacy Garrop - String Quartet No. 1
Danish trad.; arr. Danish String Quartet - Selections
from Last Leaf

Eleanor Bartsch and Francois Henkins, violins 
Ben Weber, viola
Jean Hatmaker, cello

July 9, 2024 - The 20th Century String Quartet

Germaine Tailleferre - String Quartet
Dmitri Shostakovich - String Quartet No. 9, Op. 117

Avalon String Quartet
Blaise Magnière and Marie Wang, violins
Anthony Devroye, viola
Cheng-Hou Lee, cello

July 16, 2024 - New Music for a New Age

Augusta Read Thomas - Bebop Riddle IIB 
Jalalu-Kalvert Nelson - Pilgrimage
Daniel Pesca - In Solitude
Ruth Crawford-Seeger - Diaphonic Suite No. 2 
Amy Williams - Give Way and Stop/Yield

Ben Roidl-Ward, bassoon 
Isidora Nojkovic, cello 
Daniel Pesca, piano

July 23, 2024 - The Art of the Clarinet Quintet

Johannes Brahms - Clarinet Quintet, Op. 115
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor - Finale from Clarinet Quintet, Op. 10

Susan Warner, clarinet
Cornelius Chiu and Kozue Funakoshi, violin 
YouMing Chen, viola
Dan Katz, cello

July 30, 2024 - French Romantic Piano Quartets

Gabriel Fauré - Piano Quartet No. 1 in C Minor, Op. 15 
Louise Héritte-Viardot - Spanisches Quartett, Op. 11

Matous Michal, violin 
Lawrence Neuman, viola 
David Cunliffe, cello 
Victor Asuncion, piano

August 6, 2024 - Schubert’s Trout Quintet

Franz Schubert - Piano Quintet in A major, D. 667, Trout

Desirée Ruhstrat, violin 
Aurélien Fort Pederzoli, viola 
David Cunliffe, cello
Sam Shuhan, bass
Marta Aznavoorian, piano

August 13, 2024 - Gumpoldskirchner Spatzen children’s chorus

Program to include works by Copland, Reiter, J. Strauss, Elizabeth Alexander, Richard Rodgers, Gershwin, Beethoven and more

Gumpoldskirchner Spatzen children’s chorus

August 20, 2024 - Season Finale: Mozart’s Gran Partita

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart - Serenade No. 10, K. 361 ‘Gran Partita’

Katie Steele, oboe
Ashley Ertz, oboe
Dario Brignoli, clarinet
Theresa Zick, clarinet
Wagner Campos, basset horn
Michael Tran, basset horn
Keith Buncke, bassoon
Liam Jackson, bassoon
David Griffin, horn
Susanna Gaunt, horn
Neil Kimel, horn
Emily Whittaker, horn
Olivia Reyes, double bass

“Rush Hour Concerts are a treat every summer. We look forward to going to St James every Tuesday evening for a wonderful 45 minutes of beautiful music in that lovely and welcoming setting.”

- Joyce and Richard Prince, Classical Music Chicago generous supporters

Thank you to our supporters

Rush Hour Concerts are presented in partnership with St. James Cathedral.

Rush Hour Concerts are made possible through the generosity of the Zell Family Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Illinois Arts Council Agency and contributions from individual donors.

Upcoming Performances

Do-It-Yourself Messiah

The program that started it all, the Do-It-Yourself Messiah is an event lovers of classical music look forward to every year.
Do-It-Yourself Messiah

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