C H I CAGO SYM PH O NY O RC H E STR A
kidsbook
CSO for Kids: School Concerts March 20, 2026 | 10:15 & 12:00 CSO for Kids: Family Matinees March 21, 2026 | 11:00 & 12:45
Welcome!
This concert features marvelous music to help us understand the interconnectedness of all things in our universe and on our planet. Come join our exploration of the Classical Elements as we discover how we are all a part of that cosmic harmony.
Performers Members of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Mei-Ann Chen conductor
On the Program GUSTAV HOLST Mars from The Planets BEDŘICH SMETANA The Moldau from Má Vlast JOHANN STRAUSS, JR. Thunder and Lighting Polka LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN Symphony No. 6 in F Major, Op. 68 CAMILLE SAINT-SAËNS Aquarium from The Carnival of the Animals IGOR STRAVINSKY Infernal Dance from The Firebird FLORENCE PRICE Symphony No. 1 in E Minor PYOTR ILYICH TCHAIKOVSKY Waltz of the Flowers from The Nutcracker JOHANN STRAUSS, JR. Waltzes 1 and 2 from Tales from the Vienna Woods NIKOLAI RIMSKY-KORSAKOV Flight of the Bumblebee from Tales of Tsar Saltan GUSTAV HOLST Jupiter from The Planets
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Composer Gustav Holst brings the Earth’s neighbor, the “Red Planet,” to life in Mars from The Planets. Despite being millions of miles from one another, the Earth and Mars are part of the same solar system, and orbit the same star, our sun!
sic a l E l e m e n t s Mars is a dusty cold planet, but we know from scientists that it was once a warmer planet covered with water. Today, the only planet in our universe that can support life is Earth because it has liquid water. The Moldau from Má Vlast is a musical love letter to the river that flows through composer Bedřich Smetana’s home. How do you interact with bodies of water where you live?
Thunder and Lighting Polka by Johann Strauss, Jr., and Ludwig van Beethoven’s Symphony No. 6 imitate the bangs and booms of a thunderstorm. Storms may force us inside for a little while, but the planet needs them! They keep the rivers flowing and the lakes and ponds full of life.
The underwater scene that we hear in Aquarium from The Carnival of the Animals by Camille Saint-Saëns may seem like it’s a world away from all of us here on land. But water is the source of all life, and without it no living thing (including you and me!) could exist.
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Water is important for putting out fires, which can be scary and dangerous. But fire can also keep us warm, and it makes our forests healthy by providing a spark for new plant life. Infernal Dance from The Firebird by Igor Stravinsky captures the beauty and risk of fire all at once.
Symphony No.1 by Florence Price reminds us that music can be found in the body, as much as it can be found in nature and outer space. This piece imitates Juba dancing (or hambone), which is a style of dance that involves stomping, slapping and patting the arms, legs, chest and cheeks.
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky’s Waltz of the Flowers from The Nutcracker conjures the beauty of roses, violets and other plants you might find in a bouquet, but did you know that fruits, vegetables, bees and even some medicines wouldn’t exist without flowers?
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Trees need sunshine, air, water and plenty of room to grow, which makes planet Earth the perfect home for them. Strauss’ Waltzes 1 and 2 from Tales from the Vienna Woods paint a picture of the forests outside of Vienna, Austria. If you were going to compose a piece of music about nature, what place would it describe? What would it sound like?
Bumblebees, which Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov illustrates in Flight of the Bumblebee, keep flowers blooming and fruit on trees. Every bee has a job, and the hive couldn’t function without each one. That’s a lot like our universe! Every part is needed to keep things working, and that includes you.
Jupiter is the largest planet in our solar system, and we hear that enormous size in Holst’s Jupiter from The Planets. But, as we’ve learned, you don’t have to be big to be important to our world and our universe. From bumblebees to flowers, from fire to water, from people to planets, each part needs the others to exist. You’re not too small to make a positive impact. What will it be?
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Meet the
Conductor Mei-Ann Chen Mei-Ann Chen is originally from Taiwan. She holds a bachelor’s degree in violin performance and a master’s degree in violin and conducting from the New England Conservatory of Music, and a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in conducting from the University of Michigan. Since 2011, she has been the music director of the MacArthur Award-winning Chicago Sinfonietta, and since 2021 has held the position of chief conductor of Austria’s Recreation — Grosses Orchester Graz at Styriarte. She is also conductor laureate of the Memphis Symphony after serving as music director (2010-16). Recent performances include a return to Vienna’s Tonkunstler Orchestra at the Grafenegg Festival, conducting Beethoven’s Eroica Symphony in a theatrical project in Graz at the STYRIARTE Summer Festival, and her Spoleto Festival USA debut. Other highlights include international debuts with Germany’s Staatsorchester Darmstadt, Orchestra National du Capitole de Toulouse (France debut), Basque National Orchestra (Spain debut), Liechtenstein Symphony Orchestra and Helsinki Philharmonic in Finland. In North America, she debuted with the American Composers Orchestra at Carnegie Hall. Past honors include being named one of 2015’s Top 30 Influencers by Musical America, the 2012 Helen M. Thompson Award from the League of American Orchestras, the 2007 Taki Concordia Fellowship founded by Marin Alsop and 2005 First Prize Winner of the Malko Competition. She remains the only woman in the Malko Competition’s 60-year history to have won first prize.
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CHICAGO SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA KLAUS MÄKELÄ zell music director designate RICCARDO MUTI music director emeritus for life JOYCE DIDONATO artist-in-residence vi ol i n s Robert Chen Concertmaster The Louis C. Sudler Chair, endowed by an anonymous benefactor Stephanie Jeong Associate Concertmaster The Cathy and Bill Osborn Chair David Taylor Assistant Concertmaster* The Ling Z. and Michael C. Markovitz Chair Yuan-Qing Yu Assistant Concertmaster* So Young Bae Cornelius Chiu Gina DiBello Kozue Funakoshi Russell Hershow Qing Hou Gabriela Lara Matous Michal Simon Michal Sando Shia Susan Synnestvedt Rong-Yan Tang Baird Dodge Principal Danny Yehun Jin Assistant Principal Lei Hou Ni Mei Hermine Gagné Rachel Goldstein Mihaela Ionescu Melanie Kupchynsky Wendy Koons Meir Ronald Satkiewicz ‡ Florence Schwartz vi ol a s Teng Li Principal The Paul Hindemith Principal Viola Chair Catherine Brubaker Youming Chen Sunghee Choi Paulo Dara Wei-Ting Kuo Danny Lai Weijing Michal Diane Mues Lawrence Neuman Max Raimi ce l los John Sharp Principal The Eloise W. Martin Chair Kenneth Olsen Assistant Principal The Adele Gidwitz Chair Karen Basrak The Joseph A. and Cecile Renaud Gorno Chair Richard Hirschl Olivia Jakyoung Huh Daniel Katz Katinka Kleijn
basses Alexander Hanna Principal The David and Mary Winton Green Principal Bass Chair Alexander Horton Assistant Principal Daniel Carson Ian Hallas Robert Kassinger Mark Kraemer Stephen Lester Bradley Opland Andrew Sommer f lu t e s Stefán Ragnar Höskuldsson § Principal The Erika and Dietrich M. Gross Principal Flute Chair Emma Gerstein Jennifer Gunn p i c c o lo Jennifer Gunn The Dora and John Aalbregtse Piccolo Chair ob oe s William Welter Principal Lora Schaefer Assistant Principal The Gilchrist Foundation, Jocelyn Gilchrist Chair Scott Hostetler e n g li s h h o r n Scott Hostetler c l a r i n e ts Stephen Williamson Principal John Bruce Yeh Assistant Principal The Governing Members Chair Gregory Smith e - f l at c l a r i n e t John Bruce Yeh b a s s oo n s Keith Buncke Principal William Buchman Assistant Principal Miles Maner horns Mark Almond Principal James Smelser David Griffin Oto Carrillo Susanna Gaunt Daniel Gingrich ‡
tr u m pe ts Esteban Batallán Principal The Adolph Herseth Principal Trumpet Chair, endowed by an anonymous benefactor John Hagstrom The Bleck Family Chair Tage Larsen tro m b o n e s Timothy Higgins Principal The Lisa and Paul Wiggin Principal Trombone Chair Michael Mulcahy Charles Vernon b ass tro m b o n e Charles Vernon tu b a Gene Pokorny Principal The Arnold Jacobs Principal Tuba Chair, endowed by Christine Querfeld ti mpan i David Herbert Principal The Clinton Family Fund Chair Vadim Karpinos Assistant Principal pe rc u ssi o n Cynthia Yeh Principal Patricia Dash Vadim Karpinos l i b r ar i an s Justin Vibbard Principal Carole Keller Mark Swanson c so f e l low s Jesús Linárez Violin The Michael and Kathleen Elliott Fellow Ariel Seunghyun Lee Violin o rc h e str a pe r so n n e l John Deverman Director Anne MacQuarrie Manager, CSO Auditions and Orchestra Personnel stage te c h n i c i an s Christopher Lewis Stage Manager Blair Carlson Paul Christopher Chris Grannen Ryan Hartge Peter Landry Joshua Mondie
Brant Taylor
The Ann Blickensderfer and Roger Blickensderfer Chair
* Assistant concertmasters are listed by seniority ‡ On sabbatical § On leave The CSO’s music director position is endowed in perpetuity by a generous gift from the Zell Family Foundation. The Louise H. Benton Wagner chair currently is unoccupied. The Chicago Symphony Orchestra string sections utilize revolving seating. Players behind the first desk (first two desks in the violins) change seats systematically every two weeks and are listed alphabetically. Section percussionists also are listed alphabetically.
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INSTRUMENTS OF THE ORCHESTRA THE STRING FAMILY includes violin, viola, cello, bass and harp. These instruments are made of wood and strings and are played by vibrating the strings using a bow, or plucking or striking the strings with the fingers.
Violin
Viola
Cello
clarinet, bassoon and saxophone. These instruments all have the same basic shape: a long tube with a mouthpiece at one end. The flute is played by blowing across a mouthpiece to create a vibration. Oboe, clarinet, bassoon and saxophone are all played by blowing air into a single or double reed attached to the mouthpiece, creating a vibration that results in sound.
Flute
Oboe
Clarinet
Harp
Bass
THE WOODWIND FAMILY includes flute, oboe,
THE BRASS FAMILY includes horn, trumpet,
trombone, euphonium and tuba. Brass instruments make a sound when the players vibrate their lips inside a mouthpiece, which is fitted into the instrument. The players can change pitch on a trumpet, horn or tuba by pressing on valves. Trombone players change pitch by moving the slide back and forth.
Trumpet Trombone
Saxophone
Tuba
Horn
Bassoon
THE PERCUSSION FAMILY includes snare drum, bass drum, gong, triangle, xylophone, timpani and piano, among many others. Percussion instruments are struck, scraped or shaken.
Timpani
Snare Drum
Support for Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association programming for children and families is provided by John Hart and Carol Prins, Kinder Morgan, PNC, Megan and Steve Shebik, Michael and Linda Simon, the Walter and Caroline Sueske Charitable Trust and an anonymous family foundation. The Negaunee Music Institute is endowed in perpetuity through a gift from The Negaunee Foundation.
Xylophone Youth Education Program Sponsor Family Matinees Sponsor CSO for Kids concerts and CPS Partnerships Corporate Sponsor
Cymbal
Piano Content for Kidsbook was created by Katy Clusen with graphic design by Shawn Sheehy. Kidsbook© is a publication of the Negaunee Music Institute. For more information, call 312-294-3410 or email institute@cso.org.