Griffin Swings with Southland Jazz Band as IPO Summer Series Opens

Chicagoland’s mercurial summer weather conditions cannot deter dedicated musicians committed to a summer program of music under the stars – or in bad weather -- under the chandeliers.

On June 15, the dynamic Roosevelt Griffin leads the in the first of the ’s four intimate and diverse programs in the Summer Music Series at Ravisloe Country Club in Homewood. The other concerts are on July 13, July 27 and Aug. 10.

“These concerts, more intimate in scale than (the IPO’s) symphonic series, are the perfect way to sit back, relax and experience the collaboration and artistry of talented IPO musicians through chamber ensembles,” IPO spokesman Mario Carlasare says.

Concerts will last approximately one hour, and each will have a brief intermission with an open bar that also will be available before each program.

A brief glance at the potpourri of concerts follows.

All that Jazz

Griffin, an audience favorite at the annual , dazzles with energy, excitement and a palpable sense of rhythm.

Under his talent, the 18-piece professional big band will jazz up the mid-June night with “hard-driving swing, Latin grooves, tender ballads and provocative soloing,” Carlasare says.

Music by jazz legends Duke Ellington, Count Basie, Charlie Mingus, Thad Jones, Dizzy Gillespie and Chick Corea will take the program across the broad spectrum of this distinctly American music genre.

Acclaimed Chicago jazz vocalist Saalik Zayid will add his talent on several numbers, including one of his original compositions, during a lively night of jazz classics.

Brass with Class

When the IPO titles a concert Brass through the Ages, that is exactly what the audience will hear.

On July 13, the IPO Brass Quintet will present a full platter of music from the Renaissance to Motown. The night opens with Canzon per Sonare No. 4 from 16th century composer Giovanni Gabrieli and continues with compositions up to and including the 1966 Temptations Motown blockbuster, My Girl by Lee Perry.

“A medley of (four) greatest hits of the Baroque period, 1695 to 1750, follows the Gabrieli work,” IPO Executive Director said.

That musical mix includes works by Johann Sebastian Bach, William Brade, Johann Christoph Pezel and Jean-Joseph Mouret’s whose powerful Rondeau, the Masterpiece Theater theme, closes the medley.

Brass and wind works by Claude Debussy, Leonard Bernstein, Duke Ellington, Fats Waller and others complete the diverse program.

Strings in the Wind

IPO Strings and Winds come together on July 27 for the third summer concert, this one focused on works by two major European composers. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Flute Quartet No. 1 in D Major (circa. 1777-1778) and Franz Schubert’s early 19^th century Octet for Winds. Additional concert details will follow in the weekly Patch.com SouthScene column as the concert date nears.

String Theory

The summer’s final chamber event, Aug. 10, features the celebrated IPO String Quintet. The program, however, remains in flux. Nussbaum said she and Concertmaster Hal Grossman continue to assess what string works will most delight the audience and highlight talents of IPO string artists for the series conclusion.

The weekly SouthScene column in Friday’s local editions of Patch.com will feature additional details as each concert approaches.

When: All concerts begin at 7:30 p.m. Dates are June 15, July 13, July 27 and Aug. 10.
Where: Ravisloe Country Club, 18231 Park Ave. (Ravisloe Drive comes in at Park Avenue), Homewood. Concerts will be outside or indoors, depending on weather and program.
Cost: $30 for jazz concert, $25 each for additional concerts, and $100 covers a package of all four chamber events.
Tickets and information: 708-481-7774 and www.ipomusic.org.