A day of music

Yesterday was the 9th annual Marshall Field's Day of Music at Symphony Center.

The first Day of Music was part of the celebration for the opening of Chicago's Symphony Center in 1997. The Chicago Symphony was so proud of the expanded facilities, consisting of a renovated Orchestra Hall plus new office and performance space, that they decided to open it up to the public, free of charge, for 24 hours. That first year, people lined up literally around the block to get in -- it was a huge success.

Marshall Field's has been the sponsor for this event for all nine years of its existence, and they've aggressively associated their name with it. One sign I saw yesterday read:

Marshall Field's Day of Music
is sponsored by:

Marshall Field's

In case this still left a smidgen of doubt, volunteers offered Frangos to people leaving through the Adams St. exit. This will no doubt be the last Marshall Field's Day of Music, since the brand is being swallowed up by Macy's. I hope Federated Department Stores continues to support the event in coming years, although I'll have to retrain my tongue to say Macy's Day of Music.

As for the music, it was wonderful as usual. I missed the two o'clock performance of the CSO on account of construction delays on the 'L'. When I ran into some people I know as it was letting out, they raved about Lang Lang, the piano soloist. I was able to see him later in the day when he and Daniel Barenboim gave a double piano recital. It was amazing -- beyond words to describe. (Trivia: One of Lang Lang's big career breakthroughs came when he was called to perform as a substitute at the Ravinia Festival in Highland Park, IL -- one of my favorite places.)

I was also able to peek in on the Ella Jenkins performance through the ballroom windows. Now 81 years old, she's been a regular performer at this event. One year I met her and told her I grew up listening to her music, and she gave me a hug.