We have two new downtown Chicago venues this season, on the same block. St. James Cathedral and the Murphy Auditorium of the Driehaus Museum are in the Cathedral District of the Magnificent Mile neighborhood. In addition to architectural beauty and acoustical excellence, they both boast several paid parking garages nearby and a wide range of restaurants within easy walking distance.
St. James Episcopal Cathedral is a serene oasis with its front doors on North Wabash, just around the corner from its official address of 65 East Huron. St. James is well known in Chicago’s classical music world for hosting the long-running summer Rush Hour Concert Series heard on WFMT. With ringing acoustics and seating for 400, the sanctuary’s vaulted ceiling provides an inspiring concert venue for our period-instrument music. This historic church, in which Abraham Lincoln once worshiped, was mostly destroyed in the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. However, the famed bell tower, whose bells rang out warnings on that night, did survive and you can still observe the soot-covered stones near its top. The current striking stone structure was quickly rebuilt by 1875 and has undergone interior restoration of its Arts and Crafts Gothic Revival design. St. James will be the site of our Brandenburg Concertos program in October, as well as our storytelling version of Handel’s Messiah in December, and Bach’s magnificent B Minor Mass in April.
Taking up the southern half of that same block of Wabash is the Driehaus Museum, the well-known sumptuous restored Gilded Age mansion, museum, and art gallery. Built at great cost in 1879, shortly after the Great Fire, this grand house billed itself as fireproof, inside and out. But less well known is the tall, columned temple is that sits right next to the Driehaus Museum on East Erie Street. This imposing building, the Murphy Auditorium, was for years home to the American College of Surgeons. Recently acquired by the Driehaus Museum, it has been renovated into the stunning venue that it is today. Features include a pair of unusual cast bronze front doors produced by Tiffany Studios. There is rich wood paneling throughout, as well as large stained glass windows. The acoustics are perfect for our ensemble and there are excellent sight lines, especially from the balcony. Our program of double concerti and feisty love songs will be presented on Valentine’s Day, Friday, February 14 at 7:30. Here’s a “sweet” idea for a romantic date night: Tour the museum in the afternoon, take a dinner break nearby, and then join us for pink prosecco or sparkling water during the concert (yes, during!) and heart-shaped sugar cookies to take home after. Or enjoy them in the lobby and stay to meet the musicians and your fellow AF fans.
Apollo’s Fire is committed to exploring exciting venues as it settles into its second home in the Chicago area. We have recently performed in the Art Institute of Chicago and the Museum of Contemporary Art, as well as the Music Institute of Chicago in Evanston and the stunning Alice Millar Chapel at Northwestern. Rounded out by this year’s offerings at Ravinia and in Winnetka to the north, and with plans to start our local family concert series to the south and west, we are creating ways to bring period-instrument Baroque and multicultural music to a wide audience and a beautiful venue near you.