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The Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra Presents “Great Love Stories” March 3

Concertgoers are invited to hear beautiful music from “Great Love Stories” when the Elmhurst Symphony Orchestra, under the baton of Music Director Stephen Alltop, presents the fourth concert of the 2012-13 season at 3:00 pm on Sunday, March 3, 2013, at Elmhurst Christian Reformed Church, 149 Brush Hill Rd. in Elmhurst.  WFMT program host Carl Grapentine, one of Chicago’s most recognized personalities in classical music, will lend his stylish narrations in a program all about great love stories.  With the talented young dancers from the Elmhurst  Dance Theater resident company of the DuPage Dance Academy in colorful costumes, the stories of Orpheus and Euridice (“Overture to Orpheus in the Underworld” by Offenbach), Pelléas and Mélisande (Fauré), and Daphnis and Chloé (Ravel) will come vividly to life.  Also on the program is the winning piece from the dance contest, “Sleeping Beauty Waltz” by Tchaikovsky, chosen by votes from last season’s concert attendees.

Carl Grapentine first joined WFMT in 1986 and has been the host of the Morning Program since 1996. He has given pre-concert lectures for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Music of the Baroque, and many other groups. An alumnus of the University of Michigan School of Music, Carl has been the "stadium voice" of the Michigan Marching Band for 38 seasons—his voice being heard on national telecasts of 16 Rose Bowls and numerous other bowl games.

Generous sponsors for this concert are Tim and Carol Rounds (“Orpheus in the Underworld,”) James and Cynthia Krainc (the performance by Elmhurst Dance Theater), and Jane and Richard Kiep (the appearance of Carl Grapentine.)    

During the afternoon a silent auction will be held to benefit the ESO.  Items such as theater tickets, dinners, hotel stays, and museum passes will be available for concertgoers to bid on.

Audience members are invited to learn more about the music at a free concert preview with Ted Hatmaker at 1:45 p.m. in the upper level Gathering Room of the church.  Concert doors and the box office open at 2:15.  The church is handicapped-accessible and offers free parking.

 Tickets are $29 for adults and $7 for students, and the newly reinstituted senior ticket is $27.  A single concert family ticket for $65 will admit two adults and up to three students.  Groups of 10 or more are $25 per ticket.

 This concert is made possible in part by grants from the City of Elmhurst Tourism Fund, the Illinois Arts Council (a state agency), and the Gaylord and Dorothy Donnelley Foundation.