News & Stories
Could You Do an Orchestra Librarian's Job?
Every spring, the Grant Park Music Festival "staffs up" for the summer concert series. Ushers, audio engineers, musicians—they all pass through the employment process. This year, the Festival hired a new orchestra librarian, a person who arguably has the greatest capacity to grease the skids on stage.
Festival Young Artist Program Brings New Talent
Maybe you've seen them on the Pritzker stage, in a neighborhood park, or at the Rush Hour Concerts; the Project Inclusion fellows are integral to the Festival's summertime offerings—and they're picking up valuable professional experience in the process.
The Grant Park Chorus—60 Years Young and Soaring to New Heights
In 1962, Thomas Peck, a young singer and choral conductor founded a vocal ensemble to perform at Chicago's summertime concert series along the lakefront. Sixty years on, the Grant Park Chorus is among the best in the world.
Meet Festival Champion Eileen Friestad
"We need people like you," said Maggie Daley. At the time, Eileen Friestad was happily working in the private sector; her life was about to change.
Women's History and Festival 2022
If you're one of those people who finds history dull and lifeless, think again. Feed your brain with stories about people who dared to live boldly—all part of this year's Grant Park Music Festival.
Then and Now: A Lifetime of Concerts
Julian Oettinger can't exactly remember his first concert in Grant Park—but it was two venues ago. In our 20th-anniversary year, a charter board member of the Grant Park Orchestra Association, founded in 2002 to support the beloved summer series, says the future is bright.
Spotlight - Black History Month
Get to know some of the history makers behind Festival 2022, from Tony-, Grammy- and Pulitzer Prize-winners to an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, awarded by Queen Elizabeth II.
Festival Welcomes New Board Members
The Grant Park Music Festival is pleased to welcome three people to the Board of Directors: Derrick Manuel, Hedy Ratner and Ramon Stewart. Together they bring a range of experiences and skills to the organization that will support efforts to better serve the Chicago community.
Festival 2022: Recovering Lost Gems
Two years ago, the Grant Park Music Festival hired three composers for projects inspired by Chicago's musical legacy. And then the world went into lockdown. Due to Covid, those 2020 concerts didn't happen, but the compositions did. Now a full ten-week series is on the horizon, and the Festival is circling back to recover some of those things from a lost year.
For Love of the Festival
They didn't come from musical families. Neither of them played instruments. But something happened when they walked into Millennium Park.