The lineup features George Gershwin\u2019s \u201cAn American in Paris,\u201d Aaron Copland\u2019s \u201cSymphony No. 3\u201d and Leonard Bernstein\u2019s \u201cSymphonic Dances\u201d from \u201cWest Side Story,\u201d as well as works from contemporary American composers, including Chicago\u2019s own Jessie Montgomery<\/a>. The season will also feature two world premieres, several Illinois and Chicago premieres and headlining concerts from singer-songwriter Ben Folds and opera star Karen Slack.<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cFollowing my inaugural season with the Grant Park Music Festival in 2025, I look forward to <\/p>\n This season, Guerrero will oversee a program focused heavily on American composers as the country celebrates its 250th birthday.<\/p>\n Courtesy of Norman Timonera<\/p>\n The American-made music will also appear \u201cwithin a broader world context,\u201d including works by the likes of Dvo\u0159\u00e1k, Tchaikovsky, and Mozart \u2014 composers who, according to the festival\u2019s season announcement, \u201cinspired generations of Americans and helped define the country\u2019s place in the global artistic landscape.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cTogether, these programs form a compelling musical portrait of a nation continually reinventing itself \u2014 rooted in history, rich in diversity, and still reaching toward its highest ideals,\u201d according to the festival.<\/p>\n The patriotic summer lineup will also include the festival\u2019s annual Independence Day Salute, which will be conducted by Christopher Bell, who is celebrating his 25th season as the Grant Park Chorus director.<\/p>\n The season\u2019s world premieres include a piece commissioned by the festival from Clarice Assad<\/a>, who will compose a quartet for the festival\u2019s 2026 string fellows. Additionally, composer Jasmine Barnes<\/a>, whose opera \u201cShe Who Dared\u201d premiered last year in Chicago, will create a work for the 2026 vocal fellows.<\/p>\n Additionally, the festival will present the Illinois premiere of \u201cLiberty Bell\u201d by composer Julie Wolfe on Aug. 14-15.<\/p>\n Singer-songwriter Ben Folds, the one-time frontman of the rock trio Ben Folds Five, will make his debut at the festival on July 29.<\/p>\n All concerts are free to attend and take place at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday and Fridays and at 7:30 p.m. on Saturdays. The majority of the concerts happen at the Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park, plus a performance at the South Shore Cultural Center on July 2 and a stop by the nearby Harris Theater June 26-27 and July 31-Aug. 1.<\/p>\n Music lovers can buy memberships to the festival beginning Tuesday, which includes reserved access to all performances, plus discounts on parking. Memberships begin at $104.<\/p>\n
returning in 2026 to share with audiences the breadth and richness of the American musical
landscape,\u201d Guerrero said in a statement.<\/p>\n![\"5.](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1767718392_947_.jpeg\")
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