One Score

One Score,
One Chicago

Inspired by the Chicago Public Library’s One Book, One Chicago, Ravinia’s One Score initiative promotes the enjoyment of classical music and creates a cultural touchstone to enable people of diverse backgrounds to engage in community-wide discussion of selected masterworks.

Public School Students Receive a Trio of Experiences with Pictures at an Exhibition

Thousands of public school students in Chicago, Highland Park, North Chicago and Waukegan are being introduced to classical music through Ravinia’s One Score, One Chicago program this year. Pictures at an Exhibition, the 10-part work originally written for piano by Modest Mussorgsky in 1875 and then arranged for orchestra by Maurice Ravel, is this year’s selection, and students are learning about the piece in three stages. Click here to learn more.

One Score, One Chicago 2010

Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition

Mussorgsky’s only large work for piano, Pictures at an Exhibition was inspired by an 1874 art exhibit of works by Victor Alexandrovitch, a close friend of Mussorgsky’s who had recently died.

The piano work has also become famous in a version orchestrated by Maurice Ravel which you can discover on an mp3 recording available free of charge.

Click here to view

This project is supported, in part, by an award from the

Four Score, For Chicago 2009

Works Inspired by Abraham Lincoln

Discover four works inspired by our 16th president and download complete mp3 recordings of each.

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This project is supported, in part, by an award from the

One Score, One Chicago 2008

Gustav Mahler (1860-1911) The “Symphony of a Thousand”

Discover the details and fascinating stories surrounding Mahler's masterpiece, and download a complete mp3 recording of the symphony at no charge.

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This project is supported, in part, by an award from the

One Score, One Chicago 2007

Alexander Zemlinsky (1871-1942) “The Mermaid”

It may be animated, but G-rated it's not. Swooning, ecstatic and erotic, Zemlinsky's lushly romantic tone poem is the keystone this year of both our One Score, One Chicago initiative and James Conlon's acclaimed Breaking the Silence series. The music bears evidence of Zemlinsky's fevered and obsessive love for Alma Schindler (who left him for composer Gustav Mahler) and is the work that first inspired Ravinia Music Director James Conlon to explore the neglected repertoire of Zemlinsky—a project that ultimately earned him the 1999 Zemlinsky prize for restoring that music to international attention. The Anti-Defamation League salutes James Conlon.

Waterworks A Special Web Presentation

Water has ignited the inspiration of composers for centuries, and as a special companion piece to this year's One Score, One Chicago, we have created a special website containing a wealth of information about "water music." In addition to an exploration of this year's selected composition The Mermaid, this site contains essays, resources, a special children's activity section, animated movies and artwork, and streaming audio of many of the greatest musical compositions inspired by water. In addition, we have included recorded messages from Music Director James Conlon discussing some of the "water music" being performed this season at Ravinia.

Click here to begin presentation.

This project is supported, in part, by an award from the

Ravinia Festival acknowledges Motorola's generous support as the 2007 Next Generation Sponsor. Motorola Foundation's grant supports educational programs such as this web presentation designed to provide greater accessibility to classical music for younger audiences.

One Score, One Chicago 2006

Robert Schumann (1810-1856) Scenes From Childhood

We have created a special website containing a wealth of information on Robert Schumann's "Scenes From Childhood." Included are essays, a bibliography, helpful website links, a special children's activity section and more! Also includes animated movies and artwork, and sound samples of the music from "Scenes From Childhood" as well as recorded messages from Music Director James Conlon.

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One Score, One Chicago 2005

Richard Strauss (1864-1949) Don Quixote

We are proud to present this special interactive presentation from Ravinia's 2005 One Score, One Chicago.

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