BRAHMS & HANSON'S PSALMS OF DAVID | OCT 27, 2024
Our season kicks off with an exhilarating evening of choral mastery featuring Brahms' timeless Gesang der Parzen alongside Robert Hanson's vibrant Psalms of David. Experience the powerful fusion of classic and contemporary as we explore bravery and fate with our talented singers.
BACH'S ST. JOHN'S PASSION | APR 13, 2025
Experience the profound drama of Bach's St. John Passion as we delve into this powerful and moving masterpiece. Immerse yourself in the emotional depth and spiritual intensity of this iconic work, beautifully brought to life in an unforgettable evening of choral excellence.
AMERICA THE BEAUTIFUL: A CONCERT OF AMERICAN MUSIC | APR 13, 2025
New this year, the Elgin Master Chorale will celebrate the rich and vibrant history of music in the United States. Join us for an inspiring evening featuring the evocative poetry of Robert Frost set to Randal Thompson's Frostiana alongside the powerful compositions of Copland, Bernstein, and many more.
Want to join the Elgin Master Chorale for our 2024-2025 Season? Learn more here.
REGISTRATION IS OPEN FOR EMC'S SUMMER SINGING ACADEMY!
EVERYONE is welcome to join the Elgin Master Chorale Aug. 20-22 for a 3-day singing extravaganza! We'll teach you and your friends the basics of singing in a chorus while having a ton of fun all led by our music director, Andrew Lewis! For more information, check out the "How to Join" page on our website or email, info@elginmasterchorale.org!
Register for EMC's Summer Singing Academy here!
Join EMC for Emerging Truths: Reflections and Realizations
Beethoven's Mass in C Major
Featuring - Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Join the Elgin Master Chorale for a performance of musical and cultural significance. Beethoven’s first mass was not initially appreciated for its ground-breaking approach…simpler and humbler than the grander Viennese model of the time. The composer chose his focus “not on God or princes,” but on a more personal contemplation of the divine from a condition of inner peace.
On this same program, the Chorale presents Credo by African American composer and pianist Margaret Bonds. Inspired by the text of W.E.B. Du Bois, it showcases the composer’s mastery of blending Western classical and spiritual traditions in an organic and original way.
Sunday, November 12, 2023, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
eccartscenter.org
Call 847.622.0300
Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Holiday Spectacular
Featuring - Elgin Master Chorale & Integrity School of Dance
An Elgin Holiday Tradition! ESO’s Holiday Spectacular is a concert
of favorite seasonal music for the whole family.
Friday, December 8, 2023, 8:00 p.m. / Raue Center for the Arts
Saturday, December 9, 2023, 2:30 p.m. / Hemmens Cultural Center
Saturday, December 9, 2023, 7:30 p.m. / Hemmens Cultural Center
Sunday, December 10, 2023, 2:30 p.m. / Hemmens Cultural Center
Call 815.356.9212 (Raue Center for the Arts)
Call 847.888.4000 (Hemmens Cultural Center)
Black Roots: The Black American Experience through Music
Featuring - Tiffany Henderson, Emcee
& The Second Baptist Church of Elgin Choir
EMC’s annual Education Connections concert, Black Roots: The Black American Experience through Music, is a celebration of music that tells the story of the Black American culture, societal transition, and inclusion. This free concert is our gift to 4th - 6th grade students of Greater Elgin.
Friday, February 9, 2024, 10:00 a.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
By invitation only
Rossini's Petite Messe Solennelle
On first hearing the Petite Messe Solennelle, the listener is tempted to adapt a remark attributed to Napoleon III and declare that the piece is neither little, solemn, nor especially liturgical in spirit. Join the Elgin Master Chorale as it performs this heart-warming and celebratory work, full of Rossinian quirks and bursting with humor, charm and sincerity, scored modestly for choir, two pianos and harmonium.
Sunday, April 14, 2024, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
eccartscenter.org
Call 847.622.0300
Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Beethoven's 9th
also presenting
MOZART | Ave verum corpus
JESSIE MONTGOMERY | Hymn for Everyone
Featuring - Elgin Master Chorale
Beethoven’s “Choral Symphony” was remarkable in its day not only for its grandness of scale but especially for its final movement, which includes a full chorus and vocal soloists singing “An die Freude” (“Ode to Joy”). The work was Beethoven’s final complete symphony, and it is widely viewed as his greatest composition. Symphony No. 9 represents an important stylistic bridge between the Classical and Romantic periods of Western music history. The Elgin Master Chorale is proud to join the Elgin Symphony Orchestra in this grand performance.
This program also features Mozart’s Ave verum corpus and Jessie Montgomery’s Hymn for Everyone.
Saturday, May 4, 2024, 7:30 p.m. / Hemmens Cultural Center
Sunday, May 5, 2024, 2:30 p.m. / Hemmens Cultural Center
Call 847.888.4000 (Hemmens Cultural Center)
Summer Singing Academy
Academia de Canto de Verano
August 8 - 10, 2023, 7:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Elgin Community College Arts Center
Únete a nosotros para una escapada musical de 3 dias!
Join EMC for Musical Treasures: Revered and Revealed
Government Issue
Featuring - The Government Issue Orchestra and
the Elgin Master Chorale
Narrated by Clifton Truman Daniel
Saturday, July 8, 2023, 3:00 p.m.
Harper College Performing Arts Center, Palatine, IL
Free to the General Public
Experience this musical salute to our Greatest Generation and their triumphs and struggles throughout the Allied Forces war effort. This ten-part, historical oratorio by Michael James Karasis will by narrated by Clifton Truman Daniel, grandson of the former President.
∞ ∞ ∞
Messiah
Selected Christmas Choruses including "Hallelujah" Chorus
Featuring - Bella Voce Sinfonia
also presenting Matinas do Natal
by José Maurício Nunes Garcia
Sunday, November 6, 2022, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Call 847.622.0300
Witness the beauty and majesty of George Frideric Handel's renowned oratorio, as we celebrate the holiday season through one of the greatest choral works of all time. On this same program, the Chorale will present Matinas do Natal by José Maurício Nunes Garcia (1767 - 1830), a noted Brazilian composer of African descent and one of the earliest classical composers of the New World.
Elgin Symphony Orchestra’s Holiday Spectacular
Featuring - Elgin Master Chorale
Friday, December 9, 2022, 8:00 p.m. / Raue Center
Saturday, December 10, 2022, 7:30 p.m. / Hemmens Center
Sunday, December 11, 2022, 2:30 p.m. / Hemmens Center
Call 815.356.9212 (Raue Center)
Call 847.931.5900 (Hemmens Center)
An Elgin Holiday Tradition! ESO’s Holiday Spectacular is a concert
of favorite seasonal music for the whole family.
Elgin Youth Choir's Winter Fantasia
Featuring - EMC Chamber Singers
Sunday, December 18, 2022, 3:30pm
Immanuel Lutheran Church, East Dundee
The Elgin Youth Choir joins with the EMC Chamber Singers for an intimate concert of favorite seasonal music.
Latin Movement
Featuring - BFH (formerly Ballet Folklorico Huehuecoyotl)
Friday, February 10, 2023, 10:00 a.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
By invitation only
Our tenth annual Education Connections concert, Latin Movement, is a musical celebration of regional Mexican folksongs and dance. This free concert is our gift to 4th - 6th grade students of Greater Elgin.
Gail Borden Sunday Afternoon Concert
Featuring - EMC Chamber Singers
Sunday, March 26, 2023, 2:00 p.m.
Gail Borden Public Library, Main Library, Elgin, IL
Join the EMC Chamber Singers for a preview of selections from our upcoming concert of
The Ordering of Moses. A collection of Mexican Folksongs from our recent Educational Connections Concert, Latin Movement, will also be performed on this program.
The Ordering of Moses
Featuring - Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Special Guest - Elgin Youth Choir
Saturday, April 15, 2023, 7:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Call 847.622.0300
Join us for this sweeping oratorio by R. Nathaniel Dett (1882-1943), a noted composer of African descent. The text, from scripture and folklore, is a retelling of Moses leading his people out of captivity and into the Promised Land. The first performance of this work at the Cincinnati May Festival in 1937 was simulcast to a national radio audience and ended in controversy. This season's Carnegie Hall revival has reintroduced contemporary audiences to this grand work.
Government Issue
Featuring - The Government Issue Orchestra and the Elgin Master Chorale
Narrated by Clifton Truman Daniel
Saturday, July 8, 2023, 3:00 p.m.
Harper College Performing Arts Center,
Palatine, IL
Free to the General Public
Experience this musical salute to our Greatest Generation and their triumphs and struggles throughout the Allied Forces war effort. This ten-part, historical oratorio by Michael James Karasis will by narrated by Clifton Truman Daniel, grandson of the former President.
Join Us for Elgin Master Chorale's 75th Anniversary Season!
The World Imagined – North American Premiere
Sunday, May 15, 2022, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Call 847.622.0300
Featuring
Hoss Brock, Tenor, and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Witness Gabriel Jackson’s expansive new work, co-commissioned by the United Kingdom’s famed Three Choirs Festival and the Elgin Master Chorale. Mr. Jackson has created a major addition to the choral/orchestral repertoire. The World Imagined is a joyful contemplation of creation and humankind’s small place in an infinite cosmos. On this same program, the Chorale will also present Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast a cantata by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.
∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞ ∞
Brahms’ A German Requiem, arr. for Piano Four Hands
Sunday, November 7, 2021, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets: $29 adults / $24 students and seniors
Call 847.622.0300
Brahms’ Ein deutsches Requiem was the work that launched the Elgin Choral Union in 1947 when local musician Dean Chipman recruited 192 singers from multiple choirs to create a grand performance worthy of Brahm’s masterpiece. In 1866 Brahms devised a piano four hands arrangement that is not a reduction of the work but rather a creative new look at the musical material. It is our honor to present this classic work, as re-imagined by the composer himself.
Elgin Symphony Orchestra’s Holiday Spectacular
Friday, December 10, 2021, 8:00 p.m. / Raue Center, Crystal Lake
Saturday, December 11, 2021, 12:00 p.m. / Hemmens Center
Saturday, December 11, 2021, 5:00 p.m. / Hemmens Center
Sunday, December 12, 2021, 3:00 p.m. / Hemmens Center
Call 815.356.9212 (Raue Center)
Call 847.931.5900 (Hemmens Center)
An Elgin Holiday Tradition! ESO’s Holiday Spectacular is a concert of favorite seasonal music for the whole family.
Wish Upon A Star – An EMC Educational Concert
Friday, February 11, 2022, 10:00 a.m. 
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets: Students, Only
Educators and students join EMC and featured guests, the Elgin Youth Choir, for a morning of hands-on learning , connecting with classmates, and musical sights and sounds. Wish Upon a Star is an entertaining collection of award-winning music from American film classics that promises to inspire and educate. This free concert series, now in its 9th year is our gift to elementary students of Elgin and the Fox Valley.
Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast (Preview Performance)
Sunday, April 3, 2022, 2:00 p.m.
Gail Borden Public Library (Main Campus)
Registration is required:
Online at gailborden.info/register or
Call 847-429-4597.
Join us as EMC presents Samuel Coleridge-Taylor's Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast as part of our 75th Anniversary celebration! This special preview performance is in collaboration with Gail Borden Public Library as part of its Sunday Afternoon Concert Series.
The World Imagined – North American Premiere
Sunday, May 15, 2022, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Call 847.622.0300
Featuring
Hoss Brock, Tenor, and the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Witness Gabriel Jackson’s expansive new work, co-commissioned by the United Kingdom’s famed Three Choirs Festival and the Elgin Master Chorale. Mr. Jackson has created a major addition to the choral/orchestral repertoire. The World Imagined is a joyful contemplation of creation and humankind’s small place in an infinite cosmos. On this same program, the Chorale will also present Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast a cantata by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor.
Opera Choruses
Sunday, November 10, 2019, 7:00 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets: $24 adults / $19 students and seniors.
Call 847.622.0300.
Elgin Master Chorale presents an evening of lush arias, passionate choruses, and soaring melodies from beloved operas of Bizet, Rossini, Verdi, Mozart, and Wagner. Whether dancing with Bizet’s Carmen, charging with Rossini’s Swiss Soldiers or on pilgrimage with Wagner’s Tannhäuser, you will connect with great characters and melodies of opera.
Deck the Halls Holiday Concerts
Saturday, December 14, 2019, 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, December 15, 2019, 2:30 p.m.
Presented by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Featuring the Elgin Master Chorale
Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin
Tickets: 847.888.4000
An Elgin Holiday Tradition! The Elgin Symphony Orchestra presents the Deck the Halls Holiday Concert, a community sing-along complete with the Elgin Master Chorale, Dancewerks, and a special visit from the man himself - SANTA CLAUS!
Beethoven’s Birthday Bash
Friday, February 7, 2020, 10:00 a.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
For info on special pricing for school and senior groups.
Call 847.214.7225.
Join us for a morning of music, learning, and fun! “Beethoven’s Birthday Bash” is an entertaining and interactive learning experience celebrating Beethoven’s musical influence over the past 250 years. This concert will present students with the stories, history, and music of this great composer who wrote many of his most beautiful melodies while grappling with almost total deafness. Beethoven’s story is one of inspiration, hardships overcome, and a legacy of beautiful music.
Great Romantics: German A Cappella 
[POSTPONED]
Sunday, April 19, 2020, 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets: $24 adults / $19 students and seniors. Call 847.622.0300.
Enjoy a rare evening of German Romantic a cappella music. Composers Johannes Brahms, Josef Rheinberger, and Anton Bruckner looked to the past for inspiration in creating new musical textures and colors. Rheinberger’s ravishing Cantus Missae for double-chorus is a classic example of this florid writing, delivering extended harmonies while keeping a sweet and organic vocal style. The music of these composers elicits thrilling, profound emotions that places the voices of the Chorale on full display.
Season Finale: The Planets
[CANCELLED]
Saturday, May 2, 2020, 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 3, 2020, 2:30 p.m.
Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin
Tickets: 847.888.4000
Experience the celestial finale to Elgin Symphony Orchestra 70th season featuring the Elgin Master Chorale. Join us for this cosmic performance of the Planets featuring Mars: The Bringer of War, Venus: The Bringer of Peace, Mercury: The Winged Messenger, and more. Opening with Gustav Holst's ethereal "The Hymn of Jesus," this concert will bring you to your knees.
Elgin Master Chorale
2017-18: Music of the Soul
In its 71st season, Elgin Master Chorale (EMC) explores the powerful connection between music and the human soul. EMC opens its season with Bach’s Magnificat and Ein fest burg (in recognition of the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation). In February, EMC celebrates legendary composer Leonard Bernstein by bringing his life and music to the concert stage. A performance of Durufle’s beautiful, ethereal Requiem will close the season. The EMC Children’s Chorus will also be featured on the November and April concerts. Learn more about the Children's Chorus at emcchildrenschorus.org.
Bach's Magnificat
Sunday, November 12 at 3:30 p.m. Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets available here or by calling 847 622 0300
Magical Holiday Concerts
Presented by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Saturday, Dec 9 at 2:30 and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Dec 10 at 2:30 p.m.
Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin
Tickets available here or by calling 847 888 4000
Educational Connections: The Life and Music of Leonard Bernstein
Free to school and senior groups
Friday, Feb 2 at 10 a.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin community College
Tickets available here or by calling 847 622 0300.
Please call 847 214 7954 for information on complimentary tickets for school and senior groups.
Vivaldi's Gloria and Mozart's Requiem
Presented by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra
Saturday, Feb 10 at 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, Feb 11 at 2:30 p.m.
Hemmens Cultural Center, Elgin
Tickets available here or by calling 847 888 4000
Durufle's Requiem
Sunday, April 15 at 3:30 p.m.
Blizzard Theatre, Elgin Community College
Tickets available here or by calling 847 622 0300