The Well-Tempered Ear

Classical music: The Willy Street Chamber Players announce their expanded summer season. And it’s another appetizing winner

By Jacob Stockinger

The Willy Street Chamber Players have done it again.

The relatively new local group (below), which The Ear named as Musicians of the Year for 2016, has come up with another fantastic lineup of concerts for its third summer season, which also includes other appearances.

True, they have a new color logo (below top) to go with the older, really cool map-like geographical one in black-and-white (below bottom):

But so much of the Willys’ successful formula remains the same.

As usual, the group will feature guest artists, including violinist Suzanne Beia (below top) of the Madison Symphony Orchestra, the Wisconsin Chamber Orchestra and the Pro Arte Quartet; tenor J. Adam Shelton (below middle); and clarinetist Michel Maccaferri (below bottom).

As usual, the concerts mix old established repertoire with newer works. One program mixes Jennifer Higdon and Johannes Brahms. Another program mixes Osvaldo Golijov and Dmitri Shostakovich and Ralph Vaughan Williams. A third mixes rocker Elvis Costello and Franz Schubert and Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

As usual, the chamber ensemble puts an emphasis on community outreach. Tickets prices remain affordable with a season pass of three concerts for $40; individual tickets which go on sale June 1, are $15 for adults  $10 for seniors and students. All tickets are available at the door and through Brown Paper Tickets at http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2935203 

And yes, you can wear shorts or blue jeans, sandals or flip-flops. The summery atmosphere promises again to be informal and social, with snacks and treats provided by east side businesses for after the shorter programs (60 to 90 minutes) that begin at an early time (6 p.m.) and allow you to do other things that same evening.

And as usual, these first-rate sonic locavores remain true to their eastside roots.

So they will perform not only at their home basic of Immanuel Lutheran Church  (below) at 1021 Spaight Street, but also two FREE concerts at the Marquette Waterfront Festival on Saturday and Sunday, June 10 and 11, plus a FREE family-friendly, one-hour noontime concert on Saturday, July 15, at the Goodman Community Center.

But the Willys are also catching on in the wider area and at 7:30 p.m. on Monday, June 12, The Willys will open the summer season for the Rural Musicians Forum with an appearance at the Hillside Theater (below) of Taliesin, the Frank Lloyd Wright compound in Spring Green.

Here is a link to the Willys’ increasingly busy calendar. Click on the event to see the full programs:

http://www.willystreetchamberplayers.org/calendar.html

For other information, including reviews and how to support them by donating money, food or time to volunteer, here is a link to the website of the ovation-garnering Willys:

http://www.willystreetchamberplayers.org