West Meets East at the Chicago Sinfonietta

One of classical music's biggest hurdles in this day and age is the perception that it's stuffy, inaccessible, and only for an elite group that can afford and/or understand and appreciate it. Enter Chicago Sinfonietta, who not only clears that hurdle, but pole-vaults over it.

First - the experience. This isn't your see-and-be-seen Chicago arts scene. Rather, it feels like a gathering of friends, or a small town church, where everyone knows everyone. Musicians wave to friends in the audience and smile (!) during performances, applause is peppered with "WHOOTS!" and "Bravos!", and yes, there are even encores. The crowd is easily the most diverse crowd I've ever seen in one room - ever. The youngest attendee I saw was barely four, while the oldest was a very easy 80, and the rest of the audience was everything in between.

But more importantly - the music. Tonight's performance was a true show of skill as the group seamlessly transitioned from some of the most famous composers in the Western World (Rachmaninoff and Ravel) to the tonally-different, yet equally as beautiful music from the East. Though I can't quite place it, there was an air of exuberance during every piece that I have yet to experience at a classical concert - it was more like the kind of feeling you get from watching your favorite band.

And the guests. Guest conductor Mei-Ann Chen's warm and sprightly presence made her conducting a performance unto itself. The highlight, though, was easily the electrifying performance of Chicago native and Sinfonietta "mascot," 20 year old virtuoso (and Julliard student) Jeremy Jordan, whose performance of Rachmananoff's Piano Concerto No. 1 was humble, brilliant, and, to the audience, appeared effortless.

This having been my first performance, I feel like I just stumbled into a treasure trove containing Chicago's best-kept secret - and I can't wait to go back.