James Conlon, Harry Connick Jr., PORGY AND BESS, 50 Premieres, Sheryl Crow, Emerson Quartet and More Set for Ravinia's 2015 Season

Ravinia's 2015 season, jam-packed with more than 120 events from tonight, June 16 through Sept. 10, features 60 artist debuts and 55 classical works never before performed at Ravinia. More than 35 programs will feature works by new and 20th-century composers.

The not-for-profit is North America's oldest and most programmatically diverse music festival-comparable to an outdoor Carnegie Hall-with about 65 percent of this year's events featuring classical music, including the annual summer residency of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.

About one third of that residency will be conducted by James Conlon, who dedicates his final season as its music director to recalling favorite repertoire from his three-decade association with the festival.

"James hasn't had a summer free in decades and deserves the time he wants to take for himself," Kauffman said. "His presence will be felt at Ravinia for a long time, both in terms of his witty, fun-loving personality that was rooted in his devoted passion for classical music, and in the legacy of his powerful programs that included astounding opera performances, major presentations of Mahler, Mozart and the Russian masters, and, of course, his signature work of restoring to its rightful place in the canon the music of composers trampled by the Nazis."

"James is a true believer, a lover of music, and a musician with boundless capacity for empathy and artistry. He will be missed almost as much as he is admired by the Ravinia Family," said Ravinia Chairman John Anderson. "We will always be grateful to him."

Kauffman reported that for the first time in over two decades-when an independent research firm was first hired to assess the sustainability of the classical audience-Ravinia exceeded its goal for bringing new audiences to CSO concerts. Ravinia sold an average of 2,100 (of 3,400) Pavilion seats for CSO concerts in 2014, and 150,000 of its 590,000 visitors came for classical music.

"One of the most important things Ravinia can do is to make sure that as many people as possible get to experience the world's greatest orchestra in this era when audiences for classical music are waning around the world," Kauffman said. "Encouraged by our uptick, Ravinia will stick to our efforts to entice new audiences with reasonable prices; free admission for children and students; pre-concert videos; guest chefs in our restaurants; dedicating one side of our annual brochure to calling out classical concerts in more detail; program notes available online in advance of concerts; parties hosted by our Associates Board; little surprises in the park that are planned for each CSO concert, such as the wedding cakes we shared with last year's The Marriage of Figaro audiences; and, most importantly, programming an attractive array of symphonic music for new ears and connoisseurs alike, including the appealing movie nights."

Most Pavilion tickets to all CSO concerts are only $25. Lawn tickets for most classical concerts, including CSO, are only $10. Children and students through college are admitted free to all classical performances (excluding movie nights). Tickets to all events go on sale to Ravinia donors on March 10 and to the general public on April 28, exclusively at Ravinia.org.

2015 HIGHLIGHTS:

• Ravinia honors James Conlon in his final season as music director of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra residency, recalling favorite repertoire from his three-decade association with the festival, including Mozart, Mahler, opera and "Breaking the Silence"

• Ravinia builds on 2014 strategy to successfully grow audience for CSO

• Lifelong Chicagoan Ramsey Lewis celebrates his 80th birthday by making his CSO debut as both composer and soloist during superstar jazz weekend that includes concerts by Harry Connick Jr. and Diana Krall

• Bobby McFerrin conducts the best from Porgy and Bess, the 2015 One Score, One Chicago selection, with Nicole Cabell, Brian Stokes Mitchell and a choir specially assembled by Josephine Lee

• CSO goes to the movies with giant screens on the Pavilion stage and lawn for Star Trek, Gladiator, scenes and music from Fantasia and Fantasia 2000, and Danny Elfman's music from the films of Tim Burton

• Two of Ravinia's most explosive nights are rolled into one as a performance by violinist Maxim Vengerov merges the annual "Tchaikovsky Spectacular" with the Women's Board Gala

• YouTube sensations The Piano Guys and Igudesman & Joo perform live

• More than 50 works receive Ravinia, Chicago, American or world premieres, including Ben Moore commission for Ravinia's Steans Music Institute

• Ravinia's tradition of unique pairings continues with performances by Tony Bennett/Lady Gaga, The Knights/Dawn Upshaw, Brian Wilson/Rodríguez, Itzhak Perlman/Emanuel Ax, Bush/3 Doors Down, Augustin Hadelich/Joyce Yang, and many more

• Ravinia welcomes favorites Santana, Chicago, Sheryl Crow, Steely Dan, Jackson Browne, Aretha Franklin, Rob Thomas, Doobie Brothers, Gipsy Kings and the Steve Miller Band

• Ravinia's expansive 45-concert chamber and recital series features performances by soprano Karita Mattila, cellist Alisa Weilerstein, violinist Jennifer Koh, pianists Jeffrey Kahane and Joseph Moog, and the Emerson String Quartet

• Pianists "complete" Martin Theatre lineup with Yundi performing Chopin's complete ballades and Op. 28 preludes, Yefim Bronfman playing Prokofiev's complete piano sonatas over three concerts, and Igor Levit essaying Bach's complete keyboard partitas

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