Lake Forest Civic Orchestra
Your community orchestra
The Lake Forest Civic Orchestra inspires communities by sharing high quality musical experiences that provide lifelong learning and that reinvigorate the human spirit.
Celebrating Our 36th Season!
The Lake Forest Civic Orchestra celebrates its 36th season of high quality, community led performing arts on Chicago’s North Shore. Our theme for the season is “Epics, Odes, and Sagas” and programming on each concert will demonstrate how stories are told musically. The biggest story we’ll share is Beethoven’s 9th symphony. This concert, with chorusmaster John Hughes and voices of Chicago Master Singers, Lux Cantorum Chicago, and community members, will be presented on January 19, 2025 at the James Lumber Center for the Performing Arts in Grayslake, Illinois - a venue large enough to perform this epic tale. Want to learn even more about our big performance? Read our latest blog post - an interview with chorusmaster John C. Hughes.
Giving Tuesday
Tuesday, December 3rd is Giving Tuesday, a day designated specifically to give back to causes we care about. We invite you to support the Lake Forest Civic Orchestra on Giving Tuesday and throughout the month of December as we strive to reach our fundraising goal for the 2024-2025 season. Nearly 60% of our operating budget comes from grants, sponsorships, and donations. Without the support of so many we would not be able to offer the breadth of music engagement and performance opportunities in and for our community that we do today. The cost to produce the Beethoven 9 concert in January is nearly triple that of a regular concert due to the additional musicians, space rental, extra rehearsals, and incidentals required to perform this piece. We know it will be worth the hard work and expense! We’ve already raised $22,000 from generous donors and corporate sponsors, but we need your help to raise the remaining $8,000 needed to achieve our goal of 100% funding for this concert.
Thank you for your support all year long and for considering our appeal in this season of giving. You can donate through the secure giving option on the website or by mailing a check to our postal address at 276 E. Deerpath Rd, #410, Lake Forest, IL 60045.
Upcoming Concerts
Featured Sponsor
The Grainger Foundation has regularly supported the Lake Forest Civic Orchestra for special projects that add meaning and connection in our community. This season, The Grainger Foundation has provided major funding to help with production costs of the Beethoven 9 concert on January 19, 2025. The orchestra is honored to be a recipient of The Grainger Foundation grant funds and grateful for our partnership.
Business Sponsors
In the News
9 on 9: An Interview with Beethoven 9 Chorusmaster John C. Hughes
Explore the joys of preparing and performing Beethoven’s 9th Symphony with John C. Hughes, music director of Chicago Master Singers and chorusmaster for our January 19th performance of this work.
December 22, 2024 - Holly Jolly
1:30pm and 4pm
Gorton Community Center
400 E. Illinois Road
Lake Forest, IL 60045