The Illinois Philharmonic Orchestra celebrated a first in November, releasing a children’s record that combines music with narration to celebrate legends in the arts.
IPO music director Stilian Kirov’s enthusiasm for the group’s latest project is undeniable, and he couldn’t pick a favorite aspect of the “Children’s Stories.”
“Every single part! We cannot be selective. I enjoyed every minute of it. Every piece of music, every note in there deserves celebration!” he gushed.
“The whole process was quite enjoyable. Working with kids, working with different groups within the community. Working with the orchestra and (producer) Jim (Ginsburg) and collaborating with these extraordinary composers. The whole thing was a joy to put together.”
“Children’s Stories” features Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Michael Abels’ “Frederick’s Fables” and Augusta Read Thomas’ “Gwendolyn Brooks Settings,” adapted from the poetry of the late Chicagoan Gwendolyn Brooks — the first U.S. poet laureate, and four fables featuring mice by beloved children’s illustrator and author Leo Lionni, including “Frederick” and “Alexander and the Wind-Up Mouse.”
The album, produced by James Ginsburg of Cedille Records, features the IPO along with the youth choirs Anima – Glen Ellyn Children’s Chorus and ChiArts Chamber Choir from Chicago High School for the Arts. Michael Sumuel, a bass-baritone who has sung opera and classical music, serves as the narrator.
Released Nov. 15, the album was recorded in two sessions: “Frederick’s Fables” in March 2022 and “Gwendolyn Brooks Settings” in March 2024 after IPO concerts, when the works were performed for the first time. Samuels recorded his narration in April 2024 in San Francisco. The album is similar to the style of the classic “Peter and the Wolf” narrated story.
“The narration was recorded separately, but it’s very much in tune with the music. The way Michael (Abels) wrote it is absolutely brilliant because the drama of the story was emphasized by the music,” Kirov said. “He’s phenomenal. We were lucky that we could do this story with him.
He’s equally grateful to work with Cedille Records, a Chicago nonprofit record label that promotes classical artists in and from the Chicago area, and its founder. “James Ginsburg is a genius,” Kirov said. “Doing this project with them was meaningful.”
“It was a lengthy process, and I think it sounds phenomenal. I’m very proud of the orchestra and the choruses and everybody.”
But there’s a deeper element at play as well. “I want to say I’m very happy about this project because I think it brought this community together and the IPO community. It’s very meaningful to celebrate Gwendolyn Brooks and Augusta Read Thomas, one of the top composers in the world, as well as Michael Abels,” he shared.
“And having the children’s chorus, and having the children’s story; I think it’s really an organic project. The whole team and meaning behind the project is quite extraordinary. I’m very grateful we can do it with Cedille Records and share the joy of it with our audiences.”
Another person thrilled with the album is IPO Executive Director Christina Salerno, who called it a “huge project.”
“To be able to have the orchestra and our music director and these pieces, to be able to have them for posterity, is something that feels right. You can make your mark on the musical world. Cedille Records has a long history of trying to promote Chicagoland-based groups and music. So to be able to be on their label was a huge honor,” she said. “It’s putting our stamp on classical music, and we love collaboration.”
The project has been in the works for several years after being delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Salerno said the IPO got a call in 2018 from Charles Sundquist, artistic director of Anima, who was impressed by the orchestra after seeing a performance and wanted to combine Brooks’ poetry with the orchestra and the children’s chorus.
“We had a meeting and said we’d be interested in that. Gwendolyn is such an amazing poet, and we were interested in a collaboration,” she shared.
It was Ginsburg who suggested combining the poet’s work with Ables’ stories, Salerno said, after finally finding a fitting companion piece. The work was supposed to premiere in spring 2021, but everything was canceled because of the pandemic.
“We came back in 2023 and still had a delay because some of the children’s choruses were still down and couldn’t perform the works,” she said.
That’s when ChiArts became involved because Anima’s numbers had been greatly affected by the pandemic and were still low. “We (also) wanted to be authentic to Gwendolyn Brooks’ poetry, the story book from Bronzeville, and ChiArts originated in Bronzeville in Chicago, and we felt it was important to collaborate with those groups that helped the artists get to that point as well,” she explained.
Salerno loves the album. “The first piece, ‘Frederick’s Fables,’ if anyone knows ‘Peter and the Wolf,’ it is very reminiscent of that style in narration and music. It tells great stories. I think it would be fun to have the storybook and hear the music. The instrumentation is beautiful.
“Gwendolyn Brooks’ settings piece is very different. It’s a contemporary. Augusta Read Thomas likes to say it’s a lot of colors. It’s more evocative.” she added. “It’s a great take on one composer’s interpretation of (Brooks’) poetry. The more you listen to it, you hear different things. I know the students found it incredibly challenging.”
The album is available on CD on the Cedille Records’ site, www.cedillerecords.org/albums/childrens-stories, for $18 and via streaming on platforms such as Apple, Amazon and Spotify.
“I know people are buying it,” Salerno said. “Early sales have been really great, and we’re really excited about that. We’re just excited to put it out into the world. … I just had lunch today with someone who bought it.”
She has high hopes for the album. “I think the biggest success will be that more people get to know about IPO within the industry. I hope we have more composers coming to us to premiere their work. We’re hoping there’s a little buzz about musicians wanting to perform with our group, and we’re hoping there will be community pride with the Chicago southwest communities, so we hope we can elevate that area and Gwendolyn Brooks and the composers.”
IPO is made up of paid musicians who are part of the Chicago Federation of Musicians, and like many organizations, it relies on donors. The album was no exception.
“We always have to have donors helping us, and it was great to have a number of individual donors who believed in this project and championed it from the beginning and gave us some money to help rehearse it before performing. One of them was the Illinois Arts Council,” Salerno said. “We were happy to have this early support with this project because it wouldn’t have been possible without them.”
Melinda Moore is a freelance reporter.
