May 5, 2009 1:41 pm US/Central
Grant Park Makes Changes To July 4 Festivities
Orchestra Moves To July 4, Army Band Takes Its Place On Fireworks Night
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
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Fireworks in Grant Park on July 3, 2008.
CBS
A shift is occurring in this year's Independence Day celebrations in Grant Park.
Since 1978, the Grant Park Orchestra has performed the July 3 evening concert followed by fireworks. But this summer, the orchestra's traditional concert has been moved to July 4 and will take place at 1:30 p.m. in Millennium Park's Pritzker Pavilion.
The idea is to give families an opportunity to enjoy a daytime concert on July 4, according to a spokeswoman for Millennium Park.
Filling the orchestra's former spot on July 3 will be a concert by the 85th Army Band based in Arlington Heights. Part of the Taste of Chicago lineup, the performance takes place at 7:30 p.m. at the Petrillo Music Shell.
As in past years, the traditional fireworks extravaganza begins at 9 p.m., with a soundtrack provided by WTMX-FM (101.9), a practice begun last year.
"This year we decided to feature a military band on a day that's all about the fight for freedom," Mayor's Office of Special Events spokeswoman Cindy Gatziolis said. "And more patriotic songs also have been added to the fireworks soundtrack."
The Grant Park Orchestra's 90-minute concert, under the baton of Christopher Bell, features traditional and patriotic favorites, including Francis Scott Key's "The Star-Spangled Banner," Samuel A. Ward's "America the Beautiful," Tchaikovsky's "1812" Overture and John Philip Sousa's "Stars and Stripes Forever."
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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