Aug. 20--Grant Park Music Festival: Principal conductor Carlos Kalmar leads the Grant Park Orchestra and Chorus, and vocal soloists, in a suitably grand conclusion to the 81st festival season: British composer Edward Elgar's "The Kingdom" (1906). The oratorio, which is almost never performed in the U.S., continues the narrative of the lives of Jesus' disciples and the community of the early Christian church as depicted in Elgar's previous oratorio, "The Apostles." The solo singers are Erin Wall, Jill Grove, Garrett Sorenson and Brian Mulligan. 6:30 p.m. Friday and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, Jay Pritzker Pavilion, Millennium Park, Michigan Avenue and Randolph Street; free, $25 for reserved seating; 312-742-7638, gpmf.org
Joel Fan: The American pianist treats patrons of Ravinia's $10 BGH Classics series to a recital anchored by Liszt's big Sonata in B minor. Ginastera's First Sonata and Wang Jianzhong's "Five Yunnan Folk Songs" round out the program. 6 p.m. Sunday; $10
Richard Glazier: The pianist-raconteur takes listeners on a guided tour of American popular song, from Broadway to Hollywood. 6 p.m. Tuesday; $10
Augustin Hadelich: The rising young German violinist is joined by pianist Joyce Yang for a recital program that ranges from sonatas by Schumann and Janacek to David Lang's "mystery sonatas," in its Chicago-area premiere. 6 p.m. Saturday, Bennett Gordon Hall; $10
The Piano Guys: You may know pianist Jon Schmidt and cellist Steven Sharp Nelson as the crossover duo whose classical and pop mashups -- set against video backdrops of the Utah desert, Great Wall of China and other scenic places -- have made them YouTube stars. This concert marks their Ravinia debut. 8 p.m. Wednesday; $50-$60, $27 lawn
Rush Hour Concerts: The summer-long series of free weekly classical music performances and preconcert conversations concludes with Wagner's "Siegfried Idyll" (original chamber version) and Bach's "Brandenburg" Concerto No. 2. John MacFarlane conducts an ensemble made up of members of the Chicago Philharmonic, Grant Park Orchestra, Lyric Opera Orchestra and Illinois Philharmonic. 5 p.m. Tuesday, St. James Cathedral, 65 E. Huron St.; rushhour.org
Sybarite5: The crossover string quintet specializes in freewheeling programs that mix contemporary classical pieces with Radiohead hits, Dave Brubeck jazz, Argentinian tango and just about anything else its eclectic fancy takes it. This marks Sybarite5's Ravinia debut. 6 p.m. Wednesday; Bennett Gordon Hall, $10;
Llyr Williams: The up and coming young Welsh pianist makes his Ravinia recital debut with a program of Schubert and Chopin works, also Schumann's "Carnaval." 6 p.m. Thursday; Bennett Gordon Hall, $10
All performances take place at the Ravinia Festival unless otherwise noted. Green Bay and Lake Cook roads, Highland Park; 847-266-5100, ravinia.org
jvonrhein@tribpub.com
