Friday night concert timeline / Concessions for sale, including beer & wine

7:00-8:15 PM Concert (no intermission)
8:15-8:45 PM Conversation with artists

This season we will pair the amazing Black Oak Ensemble trio with one of Rendezvous’ favorite guitarists, Goran Ivanovic! The program will feature works for string trio and solo guitar – and all four musicians will combine forces as a quartet.  

These internationally touring musicians will leave you breathless with their energy, creativity, and captivating personalities that shine through in every note.

The Black Oak Ensemble consists of violinist Desirée Ruhstrat and cellist David Cunliffe, members of the Grammy-nominated Lincoln Trio, and violist Aurélien Fort Pederzoli, a founding member of the ground-breaking, Grammy-nominated Spektral Quartet. They are currently an ensemble-in-residence at New Music School in Chicago.

Join us for a special exhibition by photographer Elliot Mandel! While you might recognize his work from concert halls around the world, capturing stunning images for promos and album covers, Elliot also possesses a remarkable talent for capturing the beauty of nature, cityscapes, and skylines. He’s as excited to share his art photography with our audiences as we are to have him!

Elliot Mandel is a Chicago-based photographer specializing in live music performance, artist portraiture, events, and editorial projects. His passion for music began in childhood with cello lessons and school orchestras and has led to a robust clientele that includes many of Chicago’s finest ensembles, Grammy-winning and nominated artists, elite concert presenters, universities, and non-profit organizations.  

His photos have appeared as album artwork for the Cedille, Naxos, Sono Luminus, and Okeh record labels, and in Gramophone Magazine, Sports Illustrated, the Wall Street Journal, the Chicago Tribune, the Chicago Sun-Times, and Chicago Magazine. His jazz portfolio has been shown at the University of Chicago, PurePoint Financial Gold Coast (Chicago), and the U.S. Embassy in Vienna, Austria.

Aside from client work, Elliot enjoys photographing the night sky in some of the darkest parts of the country.  He has traveled to Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, the Rocky Mountains, and far West Texas to create images of the Milky Way, star trails, and the moon.