The Grant Park Band Shells in Chicago
The first band shell (above and below) was used from 1931-1977.
It was modeled after the original Hollywood Bowl.
Concerts began in 1931, and Petrillo suggested a free
symphonic concert series, which began in 1935.
In this photo (above), besides the growing Chicago Skyline,
Buckingham Fountain can be seen to the North. The fountain was
featured in the opening sequence of the sitcom Married... with Children.
This new band shell is one block east of the Art Institute, and one block
north of Buckingham Fountain. When it began hosting events in 1978, the
shell was called the James C. Petrillo Music Shell. Petrillo was born in Chicago
in 1892, and was head of Local 10 of the Chicago Federation of Musicians starting
in 1922. Among other affiliations, he played trombone with Paul Whiteman, and
was President of the American Federation of Musicians from 1940 to 1958.
The Jay Pritzker Pavilion in Millennium Park opened in 2004.
The Grant Park Symphony Orchestra,
conducted by Music Director Carlos Kalmar