Petrillo Music Shell
The Petrillo Music Shell is an open-air amphitheater and bandstand in Grant Park in Chicago's Loop district. It hosts many of the city's major music festivals such as the Chicago Blues Festival , Chicago Jazz Festival , Taste of Chicago, and Lollapalooza .
history
Before the Jay Pritzker Pavilion was built , the Petrillo Music Shell also hosted smaller festivals with fewer than 10,000 spectators such as the Grant Park Music Festival, the Chicago Gospel Music Festival, and the Chicago Latin Musisc Festival. The Petrillo Music Shell used to be at the southern end of Grant Park and was relocated in 1978.
The concert shell was commissioned in 1931 by Anton Cermak , then mayor of Chicago. The structure was named after James C. Petrillo , President of the Chicago Federation of Musicians and President of the American Federation of Musicians, who organized a free series of concerts in Grant Park in 1935. Until the 1990s, the Petrillo Music Shell was known for a traditional Independence Day concert, coordinated with the city's fireworks on July 3rd.
Historical judgments have forced the city of Chicago to adhere to a height limit on buildings in Grant Park. From 1972 there were plans to build a new concert shell. Most of the plans were discarded due to height restrictions and costs. In 1978 the concert shell was moved to its current location. Officially, the shell is only a temporary installation. This bypassed the height restrictions.
With the official address 235 S. Columbus Drive, the music shell spans the entire block and is bordered by Lake Shore Drive to the east, Columbus Drive to the west, East Monroe Street to the north and east, and Jackson Street to the south.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ History of the Chicago Jazz Festival. Retrieved June 21, 2014 .
- ↑ James C. Petrillo: The Man Behind the Petrillo Band Shell. Retrieved June 21, 2014 .
- ^ Grant Park. Retrieved June 21, 2014 .
Coordinates: 41 ° 52 ′ 43.7 " N , 87 ° 37 ′ 12" W.