PLAY-ALONGS

Join us along the Chicago Riverwalk or at Chicago State University to learn how to play the harmonica in a group workshop! No experience necessary. Free harmonicas will be provided by our friends at Hohner! Harmonica Workshop with Fernando Jones June 21, 3:30-4:30pm Chicago State University, 9501 S. King Dr. RSVP on Facebook Harmonica Workshop with David Kachalon June 21, 5:00-6:00pm Chicago Riverwalk, River Theater (between Clark & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook Harmonica Workshop with Skip Landt June 21, 7:00-7:30pm Chicago Riverwalk – Water Plaza (between LaSalle & Wells) RSVP on Facebook

Come to the Jetty on the Chicago Riverwalk for free guitar lessons! Three students from Columbia College’s music department will be there to get you started if you’ve never played before or will give you some valuable pointers if you’re more advanced! June 21, 5:00-7:30pm Chicago Riverwalk, The Jetty (between Franklin & Wells) RSVP on Facebook

You can play piano! At Make Music Chicago we believe everyone has a musician inside themselves. Find yours by dropping in at one of our Pianos in the Parks for a free introductory lesson. If you’ve never played before but want to try it out you can stop by during one of the scheduled times. Both kids and adults are welcome! Various Times Various Locations Learn More

Join Hip Hop artist and producer Rob Smooth for an introduction to basic digital music production. Our goal is to give the younger generation a learning experience that can inspire creativity through music in today’s digital age of music production. June 21, 12:00-4:00pm Midway Plaisance Ice Rink, 1130 Midway Plaisance N RSVP on Facebook

Join us at the Water Plaza on the Chicago Riverwalk and learn how to play a pBuzz! Kelly Dennis from the People’s School of Music will be leading the workshop. No experience needed. Instruments will be provided by Warwick Music, makers of the pBuzz. June 21, 5:00-6:00pm Chicago Riverwalk, Water Plaza (between Wells & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook

Come to the Breakey Theater at Chicago State University to join CSU Music Department Chair Mark Smith as he leads a class on Steel Pan technique. No experience necessary. Drums will be provided! June 21, 2:45-3:30pm Chicago State University, Breakey Theater, 9501 S. King Dr. RSVP on Facebook

Take a quick ukelele lesson before hopping into a jam session led by Ukelele master Lanialoha Lee. Big kids & lil` kids welcome! June 21, 6:00-7:00pm Chicago Riverwalk, River Theater (between Clark & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook

Join us for a kazoo workshop led by Old Town School of Folk Music teacher Skip Landt. No experience necessary! The Old Town School is donating 100 free kazoos for this event, so swing by, grab a kazoo, and make some music! June 21, 6:00-6:45pm Chicago Riverwalk, Water Plaza (between Wells & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook

Join beyond this point and Grammy-winning percussionist Matthew Duvall for an interactive concert and sound installation! This family-friendly, free event is presented in collaboration with the Chicago Park District’s Night out in the Parks series and Make Music Chicago’s Pianos in the Parks. Everyone is welcome to explore and play along! No musical experience is necessary. First, hear Steve Reich’s “Drumming,” a work inspired by the master drummers of Ghana. Next, listen as the musicians activate pianos with ambient, meditative music, and join in, using percussion instruments provided by Beyond This Point. Meanwhile, all are welcome to explore several sound stations placed throughout the park during all portions of the program. June 21, 5:30-7:30pm McKinley Park, 2210 W. Pershing Rd. RSVP on Facebook

With support from music gear marketplace reverb.com, UpBeats Arts and Music will be offering free lessons for all levels of budding musicians. Explore beginner piano, beginner guitar, rock ensemble, and more lessons at this free event. Teachers will focus on rock and blues songs, as well as simple classical arrangements for beginners. Bringing your own guitar is encouraged, but not required. We will provide all the instruments and PA. Students will also have the chance to try new instruments, including drums, bass, guitar based on the number of students attending/waiting. June 21, 11:00am-2:00pm UpBeat Arts and Music, 4318 W. Irving Park Rd. RSVP on Facebook

Celebrate Make Music Chicago and the end of the school year by making some music with a group of youth musicians. Bring an instrument or bring your self to play or sing along, or listen and tap your feet (or dance!). Learn some tunes or teach us one you love! We hope you can be there! June 21, 6:30-8:30pm Clarendon Park, 4501 N. Clarendon Ave. RSVP on Facebook

Join team members from the world’s most popular music gear website for a massive sing-a-long of rock classics at the Lincoln Park Zoo. Reverb employees will bring their instruments and their A-game—all you have to bring is yourself! Reverb is the leading destination online for buying, selling, and learning about music gear—headquartered right here in Chicago! June 21, 3:00-4:00pm Lincoln Park Zoo, Park Place Cafe, 2001 N. Clark St. RSVP on Facebook

Come to the River Theater, where the Oak Park Concert Chorale, a community choral ensemble, will lead a singalong of a short, easy 4-part round for anyone who wants to join us. We will be singing Hine ma tov, written by Mark A. Boyle in memory of the 11 people killed in October at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh. No experience required! We will distribute song sheets, teach the piece, sing it together and then divide into 4 points to sing it as a round. June 21, 3:00-4:00pm Chicago Riverwalk, River Theater (between Clark & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook

Join Rogers Park residents Eric Leonardson and Deirdre Harrison for a sunrise performance of Dean Rosenthal’s Stones/Water/Time/Breath, an experimental music-theater piece in which participants choose any body of water and perform a set of actions designed to create a musical performance. June 21, 5:15-6:30am Sherwin Avenue Beach (one block East of Sherwin & Sheridan) RSVP on Facebook

Come to the River Theater and join Forte Chicago in a performance of Pauline Oliveros’s Heart Chant. Written in response to the terrorist attacks on September 11th, 2001, Heart Chant‘s simple instructions invite any and all to participate in creating community through sound. No musical training is required. This Chicago performance joins over a dozen Heart Chants planned for Make Music Day on June 21 around the world. June 21, 7:15-7:45pm Chicago Riverwalk, River Theater (between Clark & LaSalle) RSVP on Facebook

Come to the Breakey Theater at Chicago State University and join master percussionist “Turk” as he explores African and South American rhythm. No experience necessary! Instruments will be provided. June 21, 2:00-2:45pm Chicago State University, Breakey Theater, 9501 S. King Dr. RSVP on Facebook