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| The Spirit of Music - by Albin Polasek |
Theodore Thomas Memorial / The Spirit of Music Statue
Sculptor: Albin Polasek
Architect: Howard Van Doren Shaw
Completed: 1923
Location: Chicago’s Grant Park
on the corner of Balbo and South Michigan Avenue,
near the Hilton Hotel
Commissioned by the B.F. Ferguson Monument Fund,
as a memorial to Theodore Thomas [1835-1905],
the first conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO)
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| The Spirit of Music statue - by Albin Polasek |
The bronze statue depicts the “Lady of Music, Art, Prose, Poetry and Drama”.
The Spirit of Music is a memorial to Theodore Thomas (1835-1905), first conductor of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO). German-born Thomas was a nationally respected violinist and conductor who settled in Chicago in 1889 to help establish the city's first permanent orchestra. After his orchestra played in the Auditorium Theater for many years, Thomas achieved his dream of building Orchestra Hall, designed by architect Daniel H. Burnham. Theodore Thomas dedicated the new building in December of 1904, but died only a few weeks later.
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| The Spirit of Music statue - by Albin Polasek |
The B.F. Ferguson Fund commissioned the sculpture which was erected and unveiled in the south garden of the Art Institute facing Orchestra Hall in 1924. Albin Polasek (1879-1965), an internationally renowned sculptor who had emigrated from Czechoslovakia, and American architect Howard Van Doren Shaw (1869-1926) created the artwork. It featured a bronze figure of a muse that stood in front of a forty-foot long granite exedra and bench with a carved freize depicting Thomas and the orchestra members in relief.
Polasek intended this personification of music to have "the majesty and sweep" of a symphony and to be "dignified yet simple, assertive but not bold...a feminine figure…but not too feminine." The goddess figure has just struck a chord on her lyre. The hemispherical base is embellished with reliefs illustrating the power of music.
Over the years, the sculpture was moved to several different locations in Grant Park. By the 1940s, the orginial granite exedra and bench had been separated from the bronze sculpture and placed in storage. A lakefront jogger discovered pieces of the carved granite exedra that had been dumped amidst the riprap along the edge of Lake Michigan in the early 1990s. The Chicago Park District soon retrieved the pieces, restored the sculpture and exedra and installed them in a new location at Balbo Drive and Michigan Avenue. The Chicago Park District created a new Spirit of Music Garden surrounding the sculpture and in recent years this has become the venue for Summer Dance, a popular annual outdoor music and dance series.
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| Spirit of Music - the face on the mask was modeled by the sculptor Polasek himself |
According to the sculptor Albin Polasek,
he himself modeled for the face behind the mask on the lyre.
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| The Spirit of Music - by Albin Polasek The bronze figure of a muse that stoodstands in front of a forty-foot long granite exedra and bench with a carved freize depicting Theodore Thomas and the orchestra members in relief. |
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| The forty-foot exedra and bench with carved freize |
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| The carved relief depict Theodore Thomas and the orchestra members |
A carved freize depicting Theodore Thomas and the orchestra members in relief.
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| Engraving about Theodore Thomas |
The engravings read ...
"Scarcely any man in any land has done so much about musical education of the people as did Thodore Thomas in this country. The nobility of his deals with the magnitude of his achievement will assure him everlasting glory. 1835-1905."
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| The relief at the base shows the power of music |
The relief at the hemispherical base of the sculpture,
illustrates the power of music. It features a group of animals
listening to Orpheus play his lyre and Chibialos sing.
Chibiabos is a character from Longfellow's Song of Hiawatha.
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| Animals listening to Orpheus play his lyre |
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| Animals listening to Orpheus play his lyre |
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| Spirit of Music Garden |
The Spirit of Music Garden
The Spirit of Music Garden surrounding the sculpture is the venue for Chicago's Summer Dance. In fact, the Spirit of Music Garden was developed and landscaped especially for the Summer Dance and received a Gold Award from the Illinois Landscape Contractors Association.
Chicago Park District worked with Chicago's Department of Cultural Affairs and Department of General Services, and the Mayor's Office of Special Events to create a garden that fulfilled program needs as well as a garden that was a unique draw in and of itself. The park district uses a combination of annuals and perennials that will guarantee a splash of color throughout the summer. The garden layout incorporates a geometric design that pulls the visitor into the center of the garden, where they can easily access all other areas. Classic-looking wooden umbrellas, tables and chairs circle the center of the garden, encouraging people to sit and enjoy their surroundings.
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