Live music to return to St. Charles Public Library starting Sunday

Live music will return to the St. Charles Public Library on Sunday.

At 2 p.m., concert pianist Tatiana Shustova will perform in the Carnegie Room on the library’s second floor as part of the library’s Sunday concert series. The concert is the first one at the library since the pandemic began last year and is the first concert since the completion of the library renovation and expansion project.

Shustova was born in Saint Petersburg, Russia, where she studied at the Rimsky-Korsakov Music School and the Rimsky-Korsakov State Conservatory. The concert, which is free, is funded by the St. Charles Public Library Foundation.

“We’re very excited to have another concert in the building,” Denise Blaszynski, the library’s programs and public relations coordinator, said. “She reached out to us before the pandemic that she was interested in performing at the library. She is coming from the Champaign-Urbana area to perform.”

She is an adjunct faculty member at Millikin University School of Music.

The last live concert the library hosted was on Feb. 16, 2020. “Damsels and Divas: A Musical Revue” featured soprano AnDréa James and pianist Valerie Heinkel-Bollero.

“And they’ll be coming back in 2022,” Blaszynski said.

The live music will continue at 2 p.m. Nov. 7 when award-winning vocalist Maureen Christine presents a patriotic concert, “Let Freedom Ring!”

Elgin Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Music Institute students are set to play on Dec. 5.

“Starting in 2022, we’re going to try to go back to two concerts a month, like we used to in the past,” Blaszynski said.

During the pandemic, St. Charles Public Library offered virtual concerts.

“We had a decent turnout for them,” she said. “But there really isn’t anything like a live performance.”

Masks are required inside the library regardless of one’s vaccination status. The library is located at 1 South 6th Ave., St. Charles.