Chicago College of Performing Arts

In 1871, the conservatory moved to a new building which was destroyed only a few weeks later by the Great Chicago Fire; despite the conflagration, the College was again up and running by the end of the year.

Rudolph Ganz joined Chicago Musical College's faculty in 1900 and, except for a brief hiatus in the 1920s, remained associated with the school until his death in 1972.

One hundred and twenty-five names appeared on the faculty roster for that year, and the school opened three dormitory floors for students.

All operations moved to join the University in the now national landmark Auditorium Building at 430 South Michigan Avenue in Chicago's Loop.

The building houses one of the finest auditoriums in the world, in addition to the Rudolph Ganz Memorial Recital Hall.

The two primary innovations of the project were to design a special support system for a two-story structure and bring about a refined space capable of formal dining.

First, Sullivan worked closely with his partner and structural engineer, Dankmar Adler, to develop a system of iron trusses.

Sullivan used a unique and distinctive system of ornamentation such as carved wood panels and capitals, stenciled wall patterns, elaborate plaster work, gilded lighting fixtures, and the use of Michigan birch and gold leaf - all of which made the interior striking.

A young apprentice working for Sullivan, Frank Lloyd Wright, had obtained much responsibility at the time and designed some of the ornament.

The columns are large tapered-over scaled piers with rounded corners from which the ornament "appears" from the grain of the wood.

The piers were a modern expression of the time because Sullivan stripped away all the traditional Victorian details in lieu of a simple oversized design.

Under the direction of architect Crombie Taylor, the goal of restoring the room as closely as possible to the original ornamentation while providing an attractive hall for music recitals was begun.

Voice and opera faculty include Scott Gilmore, Dr. Dana Brown, Samuel Ramey, Richard Stillwell, Judith Haddon, Allan Glassman, Jonita Lattimore, Nicole Cabell, Bruce Hall, Tom Studebaker, Cynthia Clarey.