A sure sign of summer amid an especially brutal winter is the release of Ravinia Festival's annual concert lineup.
More than 130 rock, classical and opera events were announced Thursday ahead of the June 5 kickoff to four months of music at the Highland Park outdoor venue.
Dubbed the "Summer of Love, Season of Stars," the schedule features acts ranging from ZZ Top with Jeff Beck (Aug. 28) and Carrie Underwood with the Ravinia Festival Orchestra (Sept. 6-7) to Yo-Yo Ma (Aug. 21) and John Mayer headlining the Food Network in Concert event (Sept. 20).
John Legend's acoustic "All of Me" Tour kicks off Ravinia's non-classical concerts on June 16, followed by OneRepublic and The Script on June 18-19 and Garrison Keillor's live broadcast of "A Prairie Home Companion" on June 21.
Other highlights include Daryl Hall & John Oates (June 22), Rufus Wainwright and Cat Power (June 25), James Taylor and His All-Star Band (June 26-27), Earth, Wind & Fire (July 3), Sarah McLachlan (July 5), Willie Nelson & Family (July 12), Gavin DeGraw and Matt Nathanson (July 21), Umphrey's McGee (July 25), Heart (Aug. 3), Buddy Guy (Aug. 19) and The Moody Blues (Sept. 4-5).
The Summer '80s New Wave Tour featuring Tom Bailey from the Thompson Twins and Howard Jones rolls into the festival Aug. 27.
For four nights Ravinia erects a giant LED screen on the lawn and in the Pavilion with accompanying score performances from "West Side Story" (July 17-18) and "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" (Aug. 7-8).
Tickets go on sale at Ravinia.org on March 5 to Ravinia donors and April 24 to the general public.
For the full schedule click here.
