For the past eight weeks, DePaul University students have stepped outside the classroom and into the lives of Chicago musicians, learning firsthand how migration shapes both personal stories and the city’s cultural landscape.
Students are working together through HumanitiesX, DePaul University's Experiential Humanities Collaborative, to partner with the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra. The interdisciplinary course combines music and anthropology to explore migration, intercultural collaboration and community engagement through a Chicago-based partnership.
The project will culminate in a free public concert at 7 p.m. Nov. 4 in Dempsey Corboy Jazz Hall at the Holtschneider Performance Center on DePaul’s Lincoln Park Campus. The performance will feature the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra alongside DePaul students and will highlight the stories of the musicians who make up the ensemble.
Throughout the quarter, music and anthropology students have worked in pairs, typically one student from each discipline, to interview members of the orchestra about their lives, musical backgrounds and journeys to Chicago. Those oral history interviews have been transformed into a program book that audience members will receive at the concert, allowing the musicians' stories to accompany the performance.
“I chose this class because I wanted to understand and learn how music connects to culture and identity,” says Emma Stapleton, a fourth-year anthropology student graduating. “Our work with the Chicago Immigrant Orchestra has helped me apply what I learned in the classroom to real-world experiences.”
Instead of simply presenting a concert, the ensemble and students have worked together to curate a performance that reflects the musicians’ personal experiences. The goal is to help audiences better understand the diverse immigrant communities that continue to influence Chicago's musical identity.
“We want students to really think about migration as an experience that’s pretty fundamental to a lot of Chicago communities,” says Katherine Brucher, professor in the School of Music and director of DePaul’s Bachelor of Arts music program.
The course is designed to give students more than classroom knowledge, as working directly with members of the orchestra, students gain experience conducting interviews, collaborating across disciplines and building relationships with community members.
“It’s partly about place-based pedagogy,” says Jordan Levy, assistant professor of anthropology. “This is a global topic, of course, but it’s very Chicago-focused.”
That local perspective is central to the partnership.
Rather than studying immigration only through lecture, students hear firsthand how migration has shaped the lives of musicians who now contribute to Chicago’s vibrant arts community.
The Chicago Immigrant Orchestra is led by Fareer Haque and alum Wanees Zarour, who earned a master’s degree in jazz studies from DePaul in 2021. Together with Brucher and Levy, they guide students through a collaborative process that blends storytelling with live performance.
The partnership is one of four HumanitiesX collaborative projects taking place this year.
HumanitiesX supports faculty and students as they work alongside community organizations to address real-world issues through experiential learning. Other partnerships include the Chicago Parks Foundation, the Indo-American Center and the John Howard Association.
For students, the experience offers an opportunity to connect two disciplines that are not often taught together. Anthropology students practice ethnographic interviewing and documentation, while music students learn how performance can communicate personal and cultural narratives beyond the notes on a page.
The project also demonstrates how collaboration across academic fields can deepen students’ understanding of complex social issues. By combining research, oral history and live music, the course encourages students to consider migration not only as a historical or political topic, but as a lived experience that continues to shape communities throughout Chicago.
“This whole experience broadens your perspective on life and helps you develop a deeper appreciation for the people and cultures around you,” Stapleton says.
The concert is free and open to the public, although advance registration is required. Organizers hope the performance will introduce audiences to the musicians’ stories while celebrating the cultural traditions and experiences that have become part of Chicago’s musical landscape.
The concert will take place from 7 to 8:30 p.m. Nov. 4 at the Holtschneider Performance Center’s Dempsey Corboy Jazz Hall. Tickets are free with advance registration.