Monday, June 9, 2014

Norfolk Chamber Music Festival Announces its 2014 Season

Located in the heart of the Litchfield Hills, the Norfolk Chamber Music Festival, presented by the Yale School of Music, celebrates its 73rd season this year with performances and residencies of internationally esteemed ensembles and chamber musicians alongside students and young professionals from around the world. 


From June 14 to August 16 Norfolk will host a roster of outstanding ensembles including: the Artis Quartet, the Brentano Quartet, the Emerson String Quartet, the Leschetizky Trio (Vienna), the Yale Choral Artists, and San Francisco's Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra.

In 2014 the Norfolk Festival is proud to honor its patroness, Ellen Battell Stoeckel, who passed away seventy-five years ago, in 1939. It was her dream that resulted in the glorious Music Shed, and it was her wish that after she died, music would continue in the small village of Norfolk, CT through a summer school for the Yale School of Music.



Norfolk director Paul Hawkshaw says, "In keeping with Ellen Battell Stoeckel's wishes, our mission at Norfolk is to cultivate the performance and teaching of chamber music at the highest level. We always want our audiences, students, and performing artists to have fun exploring the chamber music repertoire, and this year we are especially fortunate to have a truly international group of performers for our audiences to enjoy."

Something new for Norfolk will this year's festival on Saturday, June 14. To honor Ellen Battell Stoeckel, and as a fund raising event for its educational programs, the Norfolk Festival is presenting an evening of classic big band music from the 30's and 40's, with dancing in the Music Shed. The Shed will be transformed into a supper club for the evening, with music provided by the Flipside Big Band directed by Thomas Duffy.



The following weekend is a choral program by the Yale Choral Artists, a new ensemble of 24 professional singers from around the country under the direction of the Yale Glee Club's Jeffrey Douma. The Choral Artists will perform a program of new music inspired by early works: J.S. Bach's motet Singet dem Herrn will be coupled with a new work by Sven-David Sandstrom; a work by Thomas Tallis will be paired with a new, Tallis-inspired piece by Ted Hearne; and a work by Josquin des Pres will be coupled with a new Josquin-inspired piece by Hannah Lash.

From July 4 to August 9 Norfolk will host a six-week Chamber Music Session. Among the twelve concerts each Friday and Saturday night in July and August will be a concert of string sextets pairing the Dvořák Sextet, Op 48, with Schoenberg's Verklärte Nacht; and a program of chamber music to celebrate the Fourth of July including works by Leonard Bernstein, Charles Griffes and Dvořák. Of special note is a program on July 11 honoring clarinetist Keith Wilson who was Director of the Norfolk Festival from 1960 to 1982. Richard Stoltzman will perform works by Hindemith, Peter Sculthorpe and Brahms' Clarinet Quintet.

On Friday, August 15 San Francisco's Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra, under the direction of Nicholas McGegan (OBE) will return to Norfolk with a program of vocal and instrumental works by Corelli, Handel and Rameau. Soprano Celine Ricci and countertenor Robin Blaze join the orchestra in scenes from Handel's opera Teseo.




The Norfolk Festival, under the leadership of Paul Hawkshaw since 2004, includes a New Music Workshop led by composer Martin Bresnick and guitarist/composer Benjamin Verdery and special guest Bryce Dessner of the 'indie' band The National, a Lecture series, a Young Artists' Performance Series (Thursday nights and Saturday mornings; free admission), Festival Artist concerts (Friday and Saturday nights), and a Family Day on July 13. This year's festival concludes on August 16 with a performance of works for chorus and orchestra from the Renaissance to the contemporary by the 
Norfolk Festival Chorus and Orchestra directed by Simon Carrington.



For tickets and information contact The Music Shed, 20 Litchfield Rd. (Rtes. 44 and 272) Norfolk by phone: 203-432-1966 or visit the website www.norfolkmusic.org.  For information on where to dine and stay in the Litchfield Hills www.litchfieldhills.com


Friday, June 6, 2014

June fun at the Greenwich Historical Society

The Greenwich Historical Society has planned four fun filled events for the month of June beginning with a lecture on June 10 by Dr. Jackson Lears on Two Gilded Ages from 7 p.m. - 8 p.m. at the Vanderbilt Education Center.  


For some years, historians have theorized that we are living in a second Gilded Age, a reprise of the era that occurred a century ago. The decades between the1980s and the 2010s hold a remarkable similarity to those between the 1880s and the 1910s, both periods characterized by unregulated economic expansion, flagrant corruption on Wall Street, growing class divisions, the concentration of wealth within a conspicuously consuming elite and a series of imperial adventures (or misadventures) abroad.

Dr. Jackson Lears will examine the parallels and differences between the two eras to explain why the growth of inequality 100 years ago provoked widespread demands for reform among the populace (even among the well-to-do, motivated then by a paternalistic sense of responsibility), while contemporary comment on the situation is largely absent.



Connecticut's Open House Day falls on June 14 this year and the Greenwich Historical Society is planning a collage workshop that will focus on creating two-dimensional collages crafted from papers, fabrics, photographs, found objects and natural materials such as dried grasses, twigs, leaves, or petals. All materials will be provided, but participants may also bring copies of favorite photos, newspaper articles or other items to incorporate into their work. The workshop will take place in the Vanderbilt Education Center from noon to 2:00 pm, and all ages are welcome.



On June 21, from 1:30 to 3:00 pm the Greenwich Historical Society is planning a two-wheeled adventure and will provide a historical bike tour of Greenwich Point as a part of the annual Experience the Sound event. Participants are invited to explore the rich history of Greenwich point looking at everything from its geology to the many features that make it the beloved town park it is today. Participants will meet at the first parking lot on the right after entering the park. As the group travels around the point they will stop to hear stories, take a closer look at some of the ruins and see vintage photos from the Historical Society's collection. There will also be a scavenger hunt for children. Participants must bring their own bike and helmet and a water bottle is highly recommended. No reservations required and participation is free, but a park or guest pass is required for entry to Greenwich Point. All ages are welcome but children must be able to ride a bike.


The month ends with a Festa Al Fresco, on June 29 from 4 pm to 7 pm  a potluck supper to celebrate the history and the community of Italian immigrants who settled in Greenwich in the early twentieth century. The family "festa" was launched last year as part of the Historical Society's programming for the exhibition From Italy to America and in celebration of the Town of Greenwich's twinning ( "Gemallagio") with the Italian cities of Rose and Morra di Sanctis, where many of Greenwich's Italian early immigrants came from. The event proved so successful that it's back by popular demand. Guests are invited to demonstrate their culinary skills and to show off favorite family recipes (enough to share with 6-8) in one of four categories: antipasti/appetizers, pasta/main dishes, sides and salads or desserts. Wine, musical entertainment and crafts for kids are included in the price of admission. Mangiamo!
For more information about the Greenwich Historical Society visit http://greenwichhistory.org



Wednesday, June 4, 2014

Pathways: Exploring White’s Woods

From the first day Kerwin Mayers stepped onto the boardwalk at White’s Woods, which is part of White Memorial Foundation located off Rte. 202 in Litchfield  she knew this special area would beckon her again and again. Before moving to Litchfield Hills in 2007, she had not been a landscape painter, but the beauty of the region became a beacon that directed her work down this path.
Two years ago, she thought she would try a series of twelve paintings representing each month. Quickly the project expanded to more than thirty paintings taken from many spots in White’s Woods at all times of the year and all times of the day.  She is indebted to the Alaine White family for providing this amazing preservation for all to enjoy and for her, a blank canvas to fill. 
Kerwin started painting in oil at Sarah Lawrence College and has since studied for many years with Pamela duLong Williams. Her art education has been broadened through workshops with Wolf Kahn, Charles Sovek and Robert Burridge. In recent years her paintings have been in juried shows at the New Britain Museum of American Art, the Rowayton Arts Center and Kent Art Association.

A portion of all art sales benefit the Oliver Wolcott Library.  In addition, the artist will be giving an additional portion to the White Memorial Foundation for their boardwalk. In the gallery: through June 28. The Oliver Wolcott Library is located on 160 South Street, Litchfield, CT. 06759. 860-567-8030. www.owlibrary.org
From the first day Kerwin Mayers stepped onto the boardwalk at White’s Woods, which is part of White Memorial Foundation located off Rte. 202 in Litchfield  she knew this special area would beckon her again and again. Before moving to Litchfield Hills in 2007, she had not been a landscape painter, but the beauty of the region became a beacon that directed her work down this path.
Two years ago, she thought she would try a series of twelve paintings representing each month. Quickly the project expanded to more than thirty paintings taken from many spots in White’s Woods at all times of the year and all times of the day.  She is indebted to the Alaine White family for providing this amazing preservation for all to enjoy and for her, a blank canvas to fill. 
Kerwin started painting in oil at Sarah Lawrence College and has since studied for many years with Pamela duLong Williams. Her art education has been broadened through workshops with Wolf Kahn, Charles Sovek and Robert Burridge. In recent years her paintings have been in juried shows atthe New Britain Museum of American Art, the Rowayton Arts Center and Kent Art Association.

A portion of all art sales benefit the Oliver Wolcott Library.  In addition, the artist will be giving an additional portion to the White Memorial Foundation for their boardwalk. In the gallery: through June 28. The Oliver Wolcott Library is located on 160 South Street, Litchfield, CT. 06759. 860-567-8030. www.owlibrary.org
About White Memorial Foundation
The White Memorial Conservation Center, an Environmental Education Center and Nature Museum, is located in the heart of the 4000-acre White Memorial Foundation in the hills of northwestern Connecticut.
In 1964 the Center was established in the former home of Alain White and his sister, May. Their vision and generosity led to the formation of the White Memorial Foundation in 1913. A non-profit tax exempt organization, the Center was incorporated to add the goal of Education to the Conservation, Research, and Recreation purposes for which the foundation was formed.
The Conservation Center operates a Nature Museum with exhibits focusing on the interpretation of local natural history, conservation, and ecology, as well as a museum store, classrooms and dormitory. The outdoor arena includes the wildlife sanctuary maintained by the White Memorial Foundation. The Foundation today comprises 4000 acres of fields, water, and woodlands, trails, campgrounds, boating facilities, and special areas for large outdoor education and recreational gatherings. 
For more information about White Memorial www.whitememorialcc.org.  For information on Litchfield Hills www.litchfieldhills.com.  

Monday, June 2, 2014

Pasture to Pond: Connecticut Impressionism

Pasture to Pond: Connecticut Impressionism  at the Bruce Museum in Greenwich, CT,  runs through June 22, brings American Impressionism back to its roots, according to the Museum’s Executive Director, Peter C. Sutton.

Davis_Uplands Charles H. Davis, (American, 1856-1933) Summer Uplands, n.d. 

 The history of art proves that Connecticut has long been one of the most fertile states for the creation of new art movements,” says Peter Sutton. “In no small measure it was the birthplace of American Impressionism.”

Drawn from the permanent collection of the Bruce, private collectors, area museums, and the trade, this exhibition of more than 25 works of American Impressionism speaks to the quality and beauty of this perennially popular art, and to Connecticut’s important role in its creation.

Before the turn of the 20th century, Connecticut was a logical birthplace for American Impressionism, as artists sought a nearby, rural respite from the burgeoning urban and rapidly industrializing world. While their artistic predecessors, the landscape painters of the Hudson River School, had championed dramatic landscapes of panoramic sweep and awe-inspiring majesty, the artists who came of age after the calamity and chaos of the Civil War sought a more intimate, bucolic and orderly landscape.  They found these reassuring views among the farms, rolling hills, rivers and picturesque shoreline of Connecticut.

Metcalf_Autumn Willard Leroy Metcalf, (American, 1858-1925)
While steeped in pre-Revolutionary history, Connecticut was readily accessible by train to these escaping urbanites, many of whom had winter studios in New York City.  Artists’ colonies sprang up in Cos Cob and Old Lyme and landscapists took to recording favored sites in places like Branchville, Farmington, Mystic and the Litchfield Hills.  The names of these artists – John H. Twachtman, J. Alden Weir, Childe Hassam, and Willard Metcalf – are among the most famous landscapists in American art history.  While some, like Robinson, made regular pilgrimages to France to paint alongside the great French Impressionist Claude Monet, others learned the style second hand, and collectively they made it a uniquely American manner.

“Several of the artists featured in the show exhibited in the famous Armory Show in New York in 1913, which is generally regarded as the watershed moment that introduced Modern Art and the likes of Marcel Duchamp to America,” says Peter Sutton.  “It is with pleasure then that we remember with this exhibition an era of enduring local creativity and the celebration of the beauty of our own special corner of New England.”

Crane_Harvest Moon Bruce Crane, (American, 1857-1937) 

Pasture to Pond: Connecticut Impressionism is generously underwritten by People’s United Bank, a Committee of Honor co-chaired by Leora Levy and Alice Melly, a grant from the Connecticut Office of the Arts, and The Charles M. and Deborah G. Royce Exhibition Fund.

And when you go, don’t forget your cell phone:  This exhibition, like many others at the Bruce, will be accompanied by a compelling cell phone audio tour guide program, Guide by Cell, generously