Berkshire Lyric begins new season and welcomes new singers
Pittsfield — The Berkshire Lyric Chorus will begin rehearsals for its 2015-2016 season at 7 p.m. on Monday, September 14 at the Pittsfield Unitarian Church.
Berkshire Lyric was founded by Robert Blafield in 1963 and recently celebrated its 50th anniversary season culminating in a gala concert at Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall. Fall performances include the annual standing-room-only Main Street at Christmas concert in Stockbridge on December 5 and Christmas concerts on December 19 in Pittsfield and December 20 in Great Barrington. In the spring the chorus will present its Kick the Winter Blues concert in Lenox and a season-ending Masterworks Concert performance of Mozart’s Requiem at Ozawa Hall on May 29. The 90-voice Berkshire Lyric Chorus is led by Artistic Director Jack Brown, who also directs Berkshire Lyric’s Blafield Children’s Chorus and is on the music faculty at Bard College at Simon’s Rock and at the Hotchkiss School.
Interested new singers are admitted by audition. Please contact Jack Brown at (413) 298-5365 to arrange an audition in advance of the September 14 rehearsal.
–E.E.
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Behold! New Lebanon’s rural guide tours for September 12
New Lebanon, N.Y. — Behold! New Lebanon, the living museum of contemporary rural American life, has announced its schedule of programs for Saturday, September 12. The programs include:
The Language of Birds — Join Kevin Bose to learn how the National Audubon Society is using Bird Language to create land stewards within the next generation of leaders.
200 Years of New Lebanon Cookery — The ladies and gentlemen of the Church of Our Savior, a historical New Lebanon landmark, will introduce recipes from the Lebanon Valley’s Tilden Family, Shakers, and other community leaders with a tasting at the end.
Into the Bog — Botanist Dr. Claudia Knab-Vispo and wildlife ecologist Dr. Conrad Vispo, from the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Program, will take visitors on a tour of a local ecological treasure.
Delhi Food Fest — Giku and Sunny Kumar have transported their culinary traditions from their native Delhi, India and will explain how to prepare a delicious Indian meal.
Advance ticket purchase is recommended for all programs. More information is available from the Berkshire Edge calendar, by calling (518) 720-7265, or by emailing info@beholdnewlebanon.org
–E.E.
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Shred Day at Salisbury Bank
Sharon, Conn. — Salisbury Bank & Trust Company will sponsor a free Community Shred Day on Saturday, September 12 from 9 a.m. until noon at its Sharon branch. Each person may bring up to four boxes of paper (paper only; no binders) for shredding.
Salisbury Bank is proud to offer this service as a way of enriching the communities it serves. All shredded paper will be recycled.
–E.E.
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High Holy Days celebration at Hevreh
Great Barrington — Hevreh of Southern Berkshire invites the public to join in High Holy Days services with its new rabbinic team of Rabbi Neil P.G. Hirsch and Rabbi Jodie Gordon along with cantorial soloist Joshua Zecher-Ross and the Hevreh Choir to celebrate 5776. The schedule of services is as follows:
Erev Rosh Hashanah on Sunday, September 13 at 8 p.m.; Rosh Hashanah family service on Monday, September 14 at 9 a.m. followed by Rosh Hashanah morning service at 10:30 a.m. and Taschlich at the Great Barrington River Walk at 4 p.m.; second day Rosh Hashanah Service on Monday, September 15 at 10:30 a.m.; Yom Kippur Kol Nidre service on Tuesday, September 22 at 8 p.m.; Yom Kippur family service at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, September 23 followed by Yom Kippur morning service at 10:30 a.m. and Yom Kippur afternoon service including Yizkor and N’ilah at 3 p.m.
A festive Break Fast will immediately follow the concluding service on Yom Kippur. Please make online reservations to attend services.
–E.E.
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Music Inn meet-up on Mount Greylock
Adams — Fans, staff, musicians, local historians and music lovers are invited for an evening to celebrate the legendary Music Inn this Sunday, September 13 at 6 p.m. at Bascom Lodge.
Held in Lenox during summers between the 1950s and 1980s, the Music Inn was a music festival and think-tank for some of folk, jazz, and blues music’s most celebrated musicians. The Music Inn Meet-Up harkens back to the Music Inn with an evening of socializing, reconnecting, food, drink, music. A gallery of memorabilia, including photographs, prints, original signs, and other items will be on display and original Music Inn concert recordings will be played.
An optional dinner will follow the events at the Music Inn reunion, and reservations for it can be made by calling Bascom Lodge (413) 743-1591. More information on the Music Inn can be found at the Music Inn Archives website.
–E.E.