Bits & Bytes: Holiday Shindy; ‘Make a Joyful Noise;’ Patty Crane reading; Williams Christmas service

The Holiday Shindy Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13 is a handmade holiday sale featuring notable makers and creators from around the region.

Shire City Sanctuary’s ninth annual Holiday Shindy

Pittsfield Shire City Sanctuary will host its ninth annual Holiday Shindy Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. The handmade holiday sale will feature notable makers and creators from around the region and a wide array of original products.

The Holiday Shindy is a juried show and this year’s jury included illustrator Leo Quiles, textile artist Janet Cooper, The Dolphin Studio co-owner Sofia Hughes, artist Janice Shields, and jewelry designer Jill Schwartz. The jury aimed to bring the most unique products of the highest quality to the Shindy.

The Holiday Shindy will begin with a ticketed preview party on Friday, December 11 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., offering a sneak preview of the vendors, a variety of refreshments, and some holiday surprises. The Shindy will then be free and open to the public the rest of the weekend. Contact Shire City Sanctuary for more information at (413) 236-9600.

–E.E.

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‘Make a Joyful Noise’ at St. Ann Church

Lenox Under the musical direction of Ron Ramsay, the harmonious voices of St. Ann Church are set to usher in the Christmas season in song with “Make a Joyful Noise,” the annual benefit for the St. Ann Music Ministry.

The St. Ann youth and adult ensembles will present a program of popular Christmas favorites ending with a carol sing. Joining the ensembles will be song duo Samantha Talora and Ron Ramsay, mezzo-soprano and Taconic High School Music Director Jess Passetto, and tenor Matt Passetto. Joining the singers will be Michael Gillespie on woodwinds and accompanist Joe Rose, Music Director at St. Charles Church in Pittsfield. Featured youth ensemble soloists will be Lillian Colvin, Alyssa Morley, and Hannah Morley.

“Make a Joyful Noise” will take place on Saturday, December 12 at 7 p.m. at St. Ann Church. There is a suggested donation is $15, with a maximum cost per family of $30. Call (413) 637-0157 for more information. Proceeds from the concert will benefit the St. Ann Music Department.

–E.E.

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Patty Crane book launch and reading

imageLenox — On Friday, December 11 at 7 p.m., The Bookstore will host Patty Crane, who will read from her new book “Bright Scythe,” a collection of translated poetry by Tomas Transtömer.

Known for sharp imagery and deceptively simple diction, Nobel Prize-winner Tomas Tranströmer’s poems offer glimpses of insight into the deepest facets of humanity. The new translations, in a bilingual edition, are deeply informed by Crane’s personal relationship with the poet and his wife during the years she lived in Sweden.

For more information contact the Bookstore at (413) 637-3390.

–E.E.

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Williams College to present annual Christmas service

Williamstown — The annual Christmas Service of Lessons and Carols at Williams College will be held at 4 p.m. on Saturday, December 12 and Sunday, December 13 in Thompson Memorial Chapel. The identical services will feature choral music by the Williams Concert and Chamber choirs, congregational singing of carols, and the traditional reading of the Biblical Christmas story.

There is no admission charge for the services, but all are encouraged to bring a non-perishable food item to be donated to local emergency food pantries. A free-will offering will be collected at the conclusion of the service for the benefit of local and international humanitarian efforts initiated or supported by Williams students.

The Williams Concert and Chamber choirs will perform under the direction of Brad Wells, the director of choral/vocal activities. The choirs will perform pieces by Stephen Paulus and Williams professor Zachary Wadsworth, as well as traditional arrangements of early Renaissance carols. Organist Edwin Lawrence will be joined by several organ students in playing the prelude that will begin at 3:40 p.m.

Students, faculty, and staff from the college as well as members of the local community will read the traditional “lessons” derived from the Biblical Christmas story. Rev. Rick Spalding, Chaplain to the College, will deliver a meditation titled “Power to Become,” and Fr. Gary Caster, Catholic Chaplain, will serve as liturgist.

Parking will be available in the lot behind Thompson Memorial Chapel, on Hopkins Hall Drive.

–E.E.