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Redefining Classical Music—W4RP at Concord Conservatory February 9

CONCORD: Prepare to be transported into a world where classical music meets innovation as W4RP takes center stage, redefining musical boundaries with its unique sound and unparalleled energy. On February 9 at 7:30pm, immerse yourself in an extraordinary musical journey as Mikael Darmanie (Piano), Ju Young Lee (Cello), Rick Martinez (Percussion), and Josh Henderson (Violin) come together in a groundbreaking performance.

W4RP is not just a musical ensemble but a convergence of chamber music finesse, rock band intensity, and avant-garde artistic expression. Experience the electrifying fusion of their original compositions, dynamic interpretations of popular music, improvisation, and fresh perspectives on classical repertoire.
The concert presents W4RP’s own compositions seamlessly woven with Beethoven’s Op. 11 piano trio alongside compositions inspired by the timeless works of Bach and the contemporary brilliance of Kevin Laskey. The concert promises an eclectic musical journey, transcending traditional genres and expectations.

Before the main event, W4RP extends its passion for musical innovation to the community with an Educational Residency Workshop at the Concord Conservatory of Music. From 5-6pm, students in grades 5-9 are invited to explore creative expression in a workshop led by W4RP members. Focusing on improvisation and the joy of spontaneous musical creation, the workshop encourages participants to experiment with different styles, techniques, and draw inspiration from real-life emotions. Designed to inspire and teach students how to experiment with different musical styles and techniques, W4RP members will guide students and parents through exercises in creating music on the spot, drawing from real-life experiences of emotion, and using movement and visual prompts to be expressive through their instruments. Register at ConcordConservatory.org to embark on this musical journey ($10 fee for non-CCM students).

Visit ConcordConservatory.org for tickets for the W4RP concert and the entire CCM Concert & Lecture series.

Concord Orchestra Presents "Spanish Passions & Nordic Vistas"

CONCORD: The Concord Orchestra presents “Spanish Passions & Nordic Vistas” at 8pm on January 26 and 27 at the Performing Arts Center at 51 Walden. The orchestra, directed by guest conductor Robert Lehmann, performs a program of Georges Bizet’s Carmen Suite No. 1, Edouard Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole, and Jean Sibelius’ Symphony No. 3. Charles Dimmick is the violin soloist for Symphonie Espagnole. A pre-concert talk by the conductor is scheduled for Saturday at 7:15pm.

Violinist Charles Dimmick enjoys a varied and distinguished career as concertmaster, soloist, and chamber musician. Praised by the Boston Globe for his “cool clarity of expression,” Charles is one of New England’s most sought-after orchestral musicians. He is co-concertmaster of the Boston Pops Esplanade, and concertmaster of both the Portland Symphony and the Rhode Island Philharmonic. In the summers, Charles can be found serving as the concertmaster of the New Hampshire Music Festival. Charles has appeared as guest concertmaster for the Arizona Music Fest and the Winston-Salem Symphony. A frequent soloist, Charles has garnered praise, packed houses, and received standing ovations for what the Portland Press Herald has called his “luxurious and stellar performances” and his “technical and artistic virtuosity.”

Conductor Robert Lehmann is Professor of Music and Director of Strings Studies and Orchestral Activities at the University of Southern Maine School of Music where he conducts the Southern Maine Symphony Orchestra and the Portland Youth Symphony Orchestra. In addition to his duties at USM, he is Music Director of the North Shore Philharmonic Orchestra and the White Mountain Bach Festival in New Hampshire.

The orchestra performs two Spanish-themed pieces by French composers: George Bizet’s Carmen Suite No. 1 and Edouard Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole. Both pieces premiered in 1875. The Lalo was originally composed for the Spanish violin virtuoso Pablo de Sarasate. The Carmen Suite No. 1 includes some of the most familiar tunes from the popular opera.

Finnish composer Jean Sibelius’ music is inspired by the lakes and forests of his native country, the long winter nights and the endless summer days when the sun never sets. Finnish folk music also influenced his music, as demonstrated by the dance rhythm at the beginning of the first movement of Symphony No. 3, as well as the lovely slow melody in the second movement. Audiences in 1907 when the work premiered, who expected music more like his romantic Symphony No. 2, were surprised by Sibelius’ relatively restrained third symphony.

Tickets for adults and seniors are $25. Admission for youth under 18 is free. For tickets and information, call (978) 369-4967 or visit concordorchestra.com.

Concord Conservatory Offers Winter Group Classes

WEST CONCORD: Are you looking for a music education, for either kids or adults, that combines discipline with the excitement of creating music with others? At the Concord Conservatory of Music (CCM), they believe that music education should be both rigorous and enjoyable. Group classes are designed to provide students with a balance of challenge and fun. With small class sizes, each student receives personalized attention while learning and interacting with peers.

Nothing beats music to get your kids feeling confident and happy. CCM offers classes for all ages. Music Makers and Musical Gateway classes will get your little ones moving, creating, exploring, and learning through high-energy and fun classes. Kids will love the interactive and improvisational games. For aspiring young singers, both Beginner Vocals (ages 6–8) and the Concord Conservatory Children’s Chorus (ages 9–13), offer comprehensive programs encompassing breathing exercises, pitch refinement, voice placement, range development, and tone enhancement, all culminating in recital placements. Led by professional vocalists and instructors, kids get to sing in a group for a truly rewarding and confidence-boosting experience.

This winter CCM offers two terrific group classes for adults too! Acoustic instrumentalists can join the Let’s Pick: Bluegrass Solo Workshop, which will explore a variety of soloing techniques to take your lead playing to the next level. Also offered is the ever-popular and extremely fun course, Ukulele 2 - giving players an opportunity to work on movable chord shapes, more diverse strumming patterns, and fingerpicking while playing a range of genres and styles, including pop and folk songs, Irish tunes, and Renaissance music. Or if you have some experience already, join The Ukulele Club to expand your repertoire.

For information on the complete list of CCM offerings, visit ConcordConservatory.org, email info@concordconservatory.org, or call (978) 369-0010. Concord Conservatory of Music is the area’s non-profit community music school, located at 1317 Main Street within the West Concord Union Church on the 2nd floor.

Celebrate Lunar New Year with the Concord Band

LEXINGTON: WeStar Music presents the 2024 New Year Musical Night, 6:30pm, on January 20 at Cary Memorial Hall, featuring the award-winning Concord Band symphonic wind ensemble, world-renowned guest artists and performers. This festival of song and dance commemorates the year past and anticipates a joyous and hopeful New Year. The program will feature great performances by a concert pianist, world champion accordionist, erhu masters, popular vocalists, international opera singers, and Boston's nationally-recognized dance troupe.

Walk the red carpet with your family and friends in front of the elegant photo background wall. For VIP audience members, invited guests, and performing artists, WeStar offers an exclusive opportunity to gather after the concert to celebrate the New Year. For more information and to purchase tickets please visit www.concordband.org or westaracademy.com/concert-tickets.

Student Benefits From “Sense of Belonging” at MCC

LOWELL/CARLISLE: From the first moment Alex Ostrowski stepped on campus for a tour, she felt a sense of belonging at Middlesex Community College. From Carlisle, Ostrowski gets support from professors and classmates as she pursues her passion for art by studying graphic design at MCC.

“My experience at MCC has been amazing,” Ostrowski said. “I’ve met so many nice and accepting people on both campuses. I love all the professors I’ve had while studying at MCC. They show that they care about their students and give help when they need it.”

Graphic Design Professor Jeanne Cronin stands out to Ostrowski the most as having made an impact on her experience at Middlesex. In addition to being a supportive professor, Cronin has advised Ostrowski by helping her create a plan for her class schedule and answering questions outside of class.

“Professor Cronin puts so much of her time and effort toward teaching and helping her students, and I really appreciate that about her,” Ostrowski said. “She is truly a gift to MCC.”

Ostrowski has had a passion for art since she was a child. Creating a self-portrait for an art project in middle school inspired her love for her craft, particularly for drawing human anatomy. From working hands-on on projects for class to interacting with professors and classmates at MCC, Ostrowski enjoys exploring the different aspects of her major.

“Ever since I finished my graphic design class in high school, I knew I wanted to continue studying art and design, so that’s how I knew instantly what I wanted my major to be at MCC,” she said. “I also enjoy that there are many different types of art, from painting on a canvas to drawing digitally on a computer. I love all that art has to offer.”

Ostrowski chose to start at MCC to save money, get more experience in her major, and make sure she could succeed at the college-level. So far, she feels she has benefitted from the affordable options and small class sizes. After graduating from MCC, she plans to transfer to a four-year college and has a number of options available to her, including through the MassTransfer system. At the Fall 2023 Scholarship Ceremony in November, Ostrowski’s hard work was rewarded. She received the New England Woodcarvers Scholarship in support of students pursuing a degree in the arts. In helping her pay for classes and the cost of textbooks, Ostrowski said the award “means the world to me.”

This support is making the difference in helping Ostrowski reach her ultimate goal of staying on track to get a job working as a graphic designer.

“I love that the New England Woodcarvers support the arts in such a way and believe that I can succeed in whatever I put my heart and mind to,” she said. “Art has always held a huge place in my life, and I am so grateful to both the New England Woodcarvers and the MCC Foundation for supporting my dream as an artist.”

What’s Happening at Concord Free Public Library?

CONCORD: In both the Main Library and Fowler, you can always find something to do at Concord Free Public Library, such as (but not limited to):

Teens and Tweens: Otaku Bell, January 11 at 4pm at the Main Library. No registration required. Join this club and celebrate Japanese media and pop culture! Discuss your favorite manga and anime titles, share art, learn about local conventions and events, and eat delicious Japanese goodies!
Dance Workshop: An Introduction to Bharatanatyam (Ages 3-7), January 13 at 11am at Fowler. Explore the imaginative world of dance through this workshop in the Bharatanatyam repertoire, a South Indian classical dance form. Participants will be introduced to basic steps, rhythm, expressions, and storytelling.

Batik (Ages 7-14), January 13 at 2pm at Fowler. Learn Batik from artists from the newly former Fine Art Studio in West Concord.
Random Insanity Game Show, January 18 at 4pm at the Main Library. No registration required. Be a contestant in our mad mash-up of game shows and do your best to navigate the chaos of ridiculous rules to win fabulous prizes!
Opting for Growth by Embracing Stress and Emotion: Let's Get Uncomfortable with Karin Hodges, January 18 at 5:30pm at the Main Library. With the current mental health crisis affecting the younger generation, it's more critical than ever to concentrate on fostering environments that promote growth. Dr. Hodges will share her insights on how to foster such an environment as a parent or caregiver for children and teens.
Ages 0-5 Crafty Tuesday with Author Linda Sweeney (pictured), January 23 at 10:30am at the Main Library. No registration required. Hear a story and then enjoy a simple craft for little ones! Welcome author Linda Sweeney to read her brand new book “Apart, Together,” and learn about how individual pieces can come together to form something wonderful!
Sustainability Studio with Mothers Out Front (Ages 7 and under), January 27 at 11am at Fowler. No registration required. Together with Mothers Out Front, explore the theme of "Reduce, Reuse" through a mix of stories, songs, and crafting.
Batik, January 27 at 2pm at Fowler. Learn Batik from artists from the newly formed Fine Art Studio in West Concord.
Video Game Tournament, January 30 at 3:45pm at Main Library. No registration required. Grab a prize at this ranked Super Smash Brothers tournament, but bring your deodorant because the competition in this classic brawler is going to be extra sweaty.
Concord Poetry at the Library Celebrates Black History Month (coming in February), February 4 at 3pm at the Main Library. Poet January Gill O'Neil will read from and discuss her new collection, Glitter Road. O'Neils' poems portray joy as an act of resistance with the backdrop of pain and heartbreak during a Mississippi season.
Weekly Kids’ Sensory Storytime (Ages 0-5) Thursdays at 11:30am at the Main Library. Sensory Storytime will create a supportive experience for neurodiverse children and their caregivers who benefit from a calmer, sensory focused storytime to meet the needs of children on the autism spectrum, sensory processing challenges, and/or would benefit from a smaller storytime.

For more information about these and other opportunities through the Concord Libraries, visit them online at concordlibrary.org.

Concord Chorus Holds Open Rehearsals

CONCORD: Concord Chorus is holding open rehearsals on January 8 and 15, 7:30pm at Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street. Interested singers are invited to sing and may have a short audition with Director Kevin Leong during the rehearsals if they choose.

The Concord Chorus is a wonderful group of welcoming people who enjoy singing and learning excellent choral repertoire and performing at the highest level. We invite you to share in a musical experience that will be fun and fulfilling. For audition information, please visit www.concordchorus.org/join-us.

The Chorus' 78th spring season is very exciting, including Beethoven's Ninth Symphony and Brahms' Song of Destiny with Masterworks Chorale and the Lexington Symphony Orchestra. New singers are welcome.If you have questions, please contact Chairperson, Stephanie Keep, at chair@concordchorus.org.

Romance at the Manse: Stories of Love and Friendship

CONCORD: On February 9 and 10 from 5:30-7:30pm at Concord’s Old Manse, 269 Monument Street, tour this historic house by candlelight and discover stories of friendship and love that made this house a home to so many artists, writers, and poets. During this 45-minute tour, explore the many ways that friendship and love were shared in the house – whether it is a mother’s love for her children, newlyweds’ love for each other, two friends supporting one another, or a philosopher’s pursuit to understand truth and beauty. Share poems and letters written by the inhabitants of the Manse including Nathaniel Hawthorne, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Sophia Peabody and Henry David Thoreau as they express love and friendship during their time there. Then, you’re invited to stay after the tour for treats by a fire pit. Tours are offered at 5:30pm, 6pm, 6:30pm, 7pm and 7:30pm. Space is limited and pre-registration is strongly advised. Please note, this tour includes walking through a home with uneven floors in low light environments. For more information, visit thetrustees.org/place/the-old-manse.

Caring for the Caregiver

BEDFORD: Caregivers come in all ages, genders, and backgrounds. They provide care, support, and love for spouses, parents, children, grandchildren, various family members, and friends of all ages and conditions. They juggle a multitude of responsibilities, emotions, and challenges while providing care, frequently 24-7, and without a support system of their own.

A recent national AARP survey disclosed that there are approximately 48 million unpaid caregivers in the United States. They serve as a crucial part of our health care system and represent about $600 billion in unpaid labor each year. Being a caregiver also comes with personal expense and increases your stress level by 65%, worry 61%, concern about the future 60%, anxiety 57%, sadness and depression 45%, loneliness 38%, and anger 27%.

Join the Bedford Council on Aging in the Flint Room on January 18 at 10:30am for an interactive panel presentation and discussion, sponsored by the Friends of the Bedford COA (FBCOA), with community health care specialists Dee Franks, RN from Right at Home and Janet Bonitatibus from Stonebridge at Burlington who will offer insight and experience into the needs of caregivers with tips and strategies to help lighten the load that caregivers carry. Call (781) 275-6825 to sign up for the program or for more information. All are welcome! Light refreshments provided.

A Couple of the December Programs at Lexington's Cary Memorial Library...

On the Gold Light: Candlelight Tours of the Old Manse

CONCORD: The Old Manse at 260 Monument Street transforms after dark. This winter, at 5pm on Saturdays thru March 9, visit the Old Manse for a special candle-lit tour at twilight. Wander the halls and explore the chambers lit by candles and the setting sun. Upon arrival, please check in the book store. Tour groups are set with a limited capacity and we recommend booking in advance to secure your spot. Please be advised this tour includes walking over uneven floors in very low light situations. Space is limited and advanced registration is strongly encouraged. You can sign up for the date of your choosing by clicking the “register” button online at https://thetrustees.org/event/195715.

Old Manse Tour Starts December 31

CONCORD: Many who fought for liberty and independence from Great Britain also enslaved other people – a contradiction that is at the heart of the American Revolution. At the Old Manse, 269 Monument Street, we see this contradiction embodied in the life of William Emerson, “Patriot Preacher” and slave holder. We also see it deeply impacting the lives of Cate, Phyllis, and Frank, three people enslaved by the Bliss-Emerson family. In this tour, "American Contradictions: Slavery and the American Revolution at the Old Manse," happening December 31-February 25 and running Sundays at 2:30pm, the stories of the Old Manse at the time of the American Revolution serve to tell a broader story of American freedom and enslavement. Space on this tour is limited and pre-registration is recommended to secure your spot.

Concord Chorus presents J. S. Bach’s "Christmas Oratorio"

CONCORD: The Concord Chorus, conducted by Dr. Kevin Leong, will present Johann Sebastian Bach’s festive Christmas Oratorio, (Parts I–III for the First Three Days of Christmas) on December 9 at 2pm and 5pm at the Middlesex School’s Memorial Chapel, 1400 Lowell Road. The Christmas Oratorio is known for its celebration of new beginnings and dramatic use of chorale hymns. The oratorio’s first three cantatas relate the stories of the birth of Jesus, the joyful announcement to the shepherds, and the shepherds’ adoration. The concert features soprano Janet Ross, mezzo-soprano Roselin Osser, tenor Jonas Budris, and baritone Richard Giarusso, along with organist Jonathan Wessler. For tickets, visit concordchorus.org or (978) 254-1759.

December Teen Programs at the Concord Free Public Library...

Commonwealth Ballet Company performs The Nutcracker Suite at Concord Band Holiday Pops! Concert

CONCORD: The Concord Band will present its Holiday Pops! concert at 7pm on December 9 at the 51 Walden Performing Arts Center. The program features dancers from the Commonwealth Ballet Company of Acton, performing James Curnow’s arrangement The Nutcracker Suite, based on the all-time holiday classic by composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky.
The Band has moved the starting time to 7pm and invites families to enjoy the concert together. The program, appealing to all ages, includes a suite of Celtic Folk Songs, a Hanukkah medley, two additional delightful Curnow arrangements of traditional music themes, a holiday sing along, and Cambridge composer Leroy Anderson's Sleigh Ride, a perennial audience favorite. There may also be a special visitor!

The concert will have open seating with complimentary refreshments at intermission as well as before and after the concert. Tickets are available online at ticketstage.com/concordband at $25 for adults; $10 for children. Additional information about the Concord Band is at concordband.org and about the Commonwealth Ballet Company at commonwealthballet.org.

Concord Orchestra presents “Love Lingers”

CONCORD: The Concord Orchestra presents “Love Lingers” at 8pm on December 1 and 2 at the Performing Arts Center at 51 Walden. The orchestra conducted by its new Music Director Zeke Fetrow, performs a program of Jennifer Higdon’s Blue Cathedral, Jeff Beal’s The Paper Lined Shack, and Sergei Prokofiev’s Romeo and Juliet Suite No. 2. Soprano Ann Moss is soloist for The Paper Lined Shack. A pre-concert talk by the conductor is scheduled for Saturday at 7:15pm. Tickets for adults and seniors are $25. Admission for youth under 18 is free. For tickets and information, call (978) 369-4967 or visit www.concordorchestra.com.

Soprano Ann Moss grew up in a musical family in Lincoln (MA). A long-time resident of the San Francisco Bay Area, she recently returned to Massachusetts with her husband, jazz violinist / classical violist Justin Ouellet. She is an acclaimed recording artist and champion of contemporary vocal music who performs and collaborates with a dynamic array of living composers and chamber ensembles. Highlights of the 2022-23 season include Samuel Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 with the San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, Gérard Grisey’s Quatre chants pour franchir le seuil with After Everything Ensemble, and a concert tour in support of her recent album, Lifeline, featuring compositions by Hildegard von Bingen.

Jeff Beal’s The Paper Lined Shack is a five-song cycle based on a memoir written by his great-grandmother Della, about her and her husband’s experiences in the early 1900s on a farm in Idaho. The songs depict young Della playing with her siblings, the family planting a garden and raising their own food, dealing with poverty, staying warm in the winter, and Della managing to keep her family together after becoming a widow. Ann Moss describes the music as “beautiful, with lush vocal lines which soar and lift the heart and envelope the audience in the incredibly warm description of a family and their life and a mother’s love for her children.”

Blue Cathedral debuted in the year 2000, and in the years since then, it has been performed more frequently than any other new work. It is composer Jennifer Higdon’s heartfelt and uplifting meditation on life, as she reflected on the death of her younger brother. According to Higdon’s program notes for the piece, she imagined a glass cathedral in the sky, where the cathedral represents “beginning, endings, contemplation, knowledge and growth.”

Sergei Prokofiev received a commission to write a ballet based on Romeo and Juliet from the Leningrad Opera and Ballet company in 1934. After spending months working on the project, the company cancelled it when a new manager took over. In order to have the music heard, Prokofiev arranged the music into two orchestral suites and a piano transcription. Eventually, after revisions required by the Soviet authorities, the ballet was performed in the Soviet Union in 1940 by the Kirov Ballet.

Concord Conservatory Presents Harmolodic Microjam, A Jazz Concert

CONCORD: Experience the thrill and beauty of Harmolodic Jazz, a musical genre that transcends the conventional boundaries of jazz. The Concord Conservatory of Music (CCM) invites you to Harmolodic Microjam, a jazz concert on December 1 at 7:30pm. Get your $25 general admission tickets in advance from ConcordConservatory.org or at the door. Tickets are free for students age 18 and under. Email info@concordconservatory.org or call (978) 369-0010 to learn more.

Enjoy the captivating and innovative sounds of Harmolodic Jazz, a style pioneered by the legendary American musician and composer Ornette Coleman. Harmolodic Jazz integrates harmony, movement, and melody in equal measure, and draws inspiration from diverse cultures and traditions. Coleman’s groundbreaking Harmolodic Jazz fuses rock music with microtonal elements from the Middle East, Asia, India, and Eastern Europe. It creates a new harmonic and rhythmic language that reflects the rich diversity of world music.

Harmolodic Jazz will feature guest musicians, percussionist Jonathon Birch, keyboardist Dave Bryant, electric guitarist David Fiuczynski, bassist Anderson Mirafzali, as well as CCM faculty member and saxophonist Tsuyoshi Honjo.

Concord Park Celebrates Purple Flag for Dementia Care™ Accreditation with Flag-Raising Ceremony

CONCORD: Concord Park Senior Living held a “flag-raising” recently to celebrate achieving Purple Flag for Dementia Care™ accreditation. Concord Park is the second community outside CT and fourth Senior Living residences (SLR) community to become Purple Flag accredited as part of the organization’s system-wide implementation of the program.

Purple Flag for Dementia Care™ is a collaboration between the Institute for Senior Living Education (ISLE) and the Connecticut Assisted Living Association (CALA). The program’s standards evaluate an organization's capacity to provide collaborative care in a safe, functional and respectful environment, ensuring high quality care and overall quality of life for residents. As part of the evaluation process, Concord Park had to demonstrate adherence to 60 best practice standards and training outlined by Purple Flag for services provided to individuals with Alzheimer’s and other dementias. Concord Park is now among the 13 Purple Flag communities and counting that have met the standards to elevate care quality for all residents.
The flag-raising event provided an opportunity for the community’s management, staff, residents, family members and local eldercare professionals to celebrate the milestone achievement. The purple flag will now fly in front of the community as a symbol of excellence in dementia care.

“We are extremely proud of our team for achieving this honor,” said Natasha Heimrath, Executive Director at Concord Park. “This flag is a symbol of what we do every day, day in and day out, and our promise to provide the best possible care to seniors.”

“We’re honored to induct Concord Park as the latest Purple Flag-accredited community,” said Christopher Carter, President of the Connecticut Assisted Living Association (CALA). “The hard work they’ve put into providing the highest levels of memory care for their residents is an inspiration for us all.”

Fall Nature Gardening Tip: Leave Leaves Alone

As a rule in nature and gardening, keep leaves in place whenever possible. Leaving the leaves alone is a good way to support native pollinators and other insects and wildlife. These valuable insects rely on the habitat fallen leaves provide, especially over the winter months. Dead leaves also decompose creating compost that can improve soil structure and fertility.

This being said, leaves need to be managed in yards to see the most benefit. Leaves shouldn't simply go unmanaged. If nothing is done, layers of fallen leaves can cause damage by blocking out light and smothering plants which can kill them. Often a little redistribution of the leaf layer to prevent a thick mat of leaves from forming is all that is needed to prevent this type of damage. Excessively thick layers of leaves (greater than 6 to 8 inches) may need to be reduced or removed. Whenever possible move them to mulched garden areas with fewer leaves or create a compost pile onsite to keep all that beneficial organic matter in your yard.

Mow-mulching the leaves on the lawn has many advantages, including reducing noise and greenhouse gases, and enhancing the health of your yard. The shredded/mulched leaf material creates valuable compost, which enriches the topsoil. Leaf mulching also limits spreading dust and contaminants into the air and saves you time and money. The benefits of mulching the leaves into the lawn are numerous and scientifically proven. Mulching:

is quieter and cleaner than leaf blowing;
reduces the need for fertilizer and avoids water pollution by reducing phosphorus and fertilizer leaching;
reduces the safety hazard of piled up or bagged leaves on the roadsides and saves taxpayer money for municipal leaf collection;
improves soil structure, water retention and percolation;
encourages the grass roots to penetrate more deeply, improving grass health; and
makes the lawn more resilient to weather events like drought and flooding.

Don't blow... mow!

Emerson Health Hosts VIP Evening of Women’s Health

CONCORD: Join Emerson Health for a VIP Evening of Women’s Health on November 1 at 6pm at the Umbrella Arts Center. Bring your friends, enjoy appetizers and drinks, and learn the latest health trends. The opportunity to meet some of Emerson's female physicians and leaders will follow the program. Panel participants include:

Moderator: Dr. Michelle Dalencour, Primary Care;
Dr. Elizaveta Ragulin Coyne, Surgery, Cancer Services;
Dr. Joanna Ng-Glazier, Plastic Surgery;
Dr. Christina Thomas, Obstetrics & Gynecology; and
Dr. Oneeka Williams, Urology.

Also, bring your gently used bras! Donated bras will be given to breast cancer patients and those in need. Collection bins will be onsite.

Tickets are $40/person. 100% of proceeds benefit Women‘s Health initiatives at Emerson. For more information, visit EmersonHealth.org/WomensHealthEvent.

Michael Feinstein at Cary Library

LEXINGTON: Michael Feinstein's Get Happy Trio will visit Cary Library's Memorial Hall on November 30 at 7:30pm for a Judy Garland Centennial celebration. Feinstein, Ambassador of the Great American Songbook, has built a dazzling career over the last three decades bringing the music of the Great American songbook to the world. From recordings that have earned him five Grammy® Award nominations to his Emmy nominated PBS-TV specials, his acclaimed NPR series and concerts spanning the globe – in addition to his appearances at iconic venues such as The White House, Buckingham Palace, Hollywood Bowl, Carnegie Hall and Sydney Opera House – his work as an educator and archivist define Feinstein as one of the most important musical forces of our time. Tickets to this performance range from $69-$129 and are available online. For more information, visit carylibrary.org.

Concord Festival of Authors Honors Terry Tempest Williams

Pscroop2019 terry tempest williams erosion zoe rodriguez photography

CONCORD: Concord Festival of Authors will honor Terry Tempest Williams with the Henry David Thoreau Prize for Excellence in Nature writing for her outstanding career and dedication to the craft of writing. There event will take place October 28 from 7-8pm at Trinitarian Congregational Church, 54 Walden Street. Tickets for the in-person event or Zoom are available at thoreausociety.org.

Williams is the author of numerous books, including the environmental literature classic, “Refuge: An Unnatural History of Family and Place.” Her most recent book is “The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks,” which was published in June 2016 to coincide with and honor the centennial of the National Park Service. Her writing has also appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times, Orion Magazine, and numerous anthologies worldwide as a crucial voice for ecological consciousness and social change.

The Thoreau Prize was established as an annual award in 2010 by Dale Peterson to honor a writer of fiction, nonfiction or poetry whose work embodies Thoreau’s legacy as a gifted stylist, keen naturalist and social thinker. It is given as a lifetime achievement award or to honor mid-career nature writers of exceptional promise. Previous winners of the Thoreau Prize have included the poets Mary Oliver and Gary Snyder, the author-naturalists Jane Goodall, Robin Wall Kimmerer, Sy Montgomery, Peter Matthiessen, Diane Ackerman and Gretel Ehrlich, the poet, novelist and essayist Linda Hogan, biologist E.O. Wilson and the ecologist and nature writers Bernd Heinrich and George Schaller.

Founded in 1941, The Thoreau Society, Inc. is the largest and oldest organization devoted to an American author. The Society has members from more than twenty countries around the world, the Penobscot Nation, and all fifty U.S. states. The Society exists to stimulate interest in and foster education about Thoreau’s life, works, legacy and his place in his world and in ours, challenging all to live a deliberate, considered life.

After-Hours @ the Library: a Fundraising Event

CONCORD: Celebrate the 150th anniversary of the Concord Free Public Library with an evening of food & drink & merriment for patrons 21+. The Main Library will come alive after-hours with a mix of music, art, puppetry, theater, and storytelling. Groove to tunes by local singer/songwriters Sawyer Lawson and Britt Connors and the Lori Zuroff Jazz Trio. Expect the unexpected from the Concord Players and puppet master Harry LaCoste. Get creative with Art for All and appreciate real-life stories told live with Fugitive Productions. This event is a collaboration between the Concord Free Public Library Corporation and the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library.

Your ticket ($75 suggested donation) includes food (apps and sweets) and drink (open bar) from local purveyors including Saltbox Kitchen, 80 Thoreau, Nosh, Karma, Verrill Farm, Crosby’s, and West Concord Liquors. Dressy casual attire is encouraged. Your donation will benefit the new makerspace the Workshop @ the Library. Tickets are sold online only. A small number of tickets remaining – Visit www.eventbrite.com/e/after-hours-the-library-tickets-712156759037 for more information.

Concord Band Presents Fall Concert "New England Portraits"

CONCORD: The Concord Band presents a Fall concert, 8pm on October 21 at 51 Walden Performing Arts Center, inaugurating the commemoration of 250th anniversary of the Battles of Lexington and Concord, upcoming in 2025. The program features “Chester Overture for Band” by William Schuman, based on Boston composer William Billings’ best known song that became a Revolutionary War patriotic anthem. Composed in 1956, Schuman expanded the third movement from his New England Triptych for orchestra and arranged it for concert band. The Concord Band played Chester during the Bicentennial and included the piece on the Band’s 1975 LP. More recently, the Band performed Chester at the 2012 tribute to Music Director Laurate William Toland, who had conceived and conducted the 1975 album. Maestro James O’Dell has rounded out the theme, “New England Portraits,” with other pieces inspired by places and events of New England.

Four of these pieces feature composers who have written commissions expressly for the Concord Band. Andrew Boysen’s “Snapshots of Acadia,” with movements depicting the Bass Harbor Lighthouse, Thunder Hole, Cadillac Mountain and its famous sunrise, will be presented alongside a video showing selected images of the landmarks. Roger Cichy, who also has conducted his original compositions with the Concord Band, wrote “Beachscapes” to recognize three beaches, Nauset (MA), Rocky Neck (CT), and Scarborough (RI). Stephen Bulla composed “North Bridge Portrait” about Concord's famous bridge and the ‘shot heard round the world.’ “Three New England Caricatures” was written by James Curnow on a commission from UMass Lowell dedicated to the New England Youth Wind Ensemble. The piece is loaded with interesting percussion sounds such as cake pans, frying pans, and water bottles, comprising three movements: "Old Jolly Roger," "Polly Van" and "Captain Kidd," after the infamous 17th century pirate. The finale of the program is “Old Home Days” by Danbury Connecticut-born composer Charles Ives. The multi-movement work is based on hymn tunes, traditional songs, and melodies that might be performed by New England small town bands at parades and country dances.

Admission is free, with a $20 donation requested. More information is available online at concordband.org.

Concord Art Presents Rhoda Rosenberg: Shapes of Time (1968-2022)

CONCORD: Beginning October 26, Concord Art presents Rhoda Rosenberg: Shapes of Time (1968-2022). This exhibition celebrates Rosenberg’s career as painter, master printmaker, established artist, and beloved professor. It will be on view through December 17. Rosenberg’s work focuses on deeply rooted ties with family members and the power of an object’s shape to convey feeling. Concerned with emotion and meaning behind her subject matter more than representational rendering, she has concentrated on transcendent shapes throughout her career, seeing beyond the form of an object and getting to the feeling it evokes instead.

Rosenberg has served as a faculty member at the School of the Museum of Fine Arts since 1982. She won SMFA’s Russel T. Smith Award for outstanding teaching in 2003 and earned a Faculty Enrichment Grant for her work teaching at Artist Proof Studio in Johannesburg, South Africa. Rosenberg has also taught at Boston University, Danforth Museum School of Art, and Montserrat College of Art. Additionally, Rosenberg runs the Merrimac Printmaking Studio. Rosenberg’s work has been featured in group and solo exhibitions around the globe, from Alaska to South Africa to Poland. Selections of her work are housed in various collections across the country, from Massachusetts to Colorado. The winner of numerous awards and accolades, Rosenberg notably received the Atlantic Papers Materials Award at Boston Printmakers North American Print Biennial in 2007. Her retrospective coincides with Boston Printmakers North American Print Biennial 2023 + 75th Anniversary at Boston University’s 808 Gallery from October 10-December 9.

Like Concord Art’s founder, Elizabeth Wentworth Roberts, Rosenberg grew up in Philadelphia; she first exhibited her work in 1966 as a part of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts Fellowship Show, at the same school where Roberts had studied and won the Smith Prize for painting in 1889. A catalog of Rhoda Rosenberg: Shapes of Time (1968-2022) will available at Concord Art. For more information, contact Executive Director Kate James at katejames@concordart.org or Assistant Director Natalie Reiser at nataliereiser@concord.org. You may also call Concord Art at (978) 369-2578.

71st Annual Turkey Dinner at First Church of Christ, Congregational

BEDFORD: Enjoy the home cooked meal that has become a First Church and Bedford tradition! The annual Turkey Dinner, scheduled for October 21 at 6pm at the First Church of Christ, Congregational, 25 Great Road, features a menu of roast turkey, savory stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, butternut squash, green peas, and, of course, homemade apple or pumpkin pie for dessert. Tickets are $20 per adult; $10 per child under 12, and may be purchased by calling or stopping by the church office between 9am-1pm during the week through October 20. Take-out meals will be available. Frozen homemade apple pies are also available for sale at $15 each. Call (781) 275-7951 for more information.

Lincoln Sudbury Civic Orchestra Holds Open Rehearsal

SUDBURY: The Lincoln Sudbury Civic Orchestra (LSCO), in residence at the Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School, will hold an open rehearsal on October 17 at 7:30pm at the high school. The session is open to all orchestral players interested in participating in the orchestra’s 51th season and beyond. Conductor Alfonso Piacentini begins his second season directing the orchestra in two concerts in January and June. The orchestra will rehearse music for its January concert including Brahms Symphony #2, Mozart Overture to The Magic Flute and Saint-Saens Horn Concerto, with young Cuban artist Mauricio Martinez. There are openings in all string sections, particularly low strings, trombone, and horn, but all are welcome. Visit the LSCO Youtube channel to see an invitation video from Maestro Piacentini. All musicians who are interested in joining the LSCO for this open rehearsal and for the concerts of their 51st season should send an email to lscivicorchestra@gmail.com, or use the Contact Us link at lscivicorchestra.org. You will receive instructions on obtaining parts and other details.

For over 50 years, the LSCO has been dedicated to providing opportunities for talented students and supportive adults to perform orchestral literature of the great classical composers. The LSCO has provided playing opportunities for over 500 student musicians and given over thirty student and adult concerto artists an opportunity to show their skills and love of classical music. Membership is open to the community regardless of town of residence. The orchestra rehearses every Tuesday evening from 7:30-9:30pm in the large ensemble room at Lincoln-Sudbury Regional High School (LSRHS), 390 Lincoln Road.

Concord High Students Celebrate 70th High School Reunion

CONCORD: Classmates from many long years ago recently got together to Celebrate their 70th Reunion from Concord High School. When these special folks attended Concord High School there were students from Bedford, Carlisle, Concord and Lincoln. That was before the addition of the Concord/Carlisle School was a reality. Pictured are John Condon, Dick Loynd, Ken Olsen, Marian Harrison Stebbins, Jean McAllister Kydd, Steve Verrill, Bonnie Daley Kennedy, Priscilla Giles and MaryAnne Snelling Moszka.

Healthy Relationships Zoom Workshop

LEXINGTON: Healthy relationships are ones where people can safely feel and express themselves and others. This comes from mutual trust, honesty, good communication, being understanding and calm during arguments, and consent. Minuteman High School is presenting a parent workshop call "Healthy Relationships" with Cory Mashburn, M.Ed on October 11, 6-7:30pm, via Zoom. This workshop will offer strategies for opening conversation and engaging teens and their friends in thinking critically about healthy and unhealthy relationships. For more information, visit www.minuteman.org.

Concord Festival of Authors Explores the Art of Storytelling in October 2023

CONCORD: The 31st annual Concord Festival of Authors (CFA) celebrates the written and spoken word with top-notch literary events throughout town on October 20-30. Managed by the Friends of the Concord Free Public Library (CFPL), this year’s CFA also honors the library’s 150th anniversary as a community home for readers of all ages.

The 2023 CFA kicks off with keynote speaker Jennifer De Leon (pictured), author most recently of Borderless, who will discuss “The Power of Storytelling” on October 20 at 7pm in the CFPL’s Goodwin Forum. The CFPL will also feature the Friends of the CFPL’s Ruth Ratner Miller Memorial Award for Excellence in American History recipient Robert Gross on October 21 at 7pm, and author/ illustrator Chris Van Dusen will give the 11th annual Leslie Riedel Memorial Lecture for Young People on October 22 at 4pm. In celebration of the library’s 150th anniversary, the CFPL Corporation presents award-winning author and Boston College professor Elizabeth Graver on October 27 at 7pm.

The popular CFA Breakfast with the Authors returns to Concord’s Colonial Inn this year on October 28 at 8:30am, featuring longtime moderator and Concord resident Dr. Suzanne Koven with esteemed authors Julie Carrick Dalton (The Last Beekeeper), Marie Myung-Ok Lee (Hurt You) and Sandeep Jauhar (My Father’s Brain: Understanding Life in the Shadow of Alzheimer’s). Tickets will be available at the Barrow Bookstore and Concord Bookshop as well as online through the CFA website.

The third LIVE storytelling program, The Stories of Us, will be a CFA featured event at the CFPL on October 25 at 6:45pm. Created by Be Well Be Here in collaboration with Communities Organized Against Racism (COAR) and Carlisle DEIB, The Stories of Us was modeled after The Moth as a forum for impactful community conversation, and features surprise local presenters who share powerful personal stories that inspire our common humanity. Other events at the CFPL include The Robbins House’s program with celebrated young adult author Ray Anthony Shepard on October 21, a Poetry Panel on October 29 and the final CFA event, Mystery Night on October 30.

Local organizations presenting events at the CFA 2023 include: the Umbrellas Arts Center (The Art of Self-Expression Workshops on October 21), the Transcendentalism Council (Harvard Divinity School lecturer Dan Makanan on October 23); Concord Museum (historian David Hackett Fisher on October 24), Orchard House (author Virginia Pye on October 28), Thoreau Society (the annual Thoreau Prize awarded to Terry Tempest Williams on October 28), and Barefoot Books (Mariana Llanos on October 29).

“CFA programs showcase diverse experiences and voices that honor the evolving literary history of Concord, MA,” says CFA Curator Lara Wilson. “The CFPL Friends and the festival planning team of volunteers work hard to offer meaningful community storytelling events that spark thoughtful conversations at the CFA every October.”

MCC Faculty Member to Perform As Part of College Concert Series

BEDFORD/LOWELL: As part of the Fall 2023 “A World of Music” concert series, Middlesex Community College will welcome faculty member and noted guitarist Raley Beggs for a lecture recital. The performance will take place at 11am on October 3 at the MCC Bedford Campus Concert Hall. Beggs will feature the music of South African guitarist and composer David Hewitt, whose compositions blend his European roots with native/Indigenous music from South Africa. Several of his works for his solo guitar will be performed.

“David Hewitt (1947-2001) left the guitar repertoire a collection of works that reflect his experiences and inspirations from western traditions of guitar along with his fascinations with Zulu maskanda music,” Beggs said. “The resulting compositions constitute a body of work that is utterly unique and dramatically underrepresented today. This concert will offer a hearty introduction to the world of South African music through the life of composer David Hewitt and his innovative exploration of Southern African guitar styles."

“A World of Music” will also include an Online Saturday Arts Concert featuring MCC faculty and alumni at 4pm on November 11, as well as a Student Recital at 12:30pm on December 4 at MCC’s Bedford Concert Hall.

Performances throughout the semester will also take place at the Richard and Nancy Donahue and Family Academic Arts Center in Lowell, including Literature through Music at 11am on October 14; Ezekiel’s Wheels Klezmer Band at 3pm on October 22; and a second performance by the Lowell Chamber Orchestra at 7:30pm on December 9. Parking isavailable on-campus. For more information, visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/worldofmusic.

“The Climate Crisis: What Climate Change Could Do to Our Planet, What Can We Do?”

CONCORD: First Parish in Concord Sanctuary will be hosting a forum on October 19 from 7-9pm - “The Climate Crisis: What Climate Change Could Do to Our Planet, What Can We Do?” in person and on Zoom. Gilbert (Gib) Metcalf (pictured) will speak, moderated by Peter Lowitt. Questions and comments will be aired following Professor Metcalf’s talk. You may attend this event in person or on Zoom. The Zoom link is: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86552147277.

It is clear to many of us that our worst fears about what climate change can do to our planet and to us are becoming a disturbing reality. We badly need to hear what can be done to address the growing impacts of global climate change and its role in exacerbating wildfires, hurricanes, rising sea level temperatures, and other destructive climatic events. That is the focus of this forum, featuring climate economist, Gilbert (Gib) Metcalf. Gib has written and spoken extensively on the economics of climate change and the effectiveness and socio-economic impacts of different policy approaches to eliminating our greenhouse gas emissions.

Gib Metcalf is a Professor of Economics Emeritus at Tufts University and a Visiting Professor at the MIT Sloan School, where he serves as an affiliate of the Center for Energy and Environmental Policy Research (CEEPR). In addition, he is a Research Associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research and a University Fellow at Resources For The Future. Metcalf has frequently testified before Congress, served on expert panels for the National Academies of Sciences and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, and as a consultant to numerous other organizations. During 2011 and 2012, he served as the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Environment and Energy at the U.S. Department of Treasury, where he was the founding U.S. Board Member for the UN based Green Climate Fund.

Robert Barney Presents Organ Recital

CONCORD: On September 29 at 7pm. Robert Barney, organist at Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street, will present a special organ recital to celebrate his 30th anniversary of service to Trinity. Barney's program is inspired by his study at Smarano International Organ Academy this summer which focussed on the musical links between Rome, Lubeck (Germany) and Paris. The program will feature works by Girolamo Frescobaldi, Jan Pieterzsoon Sweelinck, Nicolas de Grigny, Matthias Weckmann, and Johann Sebastian Bach. This program is open to the public; a free-will offering will be accepted. For further information, please call Trinity Episcopal Church (978) 369-3715 or visit trinityconcord.org.

Organist Robert Barney, a resident of Littleton, has distinguished himself as a recitalist, conductor, and teacher with performances in Europe, Canada and the U.S., and for the Organ Historical Society, the Association of Anglican Musicians, and the American Guild of Organists. As Artistic Director for The Boston Gay Men’s Chorus from 1985-1997, he led first performances of that group in Boston’s Jordan and Symphony Halls, Avery Fischer Hall in New York City, and similar halls in Minneapolis, Denver, and elsewhere. Mr. Barney, currently in his 30th year as Director of Music at Trinity Episcopal Church in Concord, Massachusetts, also teaches private lessons in organ, piano, and voice, and is Artistic Director for Youth pro Musica in Newton, Massachusetts (currently on hiatus because of the pandemic). Robert holds degrees from Concordia College, Bronxville, NY and The New England Conservatory of Music, Boston, Massachusetts. His mentors included Robert Owen, Ralph Schultz, Frank Taylor, Donald Teeters, and Yuko Hayashi.

Run a Food Drive to Spread More Love, Less Hunger

Did you know that 24% of the food Open Table distributes comes from community food donations? Your assistance is vital to Open Table. Please consider running a food drive this autumn if you are hungry to help neighbors experiencing food insecurity. It's an easy, feel-good community service that is a great activity for neighborhoods, businesses, schools, scouts, clubs, teams, and faith-based organizations. All size food drives are welcome. Sandwich boards and other signs are available to help you spread the word. Go to www.opentable.org/donation-activities/ for information. Stay up-to-date on our changing needs and news on Instagram and Twitter @opentablema and Facebook.com/opentablema.

Open Table is the local food pantry supporting those in-need in Concord, Bedford, Carlisle, and 18 other surrounding areas. If you or someone you know is in need of food assistance, email info@opentable.org or call (978) 369-2275.

Between Worlds Concert October 1

CONCORD: Violinist Siri Smedvig, trumpeter William Kasel, and pianist Bonnie Anderson will perform "Between Worlds" on October 1 at 2pm in the Performing Arts Center, 51 WaldenStreet in Concord. This program will treat listeners to the sumptuous sonic worlds of brass, strings and piano, as displayed in compositions of Faure, Biber, Kreisler, Vitali, Bartok, Hindemith, Arutunian and others. The performance will also feature poetry including work by Pulitzer Prize recipient American poet Elizabeth Bishop.

Violinist Siri Smedvig studied violin with Joseph Silverstein, Boston Symphony Orchestra's Concertmaster (1962-1984) while attending Harvard University. She studied and performed five summers at Tanglewood Music Center. Siri has performed with numerous orchestras
including the Boston Pops, Boston Ballet, Handel & Haydn Society, Seattle Symphony, and American Symphony. She is currently Concertmaster of Concord Orchestra and Massachusetts Symphony Orchestra and has an active teaching studio.

Trumpeter William Kasel studied with Rolf Smedvig, and Roger Voisin, both former Principal Trumpets for the Boston Symphony while attending Boston University. He studied and performed three summers at Tanglewood Music Center. William has played with Boston
Opera, Empire Brass Quintet. He is currently trumpeter in Concord Orchestra.

Accompanist Bonnie Anderson studied piano at Juilliard School, Michigan State, and French Piano Institute in Paris. She received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in piano performance from Boston University. Bonnie is on the piano faculty at Phillips Andover Academy and has an
active teaching studio.

Admission to this performance is free, with donations gratefully accepted to help support the event.

Concord Conservatory Presents Music & Folklore Concert & Lecture

WEST CONCORD: Imagine listening to a musical performance that transports you to a different time and place, where you can experience the stories and emotions of people from various cultures and traditions. Join the Concord Conservatory of Music, along with the Concord Museum, for Music & Folklore concert and lecture on October 27 at 7:30pm. Celebrate the oral folk traditions of various cultures through music at 1317 Main Street in West Concord.

Folklore is a way of preserving and transmitting the stories, wisdom, and values of distinct cultures across time. Hear musical tales that reveal the similarities and differences between diverse societies and appreciate the richness and variety of our cultural heritage. The guest speaker will be Frank Korom, Professor of Religion and Anthropology at Boston University

and Associate of Folklore and Mythology at Harvard College. His expertise, research, and teaching interests range from South Asian expressive traditions and contemporary religion to diaspora studies and transnationalism.

By combining chamber music and folktales, composers can create works that are rich in narrative, character, and atmosphere. Experience how the works of Schubert, Copland, Bartok, Esmail, Mussorgsky, and others bring to life the spirit and the magic of these narratives, connecting us with our shared roots. This chamber music concert will feature CCM faculty artists soprano Rose Hegele, violinist Angel Valchinov, and pianist Yoko

Hagino.

Tickets are $25 General Admission and are available online at ConcordConservatory.org or at the door. Tickets are free for students age 18 and under. Email info@concordconservatory.org or call (978) 369-0010 for more information.

MCC Kicks Off “World of Music” with Lowell Chamber Orchestra

LOWELL/BEDFORD: Middlesex Community College will kick off the Fall 2023 “A World of Music” concert series with a performance by the Lowell Chamber Orchestra (LCO) at 7:30pm on September 16 at MCC’s Richard and Nancy Donahue Family Academic Arts Center in Lowell.

“We are delighted to be opening the fall season with the Lowell Chamber Orchestra,” said Carmen Rodríguez-Peralta, MCC’s Chair of Music. “Our Fall ‘World of Music’ concert series will feature a wonderful variety of music, including orchestral music, faculty performances, lecture recitals, an exciting Klezmer Band, and an online concert in collaboration with Dracut Arts. There’s something for everyone!

The LCO, conducted by MCC faculty member Orlando Cela, will present a concert featuring miniature symphonies. Works by Yoko Nakatani, Brittney Benton, Vincent Persichetti, and Arnold Schoenberg will be performed. Other performances at the Academic Arts Center this semester include Literature through Music at 11am on October 14; Ezekiel’s Wheels Klezmer Band at 3pm on
October 22; and a second performance by the Lowell Chamber Orchestra at 7:30pm on December 9.

“A World of Music” will also hold performances at MCC’s Concert Hall on the Bedford Campus, including Guitar Music of South African Composer David Hewitt at 11am on October 3 and a Student Recital at 12:30pm on December 4. There will also be an Online Saturday Arts Concert featuring MCC faculty and an alum at 4pm on November 11.

All concerts are free and open to the public. MCC’s Academic Arts Center is located at 240 Central Street in Lowell. With parking not available on site, the nearest public parking facility is the Early Garage on 135 Middlesex Street.
For more information, visit www.middlesex.mass.edu/worldofmusic.

Fab Four from Bedford Exhibit at Westford’s PCA

WESTFORD/BEDFORD: The Parish Center for the Arts (PCA) welcomes four Bedford artists in a group exhibition running from October 8-29, with an opening reception on October 8 from noon-3pm. This is the first in the PCA's 2023-24 "Artist-of-the-Month" series, open to visitors in the Gallery each Sunday from noon until 2pm.This group exhibition of talented artists features a collection of works in acrylic, watercolor, collage and batik.

Dana Holley’s primary medium is acrylic, and she also enjoys drawing and collage. Her artwork has been exhibited at the Bedford Arts & Crafts Society’s Regional Art Shows and the Grace Chapel Art Gallery and was featured on the cover of her Wellesley College 50th reunion Record Book.

Laura Wallace has cultivated her art practice in batik for many years. Since her retirement from the software industry, she has shown her work at various venues, including Gallery Twist, the Concord Art Association, and the Bedford Free Public Library. Laura also enjoys painting in acrylics and watercolor, as well as drawing.

Margo Zelermyer has recently rekindled her longtime passion for making art. She works in acrylics, colored pencil, ink, collage, and watercolor. Margo has exhibited at the Grace Chapel Art Gallery and the Bedford Arts & Crafts Society’s Regional Art Show.

Sylvia Mallory studied watercolor painting and subsequently took up acrylics, now her favored medium. She also works in collage and mixed media. Sylvia’s artwork has hung at the Rockport Art Association, Gallery Twist, the Grace Chapel Art Gallery, the Art Gallery at First Parish, and the Chelmsford Center for the Arts. Her favorite subject matter includes landscapes, floral still lifes, and abstracts.

For more Artist information, contact 4.friends.art@gmail.com. For more information about the PCA exhibit, visit www.pcawestford.org or call (978) 692-6333.

Bedford Cultural Council Grant Applications Open; Deadline October 17

BEDFORD: The Bedford Cultural Council grant cycle for FY24 opened September 1, and the BCC seeks applications from interested individuals and organizations for funding. Eligible projects include a wide range of artistic projects and activities in and around Bedford — including festivals and performances; lectures and workshops; arts education and enrichment programs for children and adults; nature, science, and environmental education projects; and projects celebrating local history and cultural diversity. First-time applicants are given priority in grant decisions.

People of all ages, backgrounds, and affiliations are encouraged to apply for projects that will enhance Bedford as a community. Funding for the grants comes from Mass Cultural Council with the Select Board also allocating funding. As the Select Board’s liaison to the BCC, Emily Mitchell noted that “Bedford has a long history of community arts and culture, and the Bedford Cultural Council is an integral partner in bringing innovative and inclusive programs to the Town through its annual grant program. The Select Board strongly encourages individuals and community groups to apply for FY23 grants to continue Bedford's rich tradition of cultural and educational opportunities.”
"As a former BCC Chair, I'm always proud to see the amazing work that the Cultural Council supports. The dedication of the BCC volunteers exemplifies the best of Bedford. I encourage everyone involved in the arts and humanities to apply and take advantage of this incredible resource," said Bedford's State Representative Ken Gordon.

“The Council works hard to encourage people in the community to apply for grants, then is put to the task of applying limited resources to fund worthwhile projects,” said Bedford’s State Senator Mike Barrett. “These grants ensure that Bedford's wealth of cultural groups will continue to thrive.”

Previously funded projects include such popular programs as:

South Asian Association of Bedford: Holi and Diwali celebrations
Bedford Mothers Out Front: Pumpkin smash
Friends of Job Lane House: Student docent program and Family Field Day
Bedford Free Public Library: Traveling maker space
Lane Elementary: Lobby Math & Science Corner
Sarah Scoville: Bedford Utility Box Murals
Bedford Historical Society: “The Preservationist,” mailed to all addresses in Bedford

The application is completely electronic, straightforward, and relatively easy to complete. Bedford funding priorities, local guidelines, and information are available online at www.bedfordma.gov/cultural-council and www.mass-culture.org/Bedford. The online application is available at https://massculturalcouncil.smartsimple.com/s_Login.jsp. More detailed information on the grant process can be found at https://massculturalcouncil.org/communities/local-cultural-council-program/application-process/. If you have any questions, please email the Bedford Cultural Council at BedfordMACulturalCouncil@gmail.com or contact Barbara Purchia at bsrpurchia@aol.com or (781) 275-2464.

2023 Ruth Ratner Miller Award Honors Bob Gross

CONCORD: Join the Friends of the Library for the presentation of the prestigious Ruth Ratner Miller Award for Excellence in American History on October 21 at 7pm in the Goodwin Forum of the Concord Free Public Library. This year’s winner is Concord’s own Robert Gross, PhD. He is a prolific author of carefully researched books on American history, starting with the publication of The Minutemen and Their World (1976) which won the Bancroft Prize in American history. It was re-issued in a 25th anniversary edition in 2001 and published by Picador in a revised edition in 2022 to commemorate the upcoming 250th anniversary of the American Revolution.

Gross' latest book, "The Transcendentalists and Their World" (2021), was chosen by the Wall Street Journal as one of the 10 best books of 2021. He has written numerous works including Thoreau and the Laborers of Concord, published in 2013. A native of Bridgeport (CT), Gross received the B.A. in American Civilization from the University of Pennsylvania in 1966 and the M.A. (1968) and Ph.D. (1976) in History from Columbia University. Gross specializes in the social and cultural history of the U.S., from the colonial era through the 19th century. Other works include In Debt to Shays: The Bicentennial of an Agrarian Rebellion (1993). His other recent work examines New England writers — notably, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Emily Dickinson — in historical context.

The lecture is an in-person event. Tickets can be purchased (cash or check only) at the Barrow Book Store and the Concord Book Shop at $15 for adults, $5 for students. Digital tickets are $16 ($6 for students) through Zeffy at cfpl.info/friendsmiller. This year, advance tickets will not be sold at the Library. Following the lecture and award presentation by the Friends, there will be a book signing and reception in the Library’s Reference Room.

The Ruth Ratner Miller Memorial Award for Excellence in American History was established in 1998 and is sponsored by her four children to honor the life of their mother, who believed passionately that understanding history was not merely desirable but a civic and religious duty.

The Friends of the Concord Free Public Library, Inc. is an all-volunteer community-supported non-profit organization which has been supplementing the materials and programs offered by the Concord Free Public Library for over 50 years. The Friends make museum passes, poetry readings, chamber music concerts, the seed lending library, “Direct-to-You” home delivery, multi-lingual entertainment, summer lawn concerts, and so much more available to all library patrons. The Friends also sponsor the annual Concord Festival of Authors each October and professional development opportunities for staff throughout the year.

Garden Club of Concord Seeks Grant Proposals

CONCORD: The Garden Club of Concord invites all local organizations and residents interested in pursuing gardening-related community projects to submit grant proposals. This is an excellent opportunity for passionate individuals and organizations to make a positive impact on Concord’s environment and community life.

For years, the Garden Club, through its grant program, has been able to sponsor a diverse range of community projects. Past grants have funded planting projects at Concord-Carlisle High School, the Old Manse, the Concord Housing Authority and The Umbrella Community Arts Center. In addition, the Club supports outreach to citizens through nature and horticulture; Gaining Ground and Minute Man ARC for Human Services have received past grants for garden-related educational and therapeutic programs.

Funding for all grants is made possible through the Garden Club’s much-anticipated annual spring plant sale. This event, open to the public each year, serves to generate funds for community projects and provides an opportunity for the community to connect and share their love for plants and the environment.

To request a grant application or for more information about the application process, please contact Joan Campbell at joancampbell74@gmail.com or (978) 369-3889. The deadline for submissions is October 20, 2023.

A Show Featuring Contemporary Art from Ukraine is Coming to Bedford

BEDFORD: The Gallery @First Parish in Bedford is pleased to announce the up-coming art exhibit “Affirmation of Life: Art from today’s Ukraine” which will be exhibited September 23-October 7. The Gallery @First Parish is located in First Parish Church at 75 Great Road. This will be a rare opportunity to see and enjoy contemporary art from Ukraine. Works in this exhibit represent a whole spectrum of art being made by Ukrainian artists today. Much of this art will be on view for the first time in the United States having been collected for this show by Bedford residents Vlad Shapiro and Nataliya Proskura.

The opening weekend will be September 23-24, with an opening ceremony on the 23 at 10am with the exhibit open until 4pm. Then, at 5pm there will be a concert featuring Ukrainian soprano, Olga Abakumova who escaped from Ukraine with her young daughter and now lives in Sudbury. She will be accompanied by pianist Clemens Teufel playing the music of A. Kos-Anatolsky, H. Majboroda, G. Gershwin, R. Schumann, J. Strauss as well as others. There will be a small reception following the concert.

On September 24 at 11:30am there will be a talk in the gallery about the art and the importance of these pieces. The Gallery will also be open during church hours, 9am-2pm Monday through Friday, for the rest of the exhibit. Private showings can be arranged. Attendees will have a unique opportunity to appreciate the depth and richness of the Ukrainian culture, coming directly from artists currently living and working there.

All proceeds from this show will go to Mriya (https://mriya-ua.org), a non-profit organization created by local Ukrainians, mostly young professionals and students, to provide humanitarian support for Ukraine as well as support for the arts.

This show has the support of the Bedford Cultural District Partnership, The First Parish Church of Bedford, and the Ukrainian Cultural Initiatives. For more information, visit http://ukrainian-cultural-initiative.com.

Rabbi darby leigh and ks cantor rosalie gerut

An Invitation to Share High Holy Days 5784

CONCORD: Kerem Shalom—Vineyard of Peace—of Concord, warmly invites the community to join them for the High Holy Days 5784! This year’s services and programs begin on September 15 with Erev Rosh Hashanah and conclude on September 25 with Yom Kippur. Services will take place both in-person and online and include: Erev Rosh Hashanah, Rosh Hashanah, Kol Nidre, Yom Kippur, Early Childhood Family Services, Tashlich at the Old North Bridge (in-person only), Torah Study with Rabbi Sam Pollak, Musical Musaf Service with the Tiferet Ensemble (in-person only), and Mindfulness Meditation. See keremshalom.org for the full schedule as well as registration and further details.

Bedford Minuteman Company Needs YOU!

BEDFORD: The Bedford Minuteman Company is looking for men and women who appreciate history. There is the opportunity to learn the fife and/or drum. If not, there are positions to carry flags or become a musket man. They march in parades and participate in local town events (i.e., Town Meeting, etc.). The next event is Bedford Day on September 23. Their booth is on the circle, behind the Town Hall in front of the yellow building. You will see the Bedford Flag at the booth. Stop by the booth to say hello, or to request a flyer, email info@bedfordminutemen.org or visit
https://bedfordminutemen.org.

Choral Ensemble Invites Women to Join for Fall Season

CONCORD: Concord Women’s Chorus (CWC), fostering the power of women’s voices in song, invites new singers to join its ensemble at “Open Rehearsals” on Tuesdays, September 12 and 19, 9:30am, at Trinity Episcopal Church, 81 Elm Street. Artistic Director and Conductor Jane Ring Frank welcomes newcomers to join rehearsal, audition and learn more about the fall season. Rehearsals continue through 2023-24 on Tuesday mornings, 9:30am-noon, also held at Trinity.

CWC welcomes singers with prior choral experience including good sight-reading skills, solid intonation and vocal quality, responsiveness to direction and the ability to blend within an ensemble. For auditions, prospective members may be asked to sight-read a short passage and/or sing a familiar tune, arriving with a prepared solo is not necessary. An information form is available to be printed in advance and brought to the audition at concordwomenschorus.org/wp/sing-with-us. Chorus members are expected to attend rehearsals and to participate in performing scheduled concerts. In addition, singers may have the opportunity to perform Vivaldi’s “Gloria” at Carnegie Hall in New York City on November 13, presented by Distinguished Concerts International New York (DCINY).

The ensemble continues weekly rehearsals in preparation for the upcoming concert “A Celebration of Glorias: Vivaldi’s Signature and More,” performing on December 16 at 4pm.

CWC is committed to the safety of all and requires all singers to be fully vaccinated for Covid-19. Masks are optional during rehearsals, but policies may change as needed. For more information, performance details or to join Concord Women’s Chorus, email manager@concordwomenschorus.org, visit concordwomenschorus.org, or follow Concord Women’s Chorus on Facebook and Instagram.

First Connections Offers Fall Play Groups

ACTON: First Connections has two free playgroups with openings for Fall. Groups are open to residents of Acton, Bedford, Boxboro, Carlisle, Concord, Harvard, Lincoln, Littleton, Maynard, Sudbury and Westford. Our Fall session will run from the week of September 11 to the week of December 11. Our playgroups are funded by a grant from the Mass. Dept of Early Education and Care and led by our Early Childhood Teacher. Caregivers and children attend the groups together.

Me, You, We Playgroup for Ages 3-5 is based on a Boston Children's Museum curriculum where children practice social-emotional skills such as taking turns, using words to negotiate conflict, and labeling feelings. Families receive at-home learning materials. Younger siblings welcome. Meets outdoors (weather permitting) at Boxborough Library. Thursdays, 10:30-11:30am.

Language & Literacy Playgroup for Multilingual Families for Ages 1 1/2-5 is for families who speak a language other than or in addition to English as part of their daily life. This group will help foster a love of books in your child and share tips for how to make the most of your shared reading at home. In addition to free play, there will be circle time and activities related to each week's story. Infant siblings in carriers welcome. Held at First Connections in Acton. Wednesdays, 10-11am.

If you are interested in either of these groups, email Linda to register: lmatthews@jri.org.

Concord Conservatory’s Music Education Program for Kids with Developmental Needs

CONCORD: The Concord Conservatory of Music (CCM) is a place where music helps children with developmental needs grow and flourish. Many parents want their children to try different activities and learn new skills. But this can be hard to do when a child has developmental needs. CCM cares about making music education accessible for everyone and works with the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education to offer Tones of Fun Developmental Music Class for the community.

Tones of Fun meets a special program that meets need in our communities, especially for children diagnosed with learning differences. It helps each child find and explore their individual interests — Tones of Fun is a wonderful program that reinforces finding the absolute best version of their unique self. Tones of Fun is a musical program designed for children with different learning needs. Physical, language, social, cognitive, and musical development are stimulated through musical play in a social group of all ages and skill levels. The program uses simple instruments, movement, props, and improvisation to stimulate physical, language, social, cognitive, and musical growth. A highly trained instructor from the Berklee Institute for Accessible Arts Education who adapts the class to the needs and abilities of each student.

Maura Lyons’s son, Daegan, is a member of the Tones of Fun class. Maura shared, “This class is so important to my family and me; it’s the highlight of our week. It is the only activity in town that Daegan can share with his siblings, myself, and his friends. It brings him so much happiness
and excitement. It truly melts my heart to see him so focused on something he loves.” In the class, Daegan is focusing, socializing with peers, learning how to take turns and be in a group, and discovering new songs and instruments.

The fall session begins on September 19 and the 45-minute class will meet on Tuesdays at 4:30pm for ages 3 – 6 and 5:15 pm for ages 7 – 9. No previous musical experience is necessary to participate. However, students must be accompanied by an adult to every class, participate effectively in classes, and maintain a safe environment for themselves and others. Parents/Caregivers can apply through CCM at https://concordconservatory.org/programs/tones-of-fun-developmental-music-class/.

Concord Conservatory Holds Ukulele Taster

WEST CONCORD: Get hooked on playing the most infectious and fun instrument, the ukulele! Join Concord Conservatory of Music’s (CCM) free Ukulele Taster on September 11 from 7–8pm for adults. After an hour, you’ll fall in love with playing this happy and cool instrument and will probably want to join a class with your new friends.

CCM faculty member Aaron Jay Myers will guide you and have you strumming along in no time. You’ll learn how to hold the ukulele and learn some basic chords. You’ll end up playing a foot-tapping song by the end of the ukulele taster. Ukuleles will be available to use for the evening, but bring your own if possible. Sign-up in advance at ConcordConservatory.org or just show up at CCM for an entertaining evening.

After the Taster, you’ll jump at the chance to join a ukulele group class. CCM offers the Ukulele Crash Course for beginners and the Ukulele Club for those already more familiar with the instrument. Jump on the bandwagon with your friends, and join the ukulele craze!

Group classes begin the week of September 18-23. For information on the full list of CCM offerings, visit ConcordConservatory.org, email info@concordconservatory.org, or call (978) 369-0010. The Concord
Conservatory of Music is located at 1317
Main Street within the West Concord Union Church on the 2nd floor. Financial assistance is available.

Concord Orchestra Open Rehearsal

CONCORD: The Concord Orchestra will hold an open rehearsal on September 5 from 7:30-10pm at 51 Walden Street. The orchestra has openings for strings. For more information, visit www.concordorchestra.com. Please email info@concordorchestra.com if you are planning to attend, so there will be sufficient music, chairs and stands. To join the orchestra please email info@concordorchestra.com to arrange for an audition with the Music Director sometime before or after the open rehearsal.

The orchestra will be conducted by Music Director Zeke Fetrow. The orchestra will be reading music of Beethoven, Sibelius, and Howard Hanson. The Concord Orchestra, is composed of 70 volunteer musicians living in Concord and the greater Boston metropolitan area. A season of five concert programs is planned.

The Concord Free Public Library Celebrates 150 Years of Stories

CONCORD: On October 1, the Concord Free Public Library will mark its 150th Anniversary! Join the BIG celebration on this special day and for other exciting Anniversary activities and events:

October 1st, 2-4pm at the Town House and Main Library. Visit the Town House at 2pm to hear local and state officials commemorate this historic day and hear special guest “Ralph Waldo Emerson” re-enact excerpts from his original Library Dedication speech on October 1st 1873. Immediately following, the Concord-Carlisle Regional High School Pep Band will kick off a parade to the Main Library’s Front Lawn, where the celebration will continue with special guests, music, cake, activities, and giveaways for all ages.
September 23, 2-4pm in the Workshop at the Main Library will be a workshop for all ages - “Make-A-Sign,” where patrons can create their own sign to carry in the October 1 Anniversary parade.
September 29, 7-8:30pm in the Rotunda at the Main Library will be a swing era jazz concert co-sponsored by the Friends of the Library and the Concord Conservatory of Music. New Orleans revival quintet “The Easy Winners” will perform tunes by the great jazz masters, including Louis Armstrong and Benny Goodman.
September 30, 2-4:30pm in the Goodwin Forum at the Main Library, the Library Corporation will host the world premiere of the film Ralph Waldo Emerson: Give All to Love. This film features an “essay on film” by Michael Maglaras and will provide a new and deeply personal perspective on Emerson, his writing, his life, and his importance to contemporary life. The film also features author and editor James Marcus, whose new and probing book on Emerson, Glad to the Brink of Fear: A Portrait of Ralph Waldo Emerson, will be released in 2024.
October 2, 7-8pm, in the Goodwin Forum at the Main Library, the Friends of the Library will present a lecture entitled “150 Years of Cinema” with Films at Fowler host Randall Warniers in the Goodwin Forum.
October 14, 7-9 PM at the Main Library will be an adult evening of fun and festivities - After Hours @ the Library - sponsored by the Friends of the Library and the Library Corporation. The Library will come alive with music, art, puppetry, theater, storytelling, and more. Delicious food and drink from local purveyors. Proceeds will benefit the new makerspace Workshop. Tickets available on September 5.
October 1-December 22 in the (newly-renovated) Art Gallery at the Main Library, visit "Connecting the Community: An Exhibition to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Concord Free Public Library," a special exhibition curated by the William Munroe Special Collections, highlighting the history of the Library's buildings, services, and staff. Special Collections will also feature a display on early circulation procedures and a selection of books checked out to Concord residents, including Louisa May Alcott, Ralph Waldo Emerson, and Ebenezer Rockwood Hoar, in the first decade of the Library's operation. The art displayed at the Concord Museum for the exhibition "A Perpetual Invitation: 150 Years of Art at the Concord Free Public Library" will be back home at the Library.

All activities are free and open to the public unless otherwise noted. For more information and to register for these events, visit cfpl150.org and follow @concordlibrary on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, TikTok and the Library's weekly enewsletter.