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Dec. 13 & 14: “An Olde New England Christmas”

by fomag | Music

Guilford, Vt. — Friends of Music at Guilford (FOMAG) presents “An Olde New England Christmas” at 7:30 on Friday, December 13, and again at 4:00 on Saturday, December 14. By tradition, this 47th annual Christmas at Christ Church event includes choral and instrumental music for the season, a dramatic reading, and a few carols for everyone.

The a cappella vocal program was drawn from tune books by New England composers born in the middle of the 18th century: William Billings, Supply Belcher, Oliver Holden, Timothy Swan, and Samuel Adams Holyoke, as well as one English composer, Joseph Stephenson. These itinerant singing masters traveled the region from about 1770 through 1810, teaching sight-singing to select groups in church parishes. They gave concerts for local folks and then moved on to the next town. This practice fundamentally changed the place of music in worship, which finds its legacy in church choirs today.

BCTV Schedules – Week of 12/9/19

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 schedule for the week of 12/9/19

Monday, December 9, 2019

5:00 am NAACP – Windham County NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner 11/16/19
8:00 am Democracy Now! – Daily Episode
9:00 am Home Funerals Green Burials – The American Funeral Experience 10/27/19
10:10 am Hogback Mountain Conservation Association – Half Billion Years of Hogback Geology with Roger Haydock

Hiroya Tsukamoto, Innovative Guitarist

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

Innovative guitarist and composer Hiroya Tsukamoto will bring his fusion of folk, jazz, and world music to Stage 33 Live in Bellows Falls on December 22 in a special matinee performance for a well-timed break from the holiday rush.

Eclectic and immersive, Tsukamoto takes audiences on an earthy, organic odyssey. In addition to original compositions, his repertoire travels the world of traditional music. While his instrumental abilities are breathtaking, he also connects to audiences with his engaging personality.

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Annual Big Band Scholarship Fundraiser, Celebrating Nat King Cole

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center’s Big Band will present its Annual Scholarship Gala on Saturday, December 7th at 8:00 PM. This year’s celebration will honor Nat King Cole’s 100th birthday-anniversary. The VJC Big Band, under the leadership of musical director Rob Freeberg, is a community orchestra made up of professional musicians who come together once a year to raise money for the VJC’s Scholarship Fund. This event is the primary funding source that helps aid scholarship students attending VJC’s educational programs. In 2019 the VJC offered $30,000 in scholarships to help students attend ensembles, private lessons and their annual summer jazz workshop.

This year’s gala will feature the arrangements of songs made famous by Nat “King” Cole, who was recognized as “one of the most influential entertainers of the 20th century” by National Public Radio. The Grammy Hall of Famer was a superstar of his time: he recorded over 150 Billboard singles and sold over 50 millions records. Cole knew he was destined for a life of music – he dropped out of high school at the age of 15 to tour as pianist in his brother Eddie’s trio and he never looked back.

Next Stage Arts Project Hires New Executive Director

by ChrisLenois | Arts

Next Stage Arts Project announced it has hired Keith Marks to be the next Executive Director following a nationwide search. He will assume leadership of the Putney, Vermont-based nonprofit presenting arts organization in January of 2020.

Marks will be moving from Jacksonville, Florida, where he founded Avant, a nonprofit organization dedicated to enriching community through the power of diverse arts experiences. His efforts earned him the 2019 Arts Innovator Award from the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville.

New Year’s Eve Party at Brattleboro VFW Dec. 31st

by Not Signed In | Entertainment

New Year’s Eve tickets on sale now for Dec. 31st at the Brattleboro VFW. Doors open at 5 pm, meal at 6 pm, and The Visitors Band starts at 7:30pm. $20 a ticket gets you a choice of prime rib or garlic roasted pork, salad, baked potato, veg. and roll. Snacks at 10 pm, and party favors will also be handed out. A champagne toast at midnight for those of age. Come into the VFW and choose your table now. $10 per person for the dance only. Public is welcome

John Stowell & Draa Hobbs, Jazz Guitar

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

The Bellows Falls community radio station, WOOL-FM, welcomes back guitar duo John Stowell & Draa Hobbs for a return engagement of world-class jazz at Stage 33 Live. There will also be a musician’s master class on improvisation preceding.

John Stowell, based on the West Coast, is influenced as much by pianists and horn players as by guitar players, and his original take on harmony, chords, and improvisation sets him apart. He tours, records, and teaches internationally, and has been a contributing columnist for Downbeat, Guitar Player, Soundcheck (Germany), Guitar Club (Italy), and other influential publications.

BCTV Schedules – Week of December 2, 2019

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 schedule for the week of 12/2/19

Monday, December 2, 2019

5:00 am NAACP – Windham County NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner 11/16/19
8:00 am Democracy Now! – Daily Episode
9:00 am Brattleboro Rallies – Impeachment Rally – 11/3/19
10:08 am Addiction Recovery Channel – Drug Interdiction, Law Enforcement and Sex Trafficking

Next Stage Arts Project presents The Groovebarbers A Capella Holiday Concert on Friday, December 6

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project is delighted to welcome back to Putney the international a capella sensation The Groovebarbers for the fifth annual holiday concert, on Friday, December 6 at 7:30pm. Tickets are $15 for adults, $7.50 for 6 years old and up, and $40 for a family. Kids under 6 get in free. The renovated and accessible Next Stage is located at 15 Kimball Hill, Putney, VT. Tickets are available online at www.nextstagearts.org, or at the Putney General Store or Turn It Up! in Brattleboro three weeks in advance of the show.

49th Messiah Sing: A Benefit for the Homeless

by fomag | Music

Brattleboro, Vt. – Friends of Music at Guilford (FOMAG) invites singers and music lovers in the Tri-State region to start their holiday season at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, December 7, with the 49th annual Community Messiah Sing, a benefit for the homeless. Centre Congregational Church, at 193 Main Street in Brattleboro, has been home for the Sing since 1982 and for a few prior seasons as well.

Kenneth Olsson, who conducted the Sing in 2017 and 2018, is moving to the organist’s bench this year. A well-known vocalist and performer on piano and organ, as well as music director for opera and musical theater, he has led FOMAG’s Guilford Festival Orchestra since 2012 and in 2014 co-founded the Southern Vermont Lyric Theatre.

Next Stage Arts Project presents Author David Blistein on Thursday, December 5

by stobro | Books

Next Stage Arts Project, the Putney based community non-profit, presents award winning author David Blistein reading from his new book “Opium” on Thursday, December 5 at 7:30 pm at Next Stage. The book, Opium: How an Ancient Flower Shaped and Poisoned Our World, tells the extraordinary and at times harrowing tale of how we arrived at today’s crisis.
Mr. Blistein will be joined for this special event by his collaborator and co-author Dr. John Halpern and the pair will facilitate a Q&A with the audience following the reading. Signed copies of the book will be available for sale. Admission $5 – $35 sliding scale with 100% of the ticket sales supporting Groundworks Collaborative and Next Stage Arts Project. Josh Davis, Executive Director of Groundworks Collaborative said, “In a time when there are a lot of unanswered questions around the opioid epidemic, David and John’s book asks a lot of interesting questions that are poignant and add depth to this complex and difficult topic.”

WWAC Honors Departing Marlboro College with Talks by Two Seniors

by Rosalyn Shaoul | Education

As Marlboro College takes first steps in leaving Vermont to become the “Marlboro Institute for Liberal Arts and Interdisciplinary Studies” on the Emerson College campus in Boston, the Windham World Affairs Council is holding what may be its last “Marlboro event” while the college is still a cherished neighbor. On December 6, 2019, at 7:00 pm at 118 Elliot, 118 Elliot St. in Brattleboro, WWAC will host two Marlboro students presenting on topics related to their senior research projects. We invite you to join us for this special event.

Over the years, WWAC programs have benefited tremendously from proximity to Marlboro College. For years, the college offered the Council the privilege of holding monthly talks at their Marlboro Graduate Center in downtown Brattleboro, never asking for a rental fee. Their Faculty members often served on the WWAC Board. Their students attended its lectures. They shared their prestigious Presidential Seminar Speaker Series with the organization. WWAC will really miss their presence in our community.

BCTV Schedules – Week of November 25, 2019

by BCTVProg | Media

BCTV Channel 8 schedule for the week of 11/25/19

Monday, November 25, 2019

5:00 am NAACP – Windham County NAACP Freedom Fund Dinner 11/16/19
8:00 am Democracy Now! – Democracy Now! Daily Broadcast
9:00 am Brattleboro Rallies – Impeachment Rally – 11/3/19
10:08 am Addiction Recovery Channel – Drug Interdiction, Law Enforcement and Sex Trafficking
10:55 am Mad River Shorts – A Coral Reef in Vermont

Antje Duvekot and Matt Nakoa at Next Stage on Saturday, November 30

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present a contemporary folk singer/songwriter twin bill with Antje Duvekot and Matt Nakoa at Next Stage on Saturday, November 30 at 7:30 pm.

Antje Duvekot is a German-born, American-raised singer/songwriter whose songs have been critically praised for their hard-won wisdom, dark-eyed realism and street-smart romanticism.  Her bicultural upbringing and relative newness to English have helped shape her unique way with a song, giving her a startlingly original poetic palette.  They are the keys to the powerful, even revolutionary, empathy that informs everything she writes.  She has won some of the top songwriting awards including the Grand Prize in the John Lennon Songwriting Competition, the Kerrville Folk Festival Best New Folk Award and the Boston Music Award for Outstanding Folk Act.

HatchSpace presents Woodturning Workshops in December

by HatchSpace | Creative

Hatchspace, 35 Frost St in Brattleboro, Vermont, is a non-profit dedicated to sharpening an appreciation for the work of human hands through the learning, practice, and teaching of woodworking.

Now one year old, Hatch serves the greater Brattleboro community with shared member workspace and classes for all levels of experience and interest.

Upcoming in December, instructor Blake Johnson offers a two part series in woodturning.