Music

Music section

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Alfredo Rodriguez Duo with Pedrito Martinez

by vtjazz | Music

On Saturday May 18th, the Vermont Jazz Center will present a duo concert featuring two of Cuba’s foremost musical performers: pianist Alfredo Rodriguez and percussionist Pedrito Martinez. Their charismatic presence, a brand new album and an on-going tour of about fifty international gigs has generated tremendous excitement and expanded their circle to include listeners around the globe. In the coming months they will be touring Canada, Italy, Spain, France, Turkey, Sweden, Switzerland, and the US, including Brattleboro, Vermont. In the promo for their new release, Duologue, percussionist Martinez states that “what makes this duo completely different is that I came from the folkloric side and Alfredo came from the classical side.”

Free Irish Music Concert and Book Launch: Doiminic Mac Giolla Bhríde, with Frances Morton

by Brooks Memorial Library | Music

Join us at 6:30 pm on Monday, June 3rd, as we welcome internationally known Irish musician, Doiminic Mac Giolla Bhríde, and his partner, Frances Morton! They will be giving a FREE concert of his own sean-nós music, after introducing his second Irish-language children’s book, Polcaphonc. He will play a few fun songs from the book!

About the book: Polcaphonc (Polka Dot)
The Songbook/CD for kids by Dominic Mac Giolla Bhríde (from the artists who created Icí Pící), has English (Béarla) translations for each song.

Les Poules a Colin and Pipers Den at Next Stage on Friday, May 17

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of traditional and contemporary Scottish, Quebecois and world music from New England and Canada by Les Poules à Colin and Pipers Den at Next Stage on Friday, May 17 at 7:30 pm.

Les Poules à Colin is a Montreal-based quintet that, despite the young ages of its member (22 to 27), has been touring Canada, the US, Europe, the UK, Australia and Africa for over eight years.  Their sound seamlessly blends music drawn from some of Quebec’s finest trad musicians with North American influences that range from old-time to jazz.

Patty Carpenter & Verandah Porche with Jon Weeks and Wheeler Laird perform in Bellows Falls

by Mark Piepkorn | Music

Patty Carpenter & Verandah Porche, lifelong friends and collaborators who are no strangers to Brattleboro, will be playing a listening event at Stage 33 live in Bellows Falls with special guests Jon Weeks and Wheeler Laird on Sunday, May 19.

They’ll be playing some of the songs they’ve written since the Dysfunctional Family Jazz Band’s “Come Over” CD, which they also co-composed.

Brattleboro Women’s Chorus Concerts this Weekend: Walk With Me

by bwchorus | Music

The Brattleboro Women’s Chorus will present their 23rd annual spring concert, “Walk With Me,” on Mother’s Day weekend at Centre Congregational Church. Joining director Becky Graber and the 80-voice chorus of women will be Cathy Martin on piano and Connie Green on flute.

Last summer, a group of singers from the chorus traveled to Grand Rapids, Michigan to participate in the Sister Singers Festival, a gathering of women’s choruses from across the country. The “Walk With Me” repertoire was inspired by that trip and features songs of travel, migration, community, and home. One of the concert’s songs, “Winnebago” by David Maddux, about an obvious means of hitting the road, was heard at the festival.

Pete Seeger Centennial Tribute Singalong Concert

by GeorgeCC | Music

WEST BRATTLEBORO — Folk singer, activist, musical conscience for the U.S., Pete Seeger, would have been 100 this year. All Souls Church, 29 South Street, will host a singalong concert on Sunday, May 12, at 7 p.m. to celebrate Seeger’s music and his life-long efforts on behalf of peace, justice, and the earth.

The concert will feature well-known performers with deep connections to Seeger, including Sally Rogers, Emma’s Revolution, Peter Siegel, Annie Patterson and Peter Blood.

Those who attend the tribute concert will have the chance to sing together using a new songbook containing fifty classic songs Pete Seeger led throughout his life. Publishers Peter Blood and Annie Patterson of Rise Up Singing fame designed this new book for the Seeger centennial.

Keelan, Jewett Face Off In Concert At Main Street Arts

by Not Signed In | Music

SAXTONS RIVER, Vt. – Hugh Keelan on the piano and Joe Jewett on the violin face off Sunday, May 12 at 3 p.m. in a Classic(al) Saxtons River Spectacular as Main Street Arts continues its Hands On! concert series.

Concertgoers are invited to see all the action up close as Keelan interprets the music of Johannes Brahms on the MSA piano and Jewett matches him on his own instrument with works by Lou Harrison.

While Brahms is a familiar name to classical music fans, Lou Silver Harrison’s may not be.

“Fine & Dandy” Gala Celebrates Gershwin’s Muse, Composer Kay Swift

by fomag | Music

West Brattleboro, Vt. – Friends of Music at Guilford’s tenth annual celebration of Women in Music begins at 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, April 14, and salutes Katherine Faulkner “Kay” Swift (1897-1993). She was a classically trained composer who became George Gershwin’s trusted musical advisor and companion. After Gershwin (1898-1937) encouraged her to compose popular music, Swift became the first woman to write a hit Broadway musical, “Fine and Dandy” (1930), now the borrowed title for FOMAG’s gala.

Some of both genres of music will be performed at this house-concert benefit for FOMAG’s current 53rd season. The program opens with a piano transcription of the Overture to “Fine and Dandy,” performed by Virginia Eskin, and later includes Swift’s Theme and Variations for Piano and Cello, performed with cellist Rebecca Hartka. Eskin will also accompany several songs from Swift’s musical theater and film scores featuring vocals by Jessica Gelter and Tony Grobe.

Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas at Next Stage on Thursday, April 11

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of cutting edge fiddle and cello explorations of Scottish, Celtic and global music by Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas at Next Stage on Thursday, April 11 at 7:30 pm.  With a shared passion for improvising on the melody and the groove of traditional tunes, Alasdair and Natalie feature dazzling teamwork, swapping melodic and harmonic lines and trading driving rhythmic riffs.   “…soaring sustains, windswept refrains, and sudden, jazzy explosions. Their sound is as urbane as a Manhattan midnight, and as wild as a Clackmannan winter.” — Boston Globe

Dance Party on 4/7 for the Women’s Chorus!

by bwchorus | Music

What better way to celebrate the coming of spring than a Bayou-themed dance party with three local dance bands! Everyone is invited on Sunday, April 7 from 5:00-8:00 pm to the Vermont Jazz Center for music hailing from the Louisiana Bayou to the streets of Brazil and from points all over the Afro-Creole culture sphere. Featured will be two of Brattleboro’s signature New Orleans roots music ensembles, Bayou X and the Celebration Brass Band, with a special guest appearance by SOVESA, the Vermont Jazz Center Samba Ensemble. The event is a benefit for the Brattleboro Women’s Chorus (and it happens to be our director, Becky Graber’s, birthday).

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Helen Sung’s “Sung With Words”

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center welcomes Helen Sung and celebrates her Chamber Music America sponsored suite, “Sung With Words” on Saturday, March 30th at 8:00 PM at the Vermont Jazz Center.  This show is a rescheduled date from a snowed out event on January 19, 2019.  The pianist/composer will present a project that embodies the alliance of poetry and jazz and then takes it to new places. The performers in the octet are Helen Sung (piano and composition), Jason Palmer (trumpet), John Ellis (woodwinds), Charenée Wade and Carolyn Leonhart (vocals), Rick Rosato (bass), Adam Cruz (drums) and Samuel Torres (percussion).

Socks in the Frying Pan and Zoe Darrow at Next Stage

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of traditional Celtic and folk music from Ireland and New England by County Clare-based trio Socks in the Frying Pan and fiddler/singer Zoe Darrow at Next Stage on Sunday, March 24 at 7:30 pm.

Socks in the Frying Pan is a multi-award winning trio from the west coast of Ireland, the universal hub of Irish traditional music.  Their dynamic vocal harmonies, virtuosic musical ability and onstage wit have captivated audiences the world around and earned the band critical acclaim and accolades including the Irish Music Association “New Band the Year” award.  With their personal flair, contemporary style and energetic approach to music, Aodán Coyne on guitar and vocals and brothers Shane and Fiachra Hayes on accordion, fiddle and banjo make traditional Irish melodies their own.

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Russell Malone Quartet

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center welcomes guitarist Russell Malone to its stage on March 16th. He will appear with his established quartet including pianist Rick Germanson, bassist Luke Sellick and drummer Anwar Marshall. Perhaps best known for his Grammy nominated work with vocalist Diana Krall, Malone is one of the leading guitarists on the jazz scene today.

Russell Malone is a hard-swinging guitarist also known for his evocative ballad playing. His signature sound is a full-bodied tone with long, fat, sustained notes, reminiscent of one of his early heroes, George Benson. According to his website, “on a school night when [he] should have been in bed” in 1975, he saw George Benson play “incredible things” on a TV special called “Seven Comes Eleven.” Malone quickly purchased two of Benson’s recordings, The George Benson Cookbook and Benson Burner,” which, along with Wes Montgomery’s Smokin’ At the Half Note and Boss Guitar, then set him on what he says is “a course that I have not deviated from.”

The Stockwell Brothers at Next Stage

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present contemporary bluegrass and folk quartet The Stockwell Brothers at the Next Stage Cafe on Saturday, March 16 at 7:00 pm.  To celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, JD McCliments Pub will offer an Irish dinner starting at 6:00 pm, while the Stockwells will explore the connections between folk/bluegrass music and the music of Ireland.   

Bruce, Barry, Alan and Kelly Stockwell’s music spans traditional and progressive styles, but their trademark acoustic sound features new singer/songwriter material recast with banjo, alternative rhythms and three-part harmonies.

Mar. 9: Early Music Benefit Concert by Night’s Black Bird

by JoyW-P | Music

West Brattleboro, Vt. — At 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, March 9, tri-state fans of Early Music are invited to All Souls Church in West Brattleboro for “Love’s Harvest,” a benefit concert of airs, arias, madrigals, and tonos by the Night’s Black Bird trio from Allentown, Pennsylvania. Admission at the door is $15 per person and includes a gala reception; proceeds will help support ASC community-based programs and the Meeting House.

“Stolen Jewels”: Gems for Flute & Piano

by fomag | Music
FOMAG artists

Guilford, Vt. – Friends of Music at Guilford, now in its 53rd concert season, presents “Stolen Jewels,” its Midwinter Musicale, on Saturday, February 23, at 3:00 p.m. in the sanctuary of Guilford Community Church. Alison Hale, flute, and Christopher Lewis, piano, both busy teachers and guest artists, will perform four romantic duets transcribed for flute that were originally scored for other instruments with piano. The program of chamber favorites includes the Brahms Sonata in F minor for clarinet, the Schubert Arpeggione Sonata for Cello, the three Romances for Oboe by Schumann, and the Sonata in A Major for violin by Fauré.

The Sweet Remains at Next Stage on Sunday, February 24

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present folk/rock quartet The Sweet Remains, featuring singer/songwriters Rich Price, Greg Naughton and Brian Chartrand, at Next Stage on Sunday, February 24 at 7:30 pm.  Based in Burlington, VT, NYC and Phoenix, AZ, the trio has formed a unique musical kinship around three-part harmonies and shared songwriting that transcends geography and three solo careers.

Celebrating 10 years together and over 30 million Spotify plays in 2018, Rich, Greg and Brian each bring strong lyrical and melodic writing and lush harmonies to The Sweet Remains.  Rich and Greg first started collaborating for Rich’s 2004 Geffen Records debut – a CD that spawned his single “I’m On My Way,” featured on the multi-platinum “Shrek 2” soundtrack. 

The MILES Band at Next Stage on Saturday, February 9

by stobro | Music

Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present a dance party/concert featuring The MILES Band at Next Stage on Saturday, February 9 at 7:30 pm.  Next Stage rolls back its portable front row risers to double as a dance hall and concert venue, with a spacious dance floor between the stage and raked theater seating, for this special evening of funk, soul, rock & roll, folk/rock and reggae classics and contemporary hits.

Vermont Jazz Center Presents: Helen Sung’s “Sung With Words”

by vtjazz | Music

The Vermont Jazz Center welcomes Helen Sung and celebrates her Chamber Music America sponsored project, “Sung With Words” on Saturday, January 19th at 8:00 PM at the Vermont Jazz Center.  The pianist/composer will present a new body of work that embodies the alliance of poetry and jazz and then takes it to new places. The performers in the octet are Helen Sung (piano and composition), Jason Palmer (trumpet), John Ellis (woodwinds), Carolyn Leonhart and Alina Engibaryan (Vocals), David Wong (bass), Kush Abadey (drums) and Felipe Fournier (percussion).

On Banning Baby, It’s Cold Outside

by Lise | Culture, Music

One of the by products of the new ban on Baby, It’s Cold Outside is that I can’t stop humming it. It’s so eminently hummable.  It doesn’t help that we listened to four hours of Christmas music last night, or that I’ve heard everyone from Dolly Parton to Dean Martin sing it in cover versions going back to the 1940s.  In our extensive seasonal music collection, we must have at least a dozen versions and there are many more.