Another wonderful concert

Today was the second in a series of concerts and other events at the Guilford Church. Andy Davis gave a concert of songs and instrumental pieces composed by him. It was wonderful in every way. The songs were varied but most were a wry, gentle, often humorous, often profound commentary on social, economic, cultural and political "received truths." At times Tom Lehrer came to mind. The program was very well composed and executed. Andy was in very good voice, and accompanied himself on piano and sometimes accordian. Sometimes he brought in fiddler, Laurie Indenbaum, sometimes family members: Robin, Arthur, Emma (daughter) and Emma (daughter-in-law); also friend, Tom Green. It was charming, entertaining and touching all at once. And it drew a full house. There was a lovely reception following which Ellen contributed gingerbread to. A grand event. I am organizing the third event in the series, which will honor Shirley on the 25th anniversary of her death, through music, story-telling, and archival videos. That will be May 21st. It will involve many different people. The bar has been set pretty high, and I am a little nervous.

An Excursion to Grandma Miller's

Yesterday we picked up Calvin and made a little excursion to Grandma Miller's bakery and Lowell Lake = both in Londondery, Vermont. Calvin no longer drives, and furthermore, his son's life has changed, and he is now working almost full time as a carpenter (formerly he was home a lot), and Calvin is alone much of the time. So he enjoyed getting out of the house. It was not the ideal day for a trip: it was sort of rainy and even foggy. But it was okay, and the sun did come out for a while. The drive up Route 30 to Londonderry is always a treat. We all went inside at Grandma Miller's and had coffee and a treat. Ellen and I both had chocolate eclairs, but Calvin, who had not had lunch, got himself a small apple pie, and ate the whole thing himself. We had a little table next to the window and had a nice time enjoying our treats and talking. Afterward, we went to Lowell Lake, which has special significance for both Calvin and me because the Blanche Moyse Chorale (of which Calvin was not only a member of the bass section, but also President), back in the 1980's, had annual weekend retreats in September at a camp on Lowell Lake. The camp was owned by a member of the Chorale, Joan White, and her husband, Preston. It had a dozen or so small cottages and a large lodge where we could gather to eat and rehearse. It was an idyllic spot, and we both have wodnerful memories of those weekends. Today those camp buildings still exist, but they are part of what is now a larger Lowell Lake State Park, and the buildings are not used and are not being maintained. That is sad. I don't know if it is too late to restore them and put them to use or not. But the state just doesn't have the resources to do that. The lake is still as beautiful as ever, however, and a favorite place to kayak. Yesterday, however, the snow was really piled up and there was no access to the lake. We'll have to go back in the summertime. We came back via WIndham Hill and pointed out to Calvin the house that John, Cynthia, Ellen and I considered buying and all moving in together - that was about four-five years ago, and nothing came of it (too expensive). All in all, it was about a 3-hour excursion.

A case of baked treats at Grandma Miller's

GM also sells a wide variety of frozen baked goods, which includes not only cakes and pies but also things like lasagna and Mac&Cheese.

Calvin and Ellen at our little table at Grandma Miller's. *************************** Today, I started the day going to Planet Fitness - my first time since becoming a member. I didn't have a lot of time, but I used three machines. It's a start! I resolved my issue with PF making direct withdrawals from my personal bank account by creating a special small account at 802 Credit Union which will be solely for that purpose. If PF gets hacked and personal data is stolen, I won't be very much at risk. Then I came home and we immediately csme down to Shutesbury, and just had lunch with KS&B.

Tamar, Trees and Libby Mills

Saturday (3/18) was our fifth day without power. No showers, piles of unwashed dishes. We were scheduled to sing with Hallowell at a Memorial Service for Elizabeth "Libby" Stone Mills, a much-beloved pillar of the Putney community who died at age 95. The 1:00pm service was being held at the Putney School, where Libby had worked for decades. Ellen had to go out to do something in the morning, but I stayed home and took a much-needed "sponge bath" using a dish pan with water from melted snow heated on the wood stove. We met Eliza at our usual car-pooling spot on the back road to Putbey and were astonished by the number of trees that had obviously fallen over the road during the storm and now were cut up and lying beside the road. There was one stretch of road maybe 100 yards long, where almost a dozen good-sized trees had come down. What a job to clear that- no wonder we were still without power!

An example of a downed tree - this one on the East-West road just below our driveway.*************** Hallowell gathered to "warm up" in a room in Currier Hall at Putney School that was very familiar to me - years ago, c. 2005-2010, the Chorale had met there to rehearse. Libby's service was remarkable - a fitting trubute to an amazing, gifted, woman who had poured out her life in service to others. The hall was full - over 200 prople for sure. A slide show gave a visual overview of her life. Hallowell sang "Noone Stands Alone," "Farthest Field," and "Crossing the Bar," - and we sang well! Many people - family, friends and work colleagues - paid tribute to Libby's many-faceted life. It ended in grand fashion - a New Orleans-style jazz band appeared and slowly marched in playing, "Just A Closer Walk With Thee," and then segued into a rousing "When the Saints Go Marching In." What a blast!

Elizabeth Stone Mills (1928-2023).

The jazz band marching in.

The hall we were in - the view from my seat.

The Slide show on the big screen and a speaker at the podium.***************** After Libby's service we had to go directly to Northampton to join the Feinlands for supper at 5:00pm - we just made it - and then go to the high school for a performance of the 1980's rock musical "Rock of Ages," which Tamar was in. It was a high-energy show with lots of spirited music and dancing. And we got to see several Feinlands who had traveled to be there: Jerry's mother, Doris, his siblings, Gary, Laura and Robin, and Tamar's siblings, Ben and Max.

Above: Act I and ACT II finales.

In the Feinland kitchen - l. to r.: Ben, Julie, Max, Jerry, Tamar, and Theo downon the floor.

Tamar after the show.

Snow Lanterns

Robin Davis had a great idea! She used a bowl to pack snow into and made scores of balls of snow (almost ice balls) and then used them to construct an igloo, leaving an opening at the bottom into which she could slip a candle, and voila!!! Below is a picture of the two, beautiful snow lanterns she made in her front yard!

Robin's snow lanterns. We are still without power. We're coping but it is challenging.

Snow, snow, snow!

We have just had a storm the likes of which we have not seen for quite a while. Up at our place, I think we have gotten cloese to two feet. It is wet, heavy, sticky snow, so branches and trees are down by the hundreds around here and by the 10,000's region-wide I'm sure. We have lost our power, and it has been out for over 24 hours. I think it could be out for days, because so much is down. We also lost our phone service for a while. We got plowed out by Zach and with considerable shoveling to clear out the pile the plow left behind the car, we got our car out and the three of us have come into Brattleboro. It is a different world here. Electricity, far less snow. I have not been able to reach John, despite repeated calls and emails. I suspect they have lost their power too.

This is normally a very large, high rhododendron bush. The snow has crushed it to the ground.

This is our deck. It is buried in snow. I'm worried about the weight of the snow, but so far, so good.

Snow scenes LATER: We had lunch with Andy and Robin and supper at Panda North. Paul has left and gone to stay with Julie. I reached John by phone - they indeed are without power and also not plowed out becsuse so many trees are down over town roads, their plow guy could not reach their house. So they are worse off thsn we are. However, they have a woodstove and plenty of food in the pantry. They are not suffering. We are charging devices up at the Dummerston church, which has power. Our main inconvenience is a lack of water.

More birthday!

Last Saturday (3/11) we had the birthday party that was postponed from the previous Saturday because of snow. It was held at Katie and Savanna's in Shutesbury, and Jim and Mary came down from Maine. John and Cynthia came with us - we met at the Dummerston Church. So there were nine of us altogether. The Feinlands were not able to come, but we saw them and had dinner together yesterday (see previous post about Tamar's a cappella concert). The party at K&S's included a wonderful meal that Ellen prepared with lots of my faves, e.g. scalloped potatos, meat loaf, and a carrot cake birthday cake. Katie made a MadLibs based on my life: that was fun. i got a gift from Jim and Mary: a handsome hat (see photos), and rubber tips for my poles. We also did some singing.

Blowing out the candles.

Birthday cake with John in background. Cynthia took several photos too - me blowing out the candles. (Actually, because of COVID, I pretended to blow, and then put out the candles by waving a card at them).

And one of John:

Cynthia also gave me a gift of a book of poetry; Joy Harjo's Weaving Sundown in a Scarlet Light: 50 poems for 50 years. Joy Harjo is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, who lives in Tulsa, OK. I like her poetry, judging from the few poems I have had a chance to read.

The book of poems. Here's one I read at the party:

"Perhaps the world ends here (at the kitchen table).

Tamar in Collegiate A Cappella Concert.

Tamar's a cappella singing group, the Northamptones, had the fun and privilege of opening the Northampton Collegiate A Cappella Concert, called the Silver Chord Bowl, at the Academy of Music yesterday (Sunday afternoon). This is a big deal! This is the oldest such concert in the country, going back 39 years, I think they said. There were groups on the program from, e.g., MIT, Vassar, Bates, Tufts, UMass, and the Berklee School of Music in Boston. The Berklee group was especially good - they just won a national contest at the Los Angeles A Cappella Fsstival. Collegiate A Cappella Music is a genre unto itself, as Ellen keeps reminding me. I want it to include a broader range of a cappella music and include motets by Gesualdo (1566-1613), madrigals by John Dowland (1563-1626) or even Georgian music, which is perhaps the oldest harmonic a cappella music in the world. These young people have fantastic voices and I want them to tackle these older forms of a cappella music that are very difficult and rarely heard, but all very beautiful. But of course they don't. This genre of a cappella music is quite recent. It has a great deal of diversity within itself, to be sure. We heard some old favorites yesterday like "Say a Little Prayer for Me." But mostly it is fairly recent pop music, unfamiliar to me (though probably well-known to a youthful audience), and featuring percussive mouth sounds, which is what gives this genre its special sound. I think all the groups had, e.g., two guys with microphones close to their mouths, creating a rhythm section for the group. It's fun music, and the groups were all very good - including the Northamptones, who held their own very well in this august company. One of the Vassar singers (the "Vassar Devils"!), even proudly announced that he was a former "Northamptone." The hall was packed - the Academy of Music is an architectural gem and worth the trip just to see - and it was just very enjoyable. I'm sure I would have loved being in a group like these when I was in high school or college, but they didn't exist then. We had glee clubs and quartets (I was in both and went to state music contests in both), but nothing like this. But I can't complain - I've had a wonderful life of singing as an amateur, the highpoint being my 30+ years in the Blanche Moyse Chorale. One year the Chorale competed - by submitting a tape - in a national contest for choral groups sponsored by the National Endowment for the Arts, and we were ranked #1 in the country - we beat the Robert Shaw Chorale! This little group of amateurs in Bratttleboro, Vermont, # 1 in the country! Another year we performed the St. Matthew Passion of J.S. Bach in Carnegie Hall, and a reviewer in the Wall Street Journal said that we had given "the most affecting performance of Bach in the city that year." Not that that kind of recognition ultimately matters - what matters was the experience itself, which was consistently transcendent. But it's nice to be known and appreciated. So I'm happy for Tamar that she is getting this chance to sing. She is going to Brandeis University next fall - maybe there will be more opportunities there. After the concert, Tamar had to go to a rehearsal for the high school musical - busy girl! But Ellen, Jerry, Julie and I went to a Chinese restaurant, Oriental Tastes, and we were joined by Paul! He had flown out to Philedelphia last week and visited his dad, Bill Baker, and some friends, and then driven up to Northampton yesterday! It was so great to see him! Oriental Tastes is Julie's favorite Chinese restaurant in Northampton, and it was good, but in my opinion, doesn't hold a candle to Panda North, in Brattleboro. Sorry, I'm sort of tooting the horn for Brattleboro more than I probably should, but it's true! I asked for "Mala Tofu," which is my favorite dish at Panda North, and what I got was sort of limp by comparison. But I was hungry, and I ate it, along with some of Ellen's ginger green beans and some scallion pancakes, and I enjoyed it. But it made Ellen and I really appreciate what we have in Panda North.

Article on the Northamptones from the program.

Close-up of picture - Tamar is in the middle.

The Academy of Music Hall

The Northamptones singing

Ditto

Ditto

Three other Groups

Julie, Ellen, Me and Jerry at the Chinese restaurant - taken by Paul.

Jerry and Paul at the restaurant.

My tofu dish

A big disappointment

The Tarheels lost to Virginia tonight in the quarterfinals of the ACC tournament in Greensboro, NC. They had to win tonight to have a chance to get into the bracket for the big NCAA "March Madness" tournament. Thus they will probably not get in (it isn't over 'till it's over - the brackets are set Sunday night.) It's particularly sad because they were in the championship game last year and four of the five starters in that game returned this year. For some reason, they didn't have the magic this year. They won 20 games, but lost nine of ten games against ranked teams, and that just isn't good enough. So, no March Madness for me this year. Sigh.......!

At the Bergh's for the game. Phoebe and Maggie and Ellen. Ellen brought popcorn.

Since my 90th birthday

A lot of people ask me, "How does it feel to be 90 years old?" Usually I answer that it doesn't feel that different from being 89. but that isn't exactly true. Turning 90 has gotten me a lot of attention and appreciation. I received many nice greetings at church Sunday morning where I led the choir in the beautiful old hymn "Deal gently with thy servant Lord." I got a standing ovation at River Singers Tuesday evening, after they sang "Happy Birthday" - the version that is a round and ends, "may you have a long, long life," a wish that has already come true! i keep receiving cards, many of which say that I have been an inspiration to the sender. And I keep receiving gifts, to add to those I have already received. E.g., Tuesday, Kathy Leo and hèr husband, Tom, gave me three jars: honey. dilly-beans and honey-mustard - all home-made from their garden and beehives. Cynthia gave me a lovely, framed photograph of John and Betsey, taken years ago when they were together on the rocky coast of Maine. It is a very special picture that I love looking at. Earlier, I had gotten a beautiful red Chicago Bulls t-shirt and pair of socks from Jerry, and a book of brain puzzles to keep me sharp, and a music-box that plays "Happy Birthday" from Becky. Yesterday I held a Zoom Bible Study session that brought more loving good wishes. Saturday there will be a birthday dinner at Katie and Savanna's, delayed from last Saturday because of snow. So being 90 years old feels very special!

Above: gifts and cards.

A beautiful concert

Friday evening, we went to the Brattleboro Music Center to hear the group In Stile Moderno in a concert of the songs of Henry Purcell (1659-1695). You read that right - Purcell lived only 36 years, yet composed over 800 works! In addition to being a big fan of Purcell's music, I also have a son-in-law, Robert Shay, who is a Purcell scholar. He wrote a tome on the original MSS of Purcell a couple of decades ago, and now, a new edition of Purcell's most famous opera, Dido and Anaeas which Rob has edited based on that work with original MSS, will be published next month by Bärenreiter Publishers one of the premier publishers, perhaps THE premier, of classical music scores, A real feather in his cap.

Henry Purcell (1659-1695)

Rob's book********************************************** The group, In Stile Moderno, was composed of four vocal soloists and a theorbo player: Agnes Coakley Cox, Sophie Michaux, Corey Dalton Hart, Adam Simon, voices; Nathaniel Cox, theorbo The theorbo is a lute-like instrument common in Purcell's time, but very uncommon today. The program was called The English Orpheus,, and as the group explained, "If Orpheus charmed humans, animals, and even the gods of the Underworld with his lyre, then Henry Purcell, known as the “English Orpheus,” did the same for kings, queens, and commoners alike with his compositions. In his short thirty-six years, he created an astounding 850 works of music or more—and they still captivate and enchant us centuries later. Our spring concert will be an intimate evening of Purcell songs that journey from the sublime to the irreverent and back again." They charmed, indeed, and we greatly enjoyed the evening. A perfect "birthday concert."

The group, taking a bow.

Nathaniel Cox, playing the theorbo. I learned at the concert that Nathaniel Cox is the son of my friend, Doug Cox, who was sitting next to us in the audience. Doug, a violin-maker, is someone I know thriugh the BMC, through Putney Friends Mweting, and through the Jewish Community Torah Study on Zoom which took place back during them height of the pandemic. I think he and I were the only non-Jewish members of the group.