Imaginative Programming and Outstanding Artists are the hallmarks of our music series. With this in mind, you may want to take note of some of our superb artists already engaged for the 2008-2009 Season:
The incomparable St. Petersburg String Quartet will return with a fine cellist to perform Schubert’s Cello Quintet and more.
Catching them on their North American tour: Trio Con Brio from Copenhagen.
And from The City of Music, Vienna, the Hugo Wolf Quartett – (that’s right: two Ts) - they will work with our school children in one of our much appreciated School Outreach Programs.
The incomparable pianist Katia Skanavi will give a Newtown recital on Sunday, March 22nd, 2009 and we already know that tickets to her concert will be at a premium. Subscribers, of course, will have first dibs.
On April 5, 2009, violinist Maria Bachmann accompanied by Jon Klibanoff on the piano, will perform for us on Sunday afternoon and for the children of all the fourth grades in town on Monday morning in our second School Outreach Program.
Please use our handy Order Form
The Board of Directors has once again voted to NOT raise ticket prices – you can use the handy order form just the way it is. Don’t forget to include your self-addressed, stamped envelope. Tickets will be mailed in April.
exquisite music - superbly performed
During the 30th anniversary celebrations following the successful Kavafian-Schub-Shifrin concert, the Board of Directors honored President Ellen Parrella for her twenty years of leading the organization and presented her with a hand-cut lead crystal bowl.
Members of the Board of Directors of Newtown Friends of Music met recently in the Mary Hawley Room of Edmond Town Hall to discuss plans for their 29th season 2006/2007.
The Board has decided to present six, rather than five, concerts in the coming season and, additionally, engage artists once in the Fall of 2006 and once in the Spring of 2007 to work with Newtown's school children in two workshop/school outreach programs.
The acoustics in the auditorium, the charming ambience of Edmond Town Hall, the presence of the venerable Knabe Concert Grand Piano and - most recently - the availability of a modern elevator that reaches all floors, all combine to persuade the members of Newtown Friends of Music to make use of the 500-seat auditorium, even though the rental of the space has again been increased by the Town Hall's Board of Managers.
At the same time, the Board of Directors of Newtown Friends of Music are convinced that low ticket prices make the concerts available to the greatest number of music lovers and they have therefore decided to keep subscriptions at the same price as last year, even though this year will see six concerts: In September, October and November, and then again in February, March and April.
A free brochure describing the upcoming concerts can be obtained at the Town Hall, the Cyrenius H Booth Library, the Drug Center Pharmacy, and many other locations around town. Or a simple telephone call to 203-426-6470 will bring a brochure directly to your house. A visit to the website www.newtownfriendsofmusic.org gives further information, including dates, pictures of the artists, a printable order form and archives of past seasons. Also on the website are photos of past school outreach programs.
Shown on the attached photo left to right:
Seated: Cheryl Edelen, vice-president; Ellen Parrella, president; Lea Kinstler
and Dorothea LaBelle. Standing: Paul Gehrett, David Luessenhop; Bill Timmel,
secretary; Dick Salerno, and Peter Marshall, treasurer.
Mailing out tickets for the Tercentennial Candlelight Concert on November 19,
are Newtown Friends of Music members:
Standing Fred Parrella and Peter Marshall
Sitting: left-to-right: Dorothea LaBelle, David Luessenhop, Paul Gehrett and
Bill Timmel.
In honor of Newtown's Tercentennial Newtown Friends of Music is presenting a Special Candlelight Concert on November 19 at 4:00 pm at The Newtown Meeting House. Colonial costume is optional.
The Candlelight concert is a gift to the Town of Newtown from Newtown Friends of Music and admission to the event is gratis to Newtown residents. However, concertgoers are requested to bring an item to fill the Thanksgiving Baskets that WIN will distribute to families in need, as they do every year. Items are also needed for the Food Pantry.
Mrs Monaco states that WIN has a cooler and can, therefore, accept items that need refrigeration, such as bread, baked goods, and such.
Mrs Parrella said she was extremely happy to have this collaboration between NFM and WIN and trusts that the collection, on November 19, will result in well over 250 items for the Thanksgiving baskets.
For a free ticket, please send a self addressed, stamped envelope with the number of tickets requested to Newtown Friends of Music at P O Box 295, Newtown CT 06470-0295. More information about the concert will appear in next week's Bee and can also be found on the NFM website or by calling 426-6470.
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Board Member Cheryl Edelen is seen putting the finishing touches on "The Present" that Newtown Friends of Music will give to the Town of Newtown in honor of Newtown's 300th birthday. The large box, with a big red bow on top, was carefully attached to the green MG-B vintage 1979 belonging to Bill Edelen, which she drove in Newtown's Labor Day parade. Unfortunately, the little car sprung a leak just as it had passed the reviewing stand by the Flagpole and had to be sidelined without completing the circuit. Nevertheless, Newtown Friends of Music are hard at work preparing for their special Candlelight Concert in celebration of Newtown's Tercentennial to be given at The Newtown Meeting House on Saturday, November 19th at four o'clock in the afternoon. Admission is free to Newtown residents and tickets will be available on a first-come, first served basis. Since seating at the Meeting House is limited, early reservations are suggested. Colonial Dress is optional. For further information please look in future copies of The Newtown Bee or telephone 203-426-6470. |
The Newtown Friends of Music recently completed a drive that raised nearly $2000 to help replace the seats in the Edmond Town Hall Theater.
John Mahony of Redding Ridge suggested that if Newtown Friends of Music audience members contributed toward new seats for Edmond Town Hall, the Friends should match their donations. Ellen Parrella, the group's president, broached the subject at the next board meeting. The board thought this to be a splendid idea and the scheme was announced at the Friends' March concert and coupons were made available for contributions.
Music lovers have made good use of the beautiful auditorium of Edmond Town Hall with its excellent acoustics and attractive seating arrangement (not a bad seat in the house). They attend five or more classical music concerts every year (and have done so for the past 27 years) and they agree the seats need replacing. Although the seats in the main auditorium were replaced more than 15 years ago, those in the balcony are the original brown leather-upholstered chairs that Mary Elizabeth Hawley had installed when she had the Town Hall built.
Friends of Music audience members have been generous, contributing $5, $10, $15, $25, $50, or more. Robert Adams France, who resides in Stratford, was particularly generous and contributed enough for almost two thirds of a chair.
At the Newtown Friends of Music Annual Meeting on Tuesday, May 17, treasurer Peter Marshall is seen turning over one check of $ 975 from the monies collected from the concert-going public, and board member Paul Gehrett is handing over a matching check for $975 to Tom Mahoney, Edmond Town Hall manager and to Gordon Williams representing the Lions Club, which is spearheading this fund-raising effort as its contribution to Newtown's Tercentennial. This fundraising effort will buy approximately 6.5 new chairs for Edmond Town Hall.
The Newtown Friends of Music recently celebrated the conclusion of their 27th successful season, which brought 5 outstanding artist groups to the auditorium at Edmond Town Hall in Newtown and saw two of these artist groups spend a morning each with the school children in Newtown Friends of Music's highly valued School Outreach Programs.
You can find more pictures under the Outreach button.
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from left to right: Mardi Smith, String Instructor at Karl Epple, Chairman of The Albert Wadsworth & Helen Clark Meserve Memorial Fund; Michelle Hiscavich, Director of Music in the Newtown Schools Ellen K Parrella, President,
Seen discussing the two outreach programs planned for this spring. |
Ellen K
Parrella, president of Newtown Friends of Music, announced
today that The Albert Wadsworth & Helen The first of these programs will take place in February, when the music students at Newtown High School will participate in 1) an instructional session discussing the composers Beethoven, Hindemith and Mendelssohn; 2) attendance free-of-charge at the concert given by the Pacifica Quartet on Sunday, the 22nd of February 2004 at Edmond Town Hall; and 3) a morning-long workshop with the artists of the Pacifica Quartet on Monday, the 23rd of February at the Newtown High School. This workshop will involve three groups: the Symphonic Orchestra; the String Ensemble; and the Chamber Group. Ms Michelle
Hiscavich, Director of Music for the Newtown School System,
was instrumental in arranging for the students to be available at these
times and expressed her appreciation that Newtown Friends of Music continues
to provide |
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T he second School Outreach Program in 2004 will take
place in April, when students in Ms Mardi Smith’s classes will 1)
study the composers Beethoven, Brouwer and Dvorak, learn about string quartets; and decorum
at classical music concerts; 2) attend a concert given by the Cavani String Quartet on Sunday, the 25th of
April as guests of Newtown Friends of Music, and 3) interact with the
artists in a workshop on Monday, the 26th of April. Ms Smith,
who teaches at the Newtown Friends of Music have presented classical music
concerts for over twenty-five years and have added two School Outreach
Programs every year for the past three years. The opportunity has rotated
among all the grades of music students in |
Mr Karl Epple, Chairman
of The Albert Wadsworth & Helen |
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You can find photographs of past school outreach programs under the “Outreach” tab and information about past concerts, including critical reviews, under the “Archives” tab.
For further information on this season’s concerts or on school outreach programs call 203-426-6470.
Don’t forget your music loving friends – surprise them with an elegant little present they will enjoy and thank you for.
All concerts are on Sunday afternoons and conveniently located at Edmond Town Hall in Newtown, where the acoustics are outstanding, the seats comfortable and the parking is free.
Your gift recipients may also bring children between the ages of five and fourteen free of charge – what a terrific bonus !
Use our convenient Order Form and we shall make every effort to get the gift subscription tickets to you in time for wrapping and presenting.
We suggest that you secure your tickets early. Use our easy Order Form, or send us an e-mail, or call us at 203-426-6470. As always, children between the ages of five and fourteen are welcome and admitted free of charge when accompanied by a ticket holding adult. Bring your young music students to hear professionals perform right here in Newtown.
After the performance, at our informal lobby reception, you will be able to meet the artists, talk to them, ask them for their autographs and learn more about the life of a musician.
We look forward to seeing you at this and all the subsequent outstanding concerts.
exquisite music - superbly performed
