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Artistic Director Christine Gevert will lead more than 30 Crescendo singers in two concerts this holiday season.
Provided
Artistic Director Christine Gevert will lead more than 30 Crescendo singers in two concerts this holiday season.
Crescendo is an award-winning music organization based in Lakeville, Connecticut, which will present two concerts with festive Baroque holiday music for chorus, soloists, and orchestra on Dec. 28 and 29. The program brings comfort, joy, and a sense of wonder to listeners and celebrates unity, love, and hope through the power of music.
Johann Sebastian Bach’s Christmas Oratorio stands at the center of the program. Cantatas by his predecessors and contemporaries showcase the festive themes of Advent, Christmas, and the New Year.
The Crescendo Chorus of thirty singers is joined by soprano Paulina Francisco (Canada), countertenor Nicholas Tamagna (Germany), tenor Gene Stenger (Connecticut), bass-baritone Douglas Williams (Massachusetts), and Crescendo Period Instrument Orchestra with musicians from New York City and Boston. The performances are led by Crescendo’s founding artistic director, Christine Gevert.
“Baroque music appeals directly to our emotions. It is the foundation of most of the music we hear nowadays. These compositions incorporate melodies, rhythms, and even forms from folk music. The cantatas are full of dance rhythms, and familiar tunes, which makes them very accessible to our ears. Even without being a classical music fan or choral music lover, it is hard to not be cheered up by forty voices and fifteen instruments singing music that has great harmonic progressions, and beautiful melodies,” Gevert explained.
Crescendo’s concerts will take place at Trinity Episcopal Church in Lime Rock Dec. 28 and 29.Provided
“The natural trumpets and period timpani are played by experts, and their sound is very solemn and lively at the same time. The Christmas cantatas were composed for the most important moment in the church celebrations. The period instruments used in these works have a sound that is a bit more transparent, and perhaps differentiated than the instruments we hear in modern orchestras, and they also have very unique colors. That makes them perfect to accompany the human voice,” she added.
Gevert was raised in Chile and lived in Europe for twelve years. She had been thinking of moving to Boston in the early 2000s but found the Early Music scene there difficult to break into as a foreigner. Luckily for local audiences, she found her way to the Northwest Corner.
“I met the minister of Trinity Church Lime Rock at a meditation retreat in Rishikesh, India, and she let me know that the small Episcopal parish had many music-loving members, and that the music director position was opening up. I applied, and was hired in October of 2001. It took a bit to get the music program going, but I was able to constitute Crescendo here in the fall of 2003, and our audience, chorus and instrumentalists came immediately also from the adjacent areas in New York and Massachusetts. We became an independent 501 (c)(3) organization in 2006,” Gevert says.
Leading ensembles and producing events comes with its own set of challenges. Musicians are not typically educated or trained in management, marketing, and fundraising for arts organizations.
“You need to learn everything at the same time while leading the artistic part of the organization. Everything is done on a shoe-string budget. It was always my goal to bring the very best professionals to our programs, and to pay them a just fee. So most of our funds are used for that, and very little is left for management, marketing, and development. Understanding the functioning of a not-for-profit organization is a journey that has many unexpected challenges and obstacles. Learning to be a leader is not easy in any discipline,” Gevert explained.
“Adoration of the Magi,” by 17th century artist Artemisia Gentileschi. Provided
Gevert feels that society has changed since Covid, with many people still reluctant to attend live performances. The renewal of audience members, supporters, and amateur musicians is more important than ever.
“We have always offered free music education to students and young musicians at Crescendo, and currently have a program in place that functions besides our concert series, and benefits young local musicians who receive one-on-one training,” she added.
Crescendo has been in Lakeville for 21 years in large part because of the many music lovers in the area. Early Music colleagues from the East Coast have also been great supporters.
“We hope that we will be able to celebrate the beauty and power of live music for many more years to come,” said Gevert.
The concerts will take place on Saturday, Dec. 28, 2024 at 4 p.m. at Trinity Episcopal Church, 484 Lime Rock Rd., Lakeville, CT, and on Sunday, Dec. 29, 2024 at 4 p.m. at Saint James Place, 352 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA.
Tickets are available online at www.crescendomusic.org, or on a first come, first served basis at the door, 45 minutes prior to the concert.
FALLS VILLAGE — Housatonic Valley Regional High School girls basketball won 52-29 against Shepaug Valley High School in round one of the Berkshire League playoff tournament Feb. 19.
The Mountaineers established a lead early in the game and maintained a double-digit buffer throughout all four quarters. Housatonic's relentless defense completely stalled Shepaug, forcing numerous turnovers that paved the way for victory.
Olivia Brooks plays point guard for HVRHS.Photo by Riley Klein
HVRHS seniors Kylie Leonard and Daniela Brennan each posted five steals in the game. Leonard led the team in scoring with 13 points and Brennan added a double-double with 11 points and 11 rebounds.
Shepaug battled until the end, but the young Spartan squad struggled to build momentum. Sophomore Eliana Ostrosky scored a team-high 10 points. Emma O'Dwyer scored eight points.
Elian Ostrosky, right, led Shepaug Valley in scoring with 10 points. Photo by Riley Klein
Housatonic advanced to the semifinals to play the reigning champs, Northwestern Regional High School. On the other side of the bracket, top-ranked Gilbret School will play Thomaston High School.
Berkshire League girls semifinals games will be played Friday, Feb. 21 on neutral ground at Nonnewaug High School. HVRHS and Northwestern play first at 5 p.m. and the Gilbert versus Thomaston will follow immediately after.
The BL girls basketball championship game is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. at Nonnewaug.
The home section of the bleachers looks on with anticipation as a three-pointer by Olivia Brooks finds the hoop.Photo by Riley Klein
The Lakeville Journal and Millerton News are seeking young journalists for an educational internship program.
The six week program provides training in the everyday operations of a community weekly. Interns will learn the news-gatheringprocess from pitch to print through regular workshops with industry professionals on topics such as photography, libel and copy-editing.
Interns will also work closely with the papers’ staff. Editors will collaborate with interns to develop stories and provide feedback throughout the program. The papers’ reporters will take interns into the field for shadowing opportunities, teaching interviewing and photography in action.
By the end of the program, interns should be capable of reporting and writing a hard news story or feature fit for print, and should have an article clip and a photograph to start a reporting portfolio. Interns should finish the six-week program with an understanding of current community journalism best practices, interviewing techniques and news-writing skills.
Interested students can find the application online at lakevillejournal.com/education-internship-programs or on our social media accounts.
WOODBURY — Housatonic Valley Regional High School boys basketball was eliminated from the Berkshire League tournament Feb. 18 after a 76-62 loss to reigning champion Nonnewaug High School.
Nonnewaug's triple-threat offense found success both in the paint and on the perimeter against Housatonic. Lincoln Nichols, Brady Herman and Matt Shupenis combined for 64 of the Chiefs' points in the quarterfinal game.
Housatonic's Jesse Bonhotel, left, sets up a play against Nonnewaug.Photo by Riley Klein
After falling behind early, the Mountaineers refused to go down without a fight. HVRHS cut a double-digit lead to seven points in the third quarter before foul trouble stalled offensive momentum.
HVRHS juniors Anthony Foley and Wesley Allyn each had season-high scoring nights with 21 and 16 points respectively. Defensively, Owen Riemer forced repeated turnovers through steals and swatted shots.
Anthony Foley scored 21 points for HVRHS Feb. 18.Photo by Riley Klein
After the game, Housatonic coach Kurt Johnson reflected on the season, calling it an "improvement but we didn't hit our ceiling." He described graduating seniors Jesse Bonhotel, Mason O'Niel, Sam and Jacob Marcus as "the toughness of the team, so that's the challenge that the young guys will have to figure out" next year.
Nonnewaug advanced to the semifinal round Feb. 20 against Thomaston High School. On the other side of the Berkshire League bracket, undefeated Shepaug Valley High School got matched against Lakeview High School. Both games will be played at Northwestern High School back-to-back beginning at 5:15 p.m.
Housatonic coach Kurt Johnson.Photo by Riley Klein