March 25 - Cor Corp

.All performances begin at 7:00 p.m. in the Brooks Room of the Library.

No charge for students and members of the Friends of the Library.
Admission for the general public is $3.00.

Funded by the Wilbraham Friends of the Library, Inc. and the Wilbraham Cultural Council*

March 25 - Cor Corp*
 

Rebecca Krause-Hardie has had a varied and diverse career beginning as 2^nd horn in the Phoenix Symphony following graduation from the Juilliard School in 1980.  Rebecca played regularly with the San Francisco Symphony and Santa Rosa Symphonies in Ca.  She was the competition winner of the South Orange Symphony (NJ) performing the Gliere Horn Concerto.  Exploring opportunities that presented themselves, led to work as the Orchestra Manager of the Detroit Symphony, the Director of New Media for the American Symphony Orchestra League, and the CFO of Voyager Publishing. Currently Rebecca splits her time between playing horn whenever possible and helping performing arts groups in the effective use of new media.

Christine Mortensen got a bachelors degree in music from Oberlin Conservatory (1985) and a masters degree from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (1988).  She has long been a teacher and free-lance performer of the French horn in western Massachusetts as well as in southern VT and NH, appearing with such ensembles as the Massachusetts Wind Orchestra, Berkshire Brass Quintet, Arcadia Players, Ensemble Bacchanal, The Cor Corps, Bennington Woodwind Quintet, Keene Chamber Orchestra, Windham Orchestra, Berkshire Symphony and Bennington Woodwind Quintet.  She is currently on the faculty of the Berkshire Music School and the Northampton Community Music Center.

Margot Rowland holds Bachelor and Master degrees in music from the University of Michigan and the Hartt School of Music.  Her horn teachers have included Charles Kavalovski of the Boston Symphony, Louis Stout, and David Jolly.  She is principal hornist with the Pioneer Valley Symphony and is a frequent performer throughout New England with groups such as the Massachusetts Wind Orchestra, Clarion Brass Quintet, The Cor Corps, Keene Chamber Orchestra, Albany Symphony, Williamstown Theater Festival and the Westwind Quintet.  As a music educator, she has been on the faculties of the Longmeadow Public Schools, Westfield State College, Holyoke Community College and Univ. of Massachusetts at Amherst.  In the summer, she tours Europe with the Santa Monica (Ca.) Orchestra.

April 15 - Yankee Notions

Years ago, friends and neighbors gathered at community and family events to share stories, play tunes and sing songs. Times have changed, but those songs, tunes and stories continue to delight, especially when performed by Yankee Notions.

Yankee Notions is Jim Douglas and Tim Van Egmond. Both are accomplished singers, storytellers, and musicians (guitar, hammered dulcimer, English concertina, pennywhistle, Appalachian dulcimer). Performing throughout New England for close to 20 years, Yankee Notions has been featured in hundreds of community concerts and festivals, schools, libraries senior centers, and heritage museums (including Old Sturbridge Village (MA), Historic Deerfield (MA), Mystic Seaport (CT), Old Bethpage Village Restoration (NY), and Plimoth Plantation (MA))

May 6 - Too Human

Singers and songwriters Ellen Schwartz and Roger Bruno met while working in Los Angeles for publishing giant Warner/Chappell Music.  Their songs were recorded by a wide variety of performers, including Cher, Pat Benatar, Teddy Pendergrass, Anne Murray, and Nancy Wilson.  After moving back east, they formed their own band, Too Human.  They have opened for or shared the stage with popular acts 10,000 Maniacs, Janis Ian, Livingston Taylor, and many others.  Their songs touch on may topics all related to the human condition.  Ellen’s earthy voice combines perfectly with Roger’s unusual percussion style and sweet vocals.  Too Human will perform with guitar, percussion and vocals.  With guest performer Genevieve Rose on upright bass, the evening is sure to have a jazzy feel.

Too Human’s  debut CD, From There to Here, was critically acclaimed by Sing Out! Magazine and The Musician's Trade Journal and has gotten national and international radio play. Their latest studio CD, True is also getting critical acclaim and lots of airplay. A track from True, "New Surrender," was chosen to be included on the 2^nd compilation CD release from the Garland Appeal. The Garland Appeal was established with the support of Paul McCartney to honor the memory of Linda McCartney and raise funds for cancer research and prevention. Their CDs will be available to purchase at the library the evening of their performance.

June 17—Chris Wilhelm

Folk singer Chris Wilhelm has a voice that rings with a certain vulnerable sense of conviction. And indeed, this Boston-based singer/songwriter has seen a lot during his 16-year music career: In between his relocations from Hudson, New York to Albany and now to Boston, he has spent time busking for change in subway stations, singing open-mic nights in coffee shops, and altogether honing his delicate craft. His current songs reach a rare level of emotional urgency, steeped in a palpable sense of hope and understanding.

He began his music career, he says, as a child of 10 in Hudson, NY, making his first guitar out of a piece of cardboard with strings drawn on with permanent marker, so he could play along with his favorite music. He made the decision to make music his primary focus after moving to Albany in 2000. But that childhood sense of innocent musical wonder hasn’t seemed to change over the years, as he is happiest to live his life simply: traveling around town-to-town spreading his message of breezy acoustic melodies that echo the best of early Bob Dylan and American blues and roots music.

With a respectable roster of original songs and a self-released album, This Train’s Not Going Slow, under his belt, Wilhelm shows no signs of slowing down. He plays about five shows a month all around the Northeast, and even continues to perform in T stations in Boston, keeping things humble so his music and voice can grow organically. It is doubtful he would want it any other way.


-By Jon Meyer, WERS 88.9FM Boston