Troy Savings Bank Music Hall returns with the free Music at Noon series, beginning with singer and song writer Alan Goldberg on December 12.
Since 1988, on the second Tuesday of each month from October to May, the free Music at Noon concert series has presented exceptional musicians with a diverse mix of musical styles. Program sponsors include FAM Funds, Troy Redevelopment Foundation, New York State Council on the Arts, Fagan Associates, Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation, MVP Healthcare, and the Saratoga National Bank. This show will feature the MVP Health Care Coffee Hour.
Join the fun early for a FREE cup of Stacks coffee 11am -12pm before the show begins. Shows are free to attend and be sure to bring your lunch.
Caroga Arts Collective announced the lineup for the 2023 Caroga Lake Music Festival (CLMF) WinterFest, spanning over four days from Dec. 13-16.
The Caroga Arts Collective presents over 50 performances and community events in the Southern Adirondacks throughout the year, featuring world-class musicians from across the country and from various styles of arts and entertainment. The mission of Caroga Arts Collective is to reimagine the Caroga experience through the power of the arts, founded in 2012 by Kyle Price when he invited friends to his grandmother’s house on Caroga Lake, where they presented a week of free concerts, calling themselves the Caroga Lake Music Festival (CLMF).
“For the past 4 years, CLMF WinterFest has brought acclaimed artists from the annual Caroga Lake Music Festival back to the region for a celebration of the holidays, music, and community,” said Price. “We are excited to gather once again for this beloved tradition, with an exciting mix of events that will offer something for everyone.”
CLMF WinterFest 2023 will kick off on December 13 with “Holiday Harmonies: An Evening with Rich Saunders featuring Caroga Arts Ensemble,” at the Nick Stoner Inn in Caroga Lake. Over the years, the New York-based artist Rich Saunders has gained over 1.3 million followers on Spotify, Instagram, and TikTok combined, quickly becoming a singer-songwriter sensation online. A founding member of Thirdstory, he has performed and opened for A-list artists like Tori Kelly and Chance The Rapper, in addition to making appearances on Saturday Night Liveand more.
On December 14, CLMF musicians will perform chamber works by Bach, Schumann, Mendelssohn, and more in “A Classical Winter Wonderland,” at the Paul Nigra Center for Creative Arts in Gloversville. On the 15th, the Caroga Arts Ensemble will perform Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf and Tchaikovsky’s famous Nutcracker Suite at the Glove Theatre in Gloversville.
The last performance, “Holiday Tchaikovsky Spectacular” on Dec. 16 at St. John’s Episcopal Church in Johnstown features Serenade, The Nutcracker Suite, and more. All shows at the CLMF WinterFest 2023 run from 7-9 p.m.
To buy tickets or learn more information about the CLMF WinterFest musicians, visit here.
Lake George Winter’s Dream is putting winter magic and wonders on full display this year, inviting you to experience winter like never before in peaceful Lake George. Winter’s Dream officially opens to the public on Friday, Dec. 8.
Lake George Winter’s Dream is a brand-new immersive and interactive multimedia experience created and produced by the award-winning multidisciplinary studio Moment Factory, which created more than 500 unique projects worldwide. This new attraction will unfold in the courtyard of the Fort William Henry historic fortress. Visitors are invited on an immersive journey, exploring a series of installations along a pathway where lights, sounds, original music, and video content bring winter to life in a new way.
They can participate in the experience through a mix of cutting-edge interactive technology and old-fashioned fun. Inspired by the warmth and shared joys of the winter season, it engages the senses, offering the perfect setting for a unique outing with family and friends. Lake George Winter’s Dream is meant for the entire family, with children and adults equally enjoying the magic of winter. Both events are supported by Warren County Tourism / Lake George Area and the Warren County Coalition.
We are thrilled to bring people together to experience the enchantment and fun of a Lake George winter. The excitement is palpable as ticket sales continue throughout the Northeast and even spanning continents. There was a ticket sale all the way from Africa! We can’t wait for people to experience the magic of winter in a whole new way in Lake George.
Warren County Coalition Chairman Vincent Crocitto II.
The Troy Savings Bank Music Hall will welcome two incredible jazz legends in February – Joshua Redman will perform on February 7, while Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis will fill the historic venue on February 17.
Joshua Redman – February 7
From its inception, the Blue Note label has stood for “The Finest In Jazz.” The same can be said for Joshua Redman. Over the past three decades, the saxophonist, composer, and bandleader has consistently demonstrated how to honor the music’s verities while expanding its reach in contemporary settings. He found the perfect partner in young vocalist Gabrielle Cavassa.
“I had maybe heard Gabrielle’s name from her time in the Bay Area,” Redman notes, “but I wasn’t at all familiar with her music. One night in the Fall of 2021, my manager texted me in the middle of Gabrielle’s performance at a party in New Orleans. ‘You’ve got to hear this young lady,’ she said. ‘This is not a concert, it’s a casual event, and she is just riveting.’ Once I heard Gabrielle, I realized that she has an expressive quality and an intimacy and a vulnerability in her sound that is singularly captivating.” Having found a collaborator, Redman embarked on what proved to be a unique process.
“Most of my previous recordings grew out of bands that had played and toured together consistently, and eventually developed a vibe and chemistry and repertoire to the point where we felt like we had to record. But in this case, while I had worked with each of the other instrumentalists many times before in a wide variety of settings, we hadn’t yet played all at the same time in the same group; and Gabrielle and I had literally never made a note of music together.” The resulting program is “not really about the pandemic itself,” Redman stresses, “but the uniquely isolating conditions of that time certainly played a role in the music’s creation. What began as a formal concept allowing two unacquainted artists to organize their ideas – something that could be discarded if necessary over time – had gained a deeper significance. “This was an album whose meaning revealed itself in the making.” where are we will leave listeners seeking to define where they, and we, are — inspired by the latest example of Joshua Redman at his finest.
Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis – February 17
The world’s premier big band, the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis consists of 15 permanent members performing live in New York City and around the world. In 1988 the Orchestra was formed as an outgrowth of its concert series, Classical Jazz, with David Berger conducting. When Wynton Marsalis became artistic director in 1991, he emphasized the history of jazz, particularly Duke Ellington. The first album was Portraits by Ellington (1992), and seven years later the Ellington centennial was honored with the album Live in Swing City: Swingin’ with the Duke (1999). Under the leadership of Marsalis, the band performs at its home The House of Swing , tours throughout the U.S. and abroad, visits schools, appears on television, and performs with symphony orchestras. The Orchestra backed Wynton Marsalis on his album Blood on the Fields , which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1997.
Since 2015, the Orchestra’s albums have been issued on its own label, Blue Engine Records. The first release from Blue Engine Records, Live in Cuba, was recorded on a historic 2010 trip to Havana by the JLCO and released in October 2015. The label issued Big Band Holidays in December 2015, The Abyssinian Mass in March 2016, The Music of John Lewis in March 2017, and the JLCO’s Handful of Keys in September 2017. Blue Engine’s United We Swing: Best of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Galas features the Wynton Marsalis Septet and an array of special guests, with all proceeds going toward Jazz at Lincoln Center’s education initiatives. Blue Engine’s most recent album releases (2023) include Wynton Marsalis Plays Louis Armstrong’s Hot Fives and Sevens and The Jungle, a recording of Marsalis’ fourth symphony featuring the JLCO and the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra.
Tickets are on sale at 10am Wednesday, December 6th to Music Hall Members. Anyone can become a member and gain access to the pre-sale. Single tickets go on sale to the general public Friday, December 8th, at 10am via phone, (518) 273-0038, in person, or online at www.troymusichall.org. More information on the Troy Savings Bank Music Hall and upcoming programs is available on the website at www.troymusichall.org.
Pre-sale tickets for Troy Savings Bank Music Hall Members are available Wednesday at 10am. Single tickets will go on-sale at 10am to the public this Friday December 8.
Empire State Youth Orchestra (ESYO)’s CHIME musicians will present the program’s annual holiday concert on Tuesday, December 12, 5:30pm, at Schenectady High School. The performance is free and open to the public.
Launched in 2015 with 40 students, CHIME has grown steadily, weathering the pandemic and offering life-changing musical experiences to hundreds of Schenectady students. This year, with additional support from the Schenectady City School District (SCSD), and generous contributions from local foundations and individuals, elementary students from across the district are now eligible to join CHIME through a lottery system, doubling program membership to more than 140.
“CHIME simply would not be possible without our partnership with the Schenectady City School District. The school district’s advocacy for the arts and their unwavering commitment to equity and access is truly remarkable.”
Executive Director, Becky Calos
The SCSD/ESYO partnership allows CHIME to offer programming to enrolled SCSD students entirely tuition-free. The expanded program also includes transportation to and from CHIME sites, located at Yates Elementary School and Proctors Theatre. The entry to CHIME for the youngest students focuses on stringed instrument instruction, four days per week. As students advance in age and skill, they move to the Proctors site, where programming is offered for strings, wind and percussion players all the way through high school.
On Mondays, the full orchestra has an extended rehearsal until 6:45 pm, with dinner provided. “It’s so thrilling to see the increased amount of creativity and connection happening on our Mondays at CHIME. Sharing a meal together really deepens our sense of community and the extended time allows the students to explore new ways of expression through movement and spontaneous composition in addition to our full orchestra, chamber music and sectionals. We are already seeing really amazing results in just the past few months!” says Dr. David Bebe, ESYO’s Associate Music Director for CHIME and Chamber Music.
Many CHIME musicians participate in Empire State Youth Orchestra’s other performing groups and its leadership training program, Young Leaders. “We created CHIME to offer a pathway to musical exploration,” says Calos, “and we have built as much support as possible to allow youth to pursue their passions by removing as many barriers as possible.” For the youngest students this means providing dedicated teachers, quality instruments and daily practice. For the older students this means private lessons, college guidance and preparation, performance opportunities locally and across the US, and opportunities for leadership/mentorship experiences and training.
“At CHIME, we believe that immersive musical study centers the whole student. Together with our students, we strive to build an environment that nurtures musician-learners who are curious explorers and citizens, actively involved in their learning process, music-making and community. Our approach aims at far-reaching impacts both within and beyond the scope of music. The importance of breaking down barriers to this type of instructional space and experience — where students can explore how they learn, contribute and evolve as individuals and members of a community over time — cannot be overstated. Continuing to expand access to our programming is of critical and central importance to our program mission, and we’re incredibly fortunate to partner so closely with SCSD in our shared commitment to these goals.”
Zoë Auerbach, CHIME & Young Leaders Director
With CHIME’s expansion this year, dozens more young people will have access to music enrichment and perspective-shifting opportunities. This past summer, for example, CHIME cellist and Young Leader, Jazlyn Bronson, traveled to Chicago with three of her CHIME peers to participate in the National Seminario Ravina, playing side-by-side with Chicago Philharmonic musicians under the baton of famed conductors, Marin Alsop and Jonathan Rush.
This year, CHIME musicians will be working with artist Horacio Fernandez to create a series of collective compositions that will premier in May 2024. This project is part of CHIME’s annual Amplify Our Voice initiative, designed to offer youth a powerful vehicle to process deep emotion, explore shared life experiences and “amplify” their voices through music.
Guitarist extraordinaire Keller Williams drew a sold out crowd at Lark Hall on Saturday, December 2.
The master of looping has been at it for nearly 30 years, and his following has never waned a bit. From sell out shows at The Egg in 2006 to festival performances all throughout the state with unique projects, Keller always draws well in Albany.
Keller Williams at Lark Hall – photo by Dave DeCrescente
A chatty crowd took in the show on this pre-winter evening, a mirror ball providing subtle lighting that paired well with Williams’ sound and style. Even without his right hand man, Louis Gosain, the evening was full of fun, laughs and surprised, as well as a great deal of experimentation, particularly throughout set one, which would end with a fantastic “Naive Melody.”
“Freeker by the Speaker” would open Set 2 to great cheers, a segment of “Pets” by Porno for Pyros found worked into the original tune deftly.
Keller Williams at Lark Hall – photo by Dave DeCrescente
A subtle nod to Phish on their 40th anniversary was found in the form of “The Wedge” > “Stash” which segued cleanly into “Scarlet Begonias” and “Gatecrashers Suck,” one of Williams’ best known tunes for the autobiographical nature of the Grateful Dead’s ill-fated Deer Creek, IN run in 1995.
Whether you prefer Keller playing solo acoustic/looping as he did tonight, or with a unique project like Keller and the Keels, KellerGrass or More Than a Little, his shows are never one to miss when he rolls through. Catch him at Buffalo Iron Works on Saturday, December 9, part of NYS Music’s Jam for Tots series.
Karina Rykman made her debut appearance in Saratoga Springs with a show at Putnam Place on Thursday, November 30. With a strong crowd in attendance – and some fans making the trek up to Burlington on December 1 and 2 – Rykman’s first show in the Spa City will certainly not be her last.
Opening the night was Coyote Island, a reggae/pop group from Maine, on tour with Rykman this fall.
Throughout her single set, Karina would play a variety of songs from her debut album, Joyride, released this past August. Beginning the show with some of the most familiar tracks on the album, from “Beacon” through “Plants,” each was played with slow building energy and focus from the band, loosening up as the set progressed.
“City Kids” would mark a frenzied shift of the set’s vivacity, with Rykman running around in circles, pumping the already engaged crowd up even more. Guitarist Adam November dropped rapid fire guitar, the kind you’d hear in “The Great Curve,” with just the proper amount of distortion incorporated – never too heavy and present in the right spots. Rykman dropped a few bars of “The National Anthem” by Radiohead, per usual turning ears to the stage when this ear worm of a bass line makes its appearance.
“Run of the Mill” brought with it venue-shaking bass bombs, and slowly seeped into Butthole Surfers’ “Pepper,” which had more energy than the 1996 song. Rykman and drummer Chris Corsico put a grungy feel to the debut of “Canary in a Colemine,” a tinge of Mary J. Blige’s “Family Affair” slipping in amid the final songs of the set.
For an encore, Rykman chose to debut “Song 2” from Blur, a great addition to their setlist arsenal, and a performance that assures her return to the Capital Region in the future.
Setlist: Beacon, Skylark/Slowlark, Joyride > All That You Wanted > Plants > Arbitrary > Dirty South, City Kids, Run of the Mill > Pepper, Reboot, No Occasion > Canary in a Colemine > The Hardest Button to Button, Atom Dance, Elevator Encore: Song 2
Up next for Rykman is a performance at Warren Haynes’ XMas Jam in Asheville, NC on Saturday, December 9, then at Mohegan Sun on December 30. Check out her full tour dates here.
The Albany Symphony has a fun, festive lineup of holiday shows this December, featuring events and performances such as The Magic of Christmas, and two shows by world-renowned pianist and Grammy nominee Yefim Bronfman. The symphony organization will get involved this holiday season with a toy drive and collaborations with new and long-time community partners during their upcoming programming.
On December 3, The Palace Theater will present The Magic of Christmas, joined by community partners including The Music Studio, Capital District Youth Chorale, Boland School of Irish Dance, and the Zorkie Nelson African Drumming Ensemble. The performance will feature favorite Christmas carols, sing-a-longs, selections from the beloved Nutcracker musical, and more festive performances for all ages. In addition, Santa Claus will make an appearance for a night filled with family fun.
On December 9 and 10, the symphony will welcome six-time Grammy nominee Yefim Bronfman to Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, performing a selection of famed classical pieces for Capital Region audiences. A world-renowned piano soloist, Bronfman will present Johannes Brahms’ Piano No. 2, Robert Schumann’s Symphony No. 4, as well as the world premiere of Loren Loiacono’s Beanie’s Chapbook.
We are so fortunate to have Yefim Bronfman join us for these exciting concerts. He is one of the greatest pianists in the world, and a dear friend of our Albany Symphony. We are always deeply honored that he makes time in his busy schedule to come play with us. Working with an artist of his caliber elevates all of us, and always inspires us to match his brilliance. Hearing the mighty Brahms Piano Concerto No. 2 in the legendary Troy Savings Bank Music Hall with arguably its greatest living interpreter and our brilliant Albany Symphony musicians will be an unforgettable experience for everyone!
David Alan Miller, Music Director and Conductor
In addition to the upcoming performances, audiences are invited to participate in a Toy Drive for Mom Starts Here on December 3. The organization will be accepting new and unwrapped toys for the nonprofit that works to support local parents in need of resources and support as they navigate parenthood.
Tickets for these events and more information on Albany Symphony performances are available at albanysymphony.com.
Playhouse Stage Company has opened their 36th season presenting the beloved story of The Best Christmas Pageant Ever. Based on the children’s novel by Barbara Robinson, the musical adaptation will be presented at Cohoes Music Hall outside Albany.
The Best Christmas Pageant Ever was first published in 1971, and has since become a children’s classic holiday story. After a nearly sold out run in 2017, Playhouse Stage Company continues to present the show each year for holiday audiences in the Capital Region.
The story follows the “horrible Herdmans,” a rowdy family keen on joining the local Sunday School Christmas pageant. With humor, song, and heartwarming moments, the production brings laughter and holiday cheer to audiences all over. This year’s cast features 7 local professional actors, alongside 13 local Playhouse Stage Academy students in age appropriate roles.
The show will run from December 1-23, with 7PM performances on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and 2PM performances on Saturdays and Sundays. Tickets for The Best Christmas Pageant Ever are on sale through The Cohoes Music Hall Box Office, by phone at 518-434-0776, or online at www.playhousestage.org.
There was already magic in the air when Medeski, Martin and Wood took the stage on December 1, 2000 at The Palace Theatre in Albany. The night was cold but the rumors were hot that some very special guests would be joining MMW that night.
Those rumors turned out to be true. Elysian Fields founder/guitarist Oren Bloedow as well as Brazilian percussionist Cyro Baptista joined Medeski Martin and Wood for the entire show. Rumors had been swirling like an upstate snow squall that Phish frontman Trey Anastasio would be there and when He joined Medeski, Martin and Wood (plus Bloedow and Baptista) late in the second set, the energy of the crowd and the band reached some amazing heights.
The night began with some ambient improvisation from Medeski, Martin and Wood with special guests Bloedow and Baptista joining from the start. Instrumental grooves set the mood and seemingly took the audience from jungle to the tropics and through various soundscapes before leading in to “The Dropper.” The first pure melodies of the night then followed with “Nostalgia in Times Square.” From “The Dropper” to “Times Square” – the psychedelic journey had begun and the band took the crowd on what sounded like an audio description of a psychedelic experience through New York City.
One can almost see the different store fronts, streets, alleys, cabs, people and hallucinations as MMW and friends wind their way from Times Square through “Angel Race (I’ll Wait For You)” and “Shacklyn Knights”, the latter featuring some vintage psychedelic 60’s style guitar leads from Bloedow. A heavy trance like percussion jam brought a return to “Shacklyn Knights” before closing the first set with a dark and jazzy “Seven Deadlies,” again invoking the chaos of mixing psychedelics and The Big City.
Ticket stub for Medeski Martin and Wood, which featured sit-ins from Trey Anastasio, Oren Bloedow and Cyro Baptista.
Set two began with John Medeski laying down an eerie organ intro before Billy Martin kicked in a big beat on drums for “Big Time”. Chris Wood’s bass fueled the opening jam while MMW was once again joined by Oren Bloedow and Cyro Baptista. The Five-some took the music to deep, dark space before returning to planet Earth via the Jimi Hendrix classic “Third Stone From The Sun” which featured funky grooves and blistering lead guitar from Oren Bloedow and a percussion breakdown. The crowd erupted as Trey Anastasio appeared and it was announced that “another special guest” was going to join the stage. The new ensemble, armed with one of the world’s most talented guitarists kicked off with MMW’s “Partido Alto” with Trey adding his signature guitar style.
When asked about this show, Capital region resident Maria Levin, who was in attendance said, “Trey playing “Partido Alto” with MMW is still one of the highlights of my live music life.” “We Are Rolling,” “Start Stop” and a haunting, Roky Erickson-esque “Dracula” had Trey and company exploring the far reaches of the universe with a sound that seemed to encapsulate some of the best elements of Phish and MMW. Jax Why commented in the Facebook group PHISH TOUR 2014, “A superb evening. The “rumor” was not much of a surprise by the time Big Red (Trey Anastasio) emerged for the second set. However, the style and energy in which He played was. It was quite a different sit-in from when Trey joined MMW in Austin, TX about 4 years prior. Mature jamming and placement with intent and patience.” Following “Dracula,” Chris Wood captivated the Palace Theatre crowd with a bass solo that set the tone for a jazzy, funky and at times scary “Chubb Sub” that closed out the set.
After a standing ovation, Medeski, Martin, Wood, Bloedow, Baptista and Anastasio returned to the stage and sent the fans home into the Albany night with a “Swamp Road” for the ages.
The collaborations at The Palace Theatre in Albany on December 1, 2000 would not only lead to an unforgettable night for those in attendance but also change the course of jamband history. This magical night in Albany was the first time Trey Anastasio and Cyro Baptista joined forces together on stage. Trey would invite Cyro to join The Trey Anastasio Band in 2002. Cyro continues to be a part of TAB to this day.
