Bach at New Year’s: The Six Brandenburg Concertos
Academy of Music, Northampton
Monday, Dec. 30 at 7 p.m.
The Berkshire Bach Society and NEPM present Bach at New Year’s: The Six ‘Brandenburg’ Concertos, an event that has been a holiday tradition since 1993. Nine-time Grammy Award winner and Artistic Director Eugene Drucker leads the Berkshire Bach Ensemble in all six of Bach’s iconic works that combine virtuosity, beauty, introspection, and pure toe-tapping joy. Join Berkshire Bach for an evening of great music and dazzling performances to start your New Year on a high note.
Paul Winter Consort: Celebrating The Winter Solstice
Bombyx, Florence
Saturday, Dec. 28 at 3 and 7 p.m.
In 1980, Paul Winter and the Consort were invited to be artists-in-residence at New York’s Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Since that time, the Winter Solstice Celebration has become a beloved annual tradition in New York City and for millions around the country, broadcast live on NPR. The intimate concert at Bombyx will include vocalist Theresa Thomason, Eugene Friesen on cello, Bulgarian bassist Peter Slavov, Brazilian drummer Rogério Boccato, with Paul Winter on soprano sax. Warning: this concert sold out quickly last year!
Springfield Public Forum
10 to 25: The Science of Motivating Young People
Springfield Symphony Hall
Thursday, Dec. 5 at 6 p.m.
Is there a better way to communicate with young people in ways that leave them feeling inspired, enthusiastic, and ready to contribute? Based on cutting edge research, psychologist Dr. David Yeager will explain how to stop fearing young people’s brains and hormones and start harnessing them. This talk will offer strategies to help nurture well-adjusted, independent, accomplished young people who contribute to society in positive ways.
Berkshire Botanical Garden Holiday Marketplace
Stockbridge
Holiday Wreath Preview Party Friday, Dec. 6 from 5 to 7 p.m.
Marketplace Saturday, Dec. 7 and Sunday, Dec. 8 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Head to BBG’s festively decorated Exhibit Hall where you can shop for creations by regional artisan vendors. Also, select from an assortment of holiday-blooming amaryllis and paperwhites in decorative and clay containers, garlands, and other gift items. There will be a drop-in "make and take" for families between 10 a.m. and noon, as well as a reading of Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin.
Williamstown Winter Walk
Friday, Dec. 6 – Sunday, Dec. 7
Holiday sounds and spirit will fill Williamstown’s downtown Spring Street for the 41st Annual Holiday Walk! This festive and family-friendly weekend of events includes the popular Reindog Parade on Saturday, visits with Santa Claus, old-fashioned caroling and tree lighting, horse-drawn carriage rides, the Soup-er Bowl competition, holiday musical bingo, and more. What caught my eye? The Wanda Houston Project at The Clark on Friday, an outdoor donkey-led candlelight procession with singing that leads to dinner and a piñata party on Saturday, and a pancake breakfast at Williamstown Elementary School on Sunday.
The Berkshire Potters Collective Holiday Pottery Sale
Lenox Town Hall
Friday, Dec. 6 – Sunday, Dec. 8
Opening reception Friday from 6 – 8 p.m.
This holiday sale will feature the work of 19 Berkshire potters, from functional to sculptural, whimsical to sophisticated. The mission of the Berkshire Potters Collective is to create and promote a vibrant community of local potters to share their ideas, creative energy, technical knowledge, and love of all things clay.
Home for the Holigays!
Shea Theater, Turners Falls
Friday, Dec. 6 and Saturday, Dec. at 7:30 p.m.
In this annual holiday variety show filled with song, dance and story, the Drag Family offers their unique and hilarious take on A Christmas Carol. Mr Drag is performed by award winning Broadway makeup artist, Joe Dulude II. His wayward sister, DD Drag is played by Myka Plunkett of Northampton. Ellsbeth, the messy gothic maid, is played by Emily Pritchard of Amherst. Jinnifer, Mr. Drag's smart speaker, is played by Linda Tardif of Turners Falls. The Chaplinesque character of Karl is played by Kat Adler from Greenfield. Quince Cordial is performed by Broadway dancer, Lori Holmes Clark of Deerfield. And as a special drag guest, Marina Goldman of Montague plays her inimitable self.
West Mass Brass Band
First Church in Ludlow
Saturday, Dec 7 at 2 p.m.
This is the only British style brass band in western Mass. (FYI, a British style band uses particular instruments such as an Eb soprano cornet instead of a piccolo, Eb alto horns instead of French horns, and cornets instead of trumpets as examples.) Comprised of 30 volunteer musicians, West Mass Brass Band meets weekly in Springfield to rehearse challenging music for their bi-annual performance series. In addition to Sunday’s concert, they will be performing their holiday program at the Salvation Army in Springfield on Dec. 12, Saint Mary’s Church in Longmeadow on Dec. 14, and the Springfield Armory Museum on Dec. 21.
Foes of a Minimum Wage Guard
Northampton Center for the Arts
Saturdays, Dec. 7 and Dec. 14 at 6 p.m.
This is the world's first solo play that brings attention to the issues of retail crime, shrink, and shoplifting. In this story of self-discovery, Steve Smelly, a complacent elderly retail guard, reluctantly accepts a new assignment as a loss prevention detective. If he fails to curb shoplifting, he faces termination by the fearful district manager Mr. Coldstone. Steve stumbles upon a shocking discovery that could impact his employment. Award winning filmmaker and actor Ken Harris performs 12 different characters in this story of retail chaos.
Amherst Symphony Orchestra
Buckley Recital Hall
Saturday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m.
Amherst College Senior Oren Tirschwell opens the concert as soloist in Shostakovich's thrilling and fiendishly difficult first cello concerto (1959), written for and premiered by Mstislav Rostropovich. A technical and emotional tour-de-force, the concerto was a deeply personal work for the composer, who embedded his musical initials and cryptogram D-S-C-H throughout. The ASO also performs Shostakovich's effervescent and witty Ninth Symphony. This concert is free, general seating.
Erin Mckeown's Anti-Holiday Spectacular
Iron Horse, Northampton
Saturday, Dec. 7 at 7 p.m.
If you are already tired of holiday hype, this show is for you. It’s the world’s first anti-capitalist, pro-queer, suspicious of christmas-as-patriotism, sex-positive, not safe for work, multi-ethnic, radical leftist anti-holiday show. Erin will perform all their signature anti-holiday classics plus new songs written explicitly for 2024 along with a crowd-sourced choir of Cranky Carolers. Please note this show contains adult language and themes completely inappropriate for children. On purpose. Plus! Erin Mckeown will be in the Fabulous 413 studio this week for Live Music Friday.
The Northampton Record Fair
Union Station Banquets, Northampton
Sunday, Dec. 8 from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m. Early admission from 9 – 11 a.m.
You may have caught an interview with organizer Justin Cohen about this on Tuesday’s Fabulous 413. Local and regional record dealers from around the North East are bringing out thousands of vinyl records and CDs for your digging pleasure. There’ll be 55 tables spread out over 4 rooms — and a cash bar! New this year: a second entrance off the bike path which can be reached from Strong Avenue / Pearl Street. Just walk up the steps to the bike path.
Christmas at Chesterwood
Stockbridge
Weekends, Sunday, Dec. 8 – Sunday, Dec. 22
Chesterwood is the former summer home and studio of Daniel Chester French (1850-1931), sculptor of the Lincoln Memorial Abraham Lincoln statue and a leading artist of his era. Hear stories of the French Family’s Christmas traditions while visiting the historic Studio and ground floor of the Residence, decorated in style for the holidays. Plus, this family friendly event includes complimentary hot cider and doughnuts!
Springfield Chamber Players: Johnny Appleseed
52 Sumner, Springfield
Sunday, Dec. 8 at 3 p.m.
Did you know that Johnny Appleseed grew up in Longmeadow? Jane Yolen's book about the legendary character inspired Clifton J. Noble to compose this charming folk cantata which will be performed by a wonderful crew of Springfield Chamber musicians and singer Justina Golden. The family-friendly program also includes Peter Schickele's the Boston Wonder, Ferdinand the Bull for violin and narrator, and the Swan from Camille Saint-Saëns’ Carnival of the Animals. I saw this show last May at First Church of Christ in Longmeadow. It’s a delight!
Electric Root Presents: The Sound Of (Black) Music
Bowker Auditorium, UMass
Sunday, Dec. 8 at 3 p.m.
The Sound of (Black) Music is a vibrant one-act concert in which all of Rodgers and Hammerstein’s songs from The Sound of Music are reinterpreted through a utopian, Afrofuturistic lens of love. “Do-Re-Mi” is recast as a soul-jazz number. “The Lonely Goatherd” departs the Alps for West African landscapes as envisioned by avant-garde jazz composer Sun Ra. “So Long, Farewell” takes on the feel of ’70s pop funk.