LIFE LONG LEARNING FOR THE NEW YEAR:
Intro to Stained Glass
Make-It Springfield, 286 Bridge Street
Thursday, January 9 at 6:30 p.m.
Make-It Springfield provides a multicultural home that invites creativity, invention, and artistic experimentation through dialogue, collaboration, and the sharing of skills and ideas. In this class, Springfield-based artisans from Glass Visons will provide a hands-on introduction to the art of stained glass. They'll provide an overview of the copper-foil technique — used by Tiffany Studios. And you’ll get the chance to try glass cutting, grinding, foiling and soldering.
Free Fest
Provisions Mill District, Amherst
Friday, Jan. 10 from 4 – 7 p.m.
Free Fest is a fun, alcohol-free event that's completely free to attend! Especially refreshing if you’re practicing Dry January, it gives you a chance to enjoy a variety of beverages, from wine and beer to spirits, cocktails, seltzers, and more. It's the perfect opportunity to explore new flavors, connect with others, and embrace a healthier start to the year. Taste, sip, and celebrate an alcohol-free experience while having a great time.
Portraiture: People and Pets with Jeffrey Gatrall
Northampton Center for the Arts
Five Saturdays, Jan. 11 – Feb. 8 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.
What could be better than signing up for an art class like this where you can learn to paint portraits in acrylics from a photograph? Whether your photo is a print, or a file on your phone, all the methods for using photos as reference for a painting will be discussed. The first class will center around how to go about choosing a good photo to work from. The remaining weeks will be for actually doing the painting.
5Rhythms Dance Class
Bombyx, Florence
Saturday, Jan. 11 at 11 a.m.
Here’s another opportunity for a new year exploration — a rejuvenating and illuminating dance class. 5Rhythms is a simple movement practice designed to release the dancer that lives in every person. This practice itself is simple, and there are no steps to follow. Greenfield-based and certified teacher Jilsarah Moscowitz will guide the session and will offer prompts, invitations and guided exercises to bring dancers deeper into the practice. What are 5 rhythms? Flowing, staccato, chaos, lyrical, and stillness.
Beginners Quilt Along: Chain Links
Hoop & Bee Studio, Easthampton
Sundays, March 2 – April 13 from 2 – 5 p.m.
Hoop & Bee Studio offers custom quilting, longarm services, and sewing classes in an accessible and inclusive community space in Easthampton. Never made a quilt before and not sure where to start? Enroll in this class and make a 42”x54” throw size chain link quilt, going through every step of making a quilt from beginning to end. You’ll learn to press and accurately cut fabrics using rotary cutters and acrylic rulers, how to read a quilt pattern, how to sew a consistent quarter inch seam, how to thread or pin baste your completed top, batting, and backing for quilting, and how to bind and finish a quilt. Psst! This class is nearly sold out.
EVENTS HAPPENING THIS WEEK:
Yeison Landero + DJ Bongohead
The Drake, Amherst
Thursday, Jan. 9 at 8 p.m.
If you’re talking about cumbia royalty, there is no higher court than that of Andrés Landero —known across the world for his contributions to the tropical genre. Yeison Landero, his grandson, has dedicated his life to cumbia and the accordion, and is the heir to Andrés. Yeison and his ensemble will light up the Drake stage, and DJ Bongohead will bring his superlative tropical selections to the party.
Boar’s Head Festival
Trinity United Methodist Church, Springfield
Friday, Jan. 10 – Sunday, Jan. 12
An extravaganza of epic proportions! For many, the holiday season is not over until they get their annual Boar’s Head Festival fix. This pageant follows the ancient origins of the journey of epiphany with music, dancing, live animals, and storytelling. Even before the pageant begins, you will be entertained by magicians and townsfolk strolling and tussling through the Gothic-style sanctuary. And after the show is over there’s a massive cookie buffet!
Livingston Taylor
Iron Horse, Northampton
Friday, Jan. 10 and Saturday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m.
Livingston Taylor picked up his first guitar at the age of 13, which began a 50-year career that has encompassed performance, songwriting, and teaching. Livingston recorded his first record at the age of 18 and has continued to create well crafted, introspective, and original songs that have earned him listeners worldwide. He is a natural performer, peppering his shows with personal stories, anecdotes and ineffable warmth.
Kiki’s Delivery Service
The Mahaiwe, Great Barrington
Friday, Jan. 10 at 7 p.m.
Kiki’s Delivery Service is an animated family film favorite from the beloved Japanese production house Studio Ghibli. Young Kiki, a witch-in-training, leaves home to find her role serving a new city with her special gifts. Directed by award-winning filmmaker Hayao Miyazaki. It’s rated G.
Williamstown Synth Fest
The Clark, Williamstown
Saturday, Jan. 11 at 6 p.m.
Here’s an evening of immersive audiovisual performances featuring electronic musicians from Massachusetts and Upstate New York. Artists hissquiet, NXOR, Michael William Gilbert, OrangePeelMystic, and Architrave will blend dynamic electronic soundscapes with vivid projections, pulsing light displays, and real-time animations. Plus! You canunleash your creativity at a synthesizer petting zoo! Enjoy a relaxed space to explore, play, and craft your own electronic sounds using a variety of synthesizers. No experience needed.
Rock Voices
Academy of Music, Northampton
Saturday, Jan. 11 at 7 p.m.
Rock Voices is a community of people who love to sing rock music. Over 200 local singers will perform rock favorites from the 60’s to the present, backed up by a four-piece band of local pros. You’ll hear hits from Toto, Taylor Swift, Natalie Cole, Radiohead, The Monkees, and more. If you’re itching to join the group visit RockVoices.com.
Joe K. Walsh and Matt Flinner
The Parlor Room, Northampton
Saturday, Jan. 11 at 7:30 p.m.
Turning through songs he wrote, or setting the words of Yeats to music, and picking out instrumental tunes of his own creation, Joe K. Walsh plays and sings with the kind of ease that comes from years of practice and creation. Multi-instrumentalist Matt Flinner started out as a banjo prodigy who was playing bluegrass festivals before he entered his teens. He later took up the mandolin, won the National Banjo Contest at Winfield Kansas in 1990, and took the mandolin award there the following year.
Acoustic Grunge Brunch: Recent History
Iron Horse, Northampton
Sunday, January 12 at 10:30 a.m.
Another reason to love the relatively recent return of the Iron Horse. Brunch with live music! Recent History is an alternative dance-rock band based out of the Northampton area formed by Glen Fant (Bang Camaro & The Fatal Flaw), Ryan Guillen (Tetramono), Rocco Degres, and Kate Dowd (Ex-Temper & True Jackie). The band embraces nostalgic musical and cultural references while pushing forward with their own unique sound combining blues and funk with 80’s synth pop and 90’s alt-rock. A yummy brunch is included with your ticket. You can buy drinks from the bar if you’d like.