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Thanksgiving Weekend Musical Program
Norman Rockwell: Paintings in Song
A Special First Hearing of New Music by Dr. John Myers and Crescendo
Friday, November 25
5:30 p.m.

The Crescendo Vocal Ensemble and members of the Berkshire Children’s Chorus, accompanied by a small ensemble of instrumentalists will perform, conducted by Christine Gevert, Founding Artistic Director of Crescendo.  “Paintings in Song: Visions of Norman Rockwell,” is the result of a collaboration of the Norman Rockwell Museum, Crescendo, and the work’s composer Dr. John Myers, a faculty member of Bard at Simon’s Rock College. Throughout this preview, John Myers and Christine Gevert will offer insights into the creative process and explain some musical aspects of the composition.

What inspired you; is there anything in particular about the paintings you selected?”
“I selected the paintings on the basis of two primary ideas: the first is Norman Rockwell’s ability to convey universal and timeless qualities while remaining grounded in his own temporal context; the second idea is that since Norman Rockwell’s career stretched across a large portion of the 20th century, I wanted to select a range of paintings that reflected this.  At the very center of this project are the Four Freedoms paintings.”

“What feelings do you hope the music will invoke?”
“At this time in America, people should be thinking deeply about who we are as a nation.  The values of acceptance and compassion that Norman Rockwell expressed so well are incredibly important to us today.  I hope that my music, while it does draw upon the narrative elements and specific content of the paintings, will also invoke those deeper values. I am honored to create music inspired by these timeless, powerful paintings.”

The finished work featuring nine movements relating to Rockwell works will premier this spring, performed by a full chorus and a jazz/chamber instrumental ensemble, with a multi-media accompaniment.

This presentation is made possible in part by Norman Rockwell Museum. The participation of the accompanying musicians, who are all faculty members at Bard College at Simon’s Rock, is supported by a grant from the College’s Faculty Development Fund.

Free for Museum members, or included with Museum admission. $10 for the performance only. A reception will follow the hour-long presentation.

Land Acknowledgement

It is with gratitude and humility that we acknowledge that we are learning, speaking and gathering on the ancestral homelands of the Mohican people, who are the indigenous peoples of this land on which the Norman Rockwell Museum was built. Despite tremendous hardship in being forced from here, today their community resides in Wisconsin and is known as the Stockbridge-Munsee Community. We pay honor and respect to their ancestors past and present as we commit to building a more inclusive and equitable space for all.

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