AT THE BEDFORD LIBRARY

 

One Book, One Bedford: The Bedford Library has planned several special events and book group discussions in celebration of this annual community event which encourages everyone to read this year's selection Homer & Langley by E. L. Doctorow. Copies of the book and readers' guides are available at the Bedford Library, or you can click to read an excerpt on line.  

 

There will be six Homer and Langley book group discussions during April:

• Monday, April 4 at 7 pm
• Thursday, April 14 at 9:30 am
• Sunday, April 17 at 2 pm
• Friday, April 22 at 10:30 am
• Monday April 25 at 7:30 pm
• Tuesday, April 26 at 1 pm.  (this discussion will take place at the Council on Aging)

 

In addition, there will be three special programs dealing with the organizational challenges inherent the accumulation of objects:

• A special program relating to Homer & Langley, Compulsive Hoarding will take place on Sunday, April 3, at 2 pm. Randy Frost and Gail Steketee, internationally recognized experts on hoarding and co-authors of "Stuff: Compulsive Hoarding and the Meaning of Things", explore the causes and treatments of hoarding. What is the pull that possessions exert on all of us? Whether we're savers, collectors, or compulsive cleaners, none of us is free of the impulses that drive hoarders to the extremes.
• Susan Pinsky, a professional organizer and the parent of a child with Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) will present Organizing with ADD/ADHD, on Tuesday, April 5 at 7 pm. 
• Linda Arena, a professional organizer and a speaker from the Institute for Challenging Disorganization, will present Understanding Chronic Disorganization on Wednesday, April 20 at 7:30 pm.   

 

The Friends of the Library's Spring Book Sale will be held on Bedford's Pole-Capping weekend -- Friday, April 8, from 1 to 5 pm; Saturday, April 9, from 10 am to 4 pm; and Sunday, April 10, from 1 to 4 pm, with a members' preview on Thursday evening, April 7 (contact Treasurer Rick Spofford to check that your membership is up to date). The sale benefits the Friends' museum pass program and other library amenities.

 

Theresa Marturevich, Head of Reference Services, will present Digitizing Your Life, tips for clearing your closets of old photos and CDs on Tuesday, April 12 at 7 pm in the library's meeting room. You'll learn tips for how to begin your own digitization project from equipment requirements to time-saving techniques.

 

The Bedford Free Public Library is located at 7 Mudge Way - 781-275-9440.

 

 

AT EMERSON UMBRELLA IN CONCORD

 

Emerson Umbrella's Spring Open Studios will take place on Saturday, April 2, and Sunday, April 3, from 1 to 6 pm each day. Over 50 resident artists, including Bedford's Sing Hanson, will welcome you to their studios and workshops where you can see, discuss and or buy their work.

  

Forty actors and a 20-piece orchestra will bring the power of E. L. Doctorow's award-winning musical, Ragtime, to Emerson Umbrella Center for the Arts on the first three weekends in April. Click for online ticket purchase and performance details.

 

Emerson Umbrella's Musketaquid Earth Day Celebration, a day-long family festival, will take place on Saturday, April 30. There will be a parade featuring giant puppets dancing through Concord Center, a river ceremony with Earth Floats on the Concord River, an Arts and Environment Festival and a month-long exhibit in the Emerson Umbrella gallery.

 

Workshops at the Umbrella will help your family prepare for Musketaquid Earth Day 2011

• Puppet and Parade Workshops: Sundays, April 3 and 10, from 1 to 5 pm
• Earth Float Workshops: Saturdays, April 9 and April 23, from 1 to 4 pm

 

Emerson Umbrella is located at 40 Stow Street in Concord - 978-371-0802

   

 

AT THE CONCORD ART ASSOCIATION (CAA)

 

Concord Art Association and Massachusetts Cultural Council are pleased to present the exhibition, State of Art: Massachusetts Cultural Council Fellows and Finalists. The exhibition showcases twenty-one artists recognized by the MCC's 2008-2009 Artist Fellowship Program in both painting and crafts. Through May 1.  

 

Maya Lin: A Strong Clear Vision, a film about the noted architect's early career will be shown at 7 pm on Wednesday, April 13. The film is free and all are welcome, but you must call for reservations (978-369-2578).

 

There will be two Wednesday Demo Days in April. On April 6, Stuart Dunkel will talk about the technique, spirit and creativity in oil painting. On April 20, Cathleen Bradley will speak on repurposing materials into art. Programs begin at 10:30 (doors open at 10 am) and are free, open to the public. 

 

Call for Images for 2012 Calendar: In association with Coldwell Banker Residential Brokerage, CAA will produce a 2012 calendar featuring images of Concord. This year's theme is Concord: A Sense of Place. Deadline is Saturday, May 28. Click to read the guidelines.  

 

The Concord Art Association is located at 37 Lexington Road in Concord - 978-369-2578.

 

 

AT THE LEXINGTON ARTS AND CRAFTS SOCIETY (LACS)

 

Good Vibrations, a show and sale presented by LACS's Woodworkers' Guild will run from April 3 to 17. Marilyn Wallin, fifth-generation woodworker and former violin-crafting instructor at Boston' North Bennett Street School, will speak and offer a demonstration during the artists' reception on April 3 from 1 to 3 pm.

 

Lexington Arts & Crafts Society is located at 130 Waltham Street, Lexington - 781-861-9696 

 

 

AT DeCORDOVA MUSEUM & SCULPTURE PARK 

 

Several exhibits are on view through April 24:

• Rachel Perry Welty 24/7  
• Lucien Aigner: Photo/Story   
• PLATFORM 5: Bartow + Metzgar, Stratimentation
• PLATFORM 6: Barbara Gallucci, Utopiary Terrace  

 

Coming Attraction: In 2009, deCordova invited British artist Andy Goldsworthy to propose a permanent outdoor installation. On a cold winter's day in 2010, he submitted drawings and a description for an idea that he calls Snow House. Recently DeCordova has approved his proposal for this commissioned work to be installed in the Sculpture Park. The acquisition of Snow House would qualify deCordova as the only institution in New England to have a major site-specific outdoor installation by Andy Goldsworthy, advancing deCordova's goal to become one of the nation's premier sculpture parks by 2020. Andy Goldsworthy: Snow will be displayed in the Museum's galleries from May 29-December 31, 2011.  

 

DeCordova Museum is located on Sandy Pond Road in Lincoln - 781-259-8355 

 

 

CALL FOR ARTISTS

 

Gallery Seven in Maynard will mount a juried exhibition, New England Scapes, this summer. A call for work in any 2D medium that depicts New England landscapes, seascapes or cityscapes is open through the end of April. Click to download application guidelines.   

 

GALLERY EXHIBITS

 

Departures/Arrivals, which opens at the Loading Dock Gallery on Wednesday March 30th, presents new work by long time friends Cornelia Jutta Forster and Maxine Farkas.  The show will run through April 24, with a reception for the artists on Friday, April 1 from 6 to 9 pm.  The Loading Dock Gallery is located on the 2nd floor of the A Mill at Western Avenue Studios, 122 Western Avenue, Lowell.  Click for more information.

 

 

MUSIC

 

The Boston Guzheng Ensemble will perform traditional and modern Chinese music and on April 9th at 7:30 at Bedford's John Glenn Middle School. The concert is free but a donation at the door is greatly appreciated. All are welcome. 

 

Friends of the Performing Arts in Concord will present Opera and Broadway Showstoppers on Saturday, April 2, at 8 pm and Sunday, April 3, at 2 pm at 51 Walden. The program includes arias from Barber of Seville, Aida, and The Mikado, along with show tunes from South Pacific, Phantom of the Opera and Candide. Alan Yost will conduct the performance, with full orchestra and chorus. Tickets may be purchased on-line or by calling 978 369-7911.

 

At Indian Hill Music Center

• The Indian Hill Symphony Orchestra presents Don Quixote: Three Ways on Saturday, April 9, at 7:30 pm in the Littleton High School auditorium, 56 King Street in Littleton. Artistic Director Bruce Hangen will offfer 3 different musical settings of Don Quixote by Strauss, Telemann, and Ravel featuring BSO cellist Mihail Jojatu and baritone Aaron Engebreth are featured guest performers. Hangen will offer a pre-concert talk at 6:45 pm. Tickets are available online.
• 'Bach's Lunch': Indian Hill Music School's free monthly faculty series presents celebrated pianist Jenny Tang performing works by Hungarian composers Liszt and Ligeti.  Thursday, April 21 at 11 am and 1:30 pm. Bring your lunch; Indian Hill will serve coffee, tea and cookies. Call to reserve a table.
• Pianist Jenny Tang and Soprano Gale Fuller will perform works by Liszt, Berlioz, Scriabin, and more in a chamber music recital on Saturday, April 30, 8:00 pm in The Kalliroscope Gallery, 264 Main Street, Groton, MA. Tickets are available on line and include post-concert wine and cheese reception with the artists.
• A select group of Indian Hill Music School piano students will perform in the school's annual Honors Recital on Sunday, April 10, at 6 pm. Free.
• Indian Hill Music School's Early Childhood Department presents an evening of musical activities to introduce its summer classes for newborns through age 7 on Friday, April 29 at 6:30 pm. Free.

 

Indian Hill Music Center is located at 36 King Street in Littleton 978-486-9524  (Rte. 495/Exit 30, 15 minutes from the Concord rotary)  

 

Fretless will be performing in Spring Fev-ah!, an a cappella festival, at the Unitarian Universalist Society of Wellesley, 309 Washington Street in Wellesley Hills at 7:30 pm on April 30.  For tickets or additional information e-mail info@noneabove.org or call 617-314-6316. 

 

Renowned choral ensemble Gloriæ Dei Cantores will perform in the Shalin Liu Performance Center, 37 Main Street in Rockport on Saturday, April 15, at 5 pm. Gloriæ Dei Cantores will make their Shalin Liu Performance Center debut with a program of music for the Lenten season, including composers Hovhaness and Liszt whose 100th and 200th birthdays respectively are being commemorated in 2011. Click to learn more or buy tickets  

 

Season tickets for the 30th Anniversary Season of the Rockport Chamber Music Festival are available now; single tickets go on sale on April 18. Click to see the full season lineup.

 

Concord Chamber Music Society's Family Concert featuring a program of traditional American folk tunes, fiddle songs and dances performed by The Sail Away Ladies will take place at 2 pm on Sunday, April 3 at Emerson Umbrella Center for the Arts, 40 Stow Street in Concord. Click to order tickets online or call 978-371-9667. Concert admission also includes free access to the Emerson Umbrella's Open Studios.

 

 

FUNDRAISERS

 

Rockport Music's 2011 Cottages & Castles Home Tour will take place from 10 am to 4 pm on Saturday, April 30, allows you to step inside a marvelous assortment of distinctive homes and hear delightful music in each one. Click here to learn more.

 

The Boston Book Festival invites you to Science (non) Fiction which will be held on the top floor of the MIT Media Lab, now in the stunning glass and steel structure described as "the world's most exquisite building." The program offers a thrilling exploration of research that merges man and machine and pushes the boundaries of what it means to be human. Speakers include Hugh Herr and Cynthea Breazel with author and experimental psychologist Steven Pinker as host.  

 

Save the date: St. Paul's Episcopal Church's fine art fundraising auction will be held on Saturday, May 7. If you have questions, please e-mail Louisa Saladino-Kuhl.    

 

 

LECTURES AND FILMS

 

The Middlesex Community College One World Series will host filmmaker Robert Kenner, director of Food, Inc., in a special program, titled "Corn, Corporations & Sustainability," to be held at noon Tuesday, April 19, in the Bedford Campus Center's Café East, 591 Springs Road. The event is free and open to the public. Call 781-280-3763 for information.

 

Eyewitness Gaza, a program of photographs and comments about life in Gaza today will be presented by Skip Schiel at 7 pm on April 9 at First Parish on the Common in Bedford. Schiel, a local photojournalist, is recently returned Palestine and Israel. A light supper will be served at 6:30 (suggested donation: $5.00) Sponsored by the First Parish Peace & Justice Group at First Parish on the Common 75 The Great Road in Bedford. 

 

 

WORTH THE TRIP

 

The Peabody Essex Museum's  exhibit of Dutch Master paintings is well worth the ride.

 

Or, you might want to visit Brunswick, Maine, to see R. Crumb's graphic interpretation of The Book of Genesis at the Bowdoin College Museum of Art  through May 8.

 

Seeing Now, an exhibition of more than 200 provocative and compelling images that showcase photography's extraordinary development since 1960, offers a striking snapshot of the world around us as seen through the eyes of more than 60 photographers-including Diane Arbus, William Eggleston, Gary Winogrand, and Cindy Sherman. At the Baltimore Museum of Art in Baltimore, Maryland.

 

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