Free Summer Concerts

Some of the communities surrounding Hadley are offering free summer concerts for the family this year.  I would LOVE to see Hadley do something like this and actually use that glorious common we have available, but in the meantime, I will probably attend in the other towns.

Northampton has a great lineup on Fridays in Pulaski Park starting July 12.  The music is free, is played during the family-friendly hours of 6-8, and features local bands & musicians.  Check out the info here.

South Hadley has music on their common every Thursday night starting July 11 (they also had a concert in June, but it's past) from 6:30-8:00, and also promises a number of fun shows.  You can see their lineup here.

If you know of other free local concerts, add a comment below.

The Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum in Hadley also offers a summer concert series on Wednesday nights -- their Wednesday Folk Traditions -- and series on Saturdays during their Perfect Spot of Tea.  Please note that these do have an entrance fee.

Chilifest 2012!

For a wider glimpse into The Kitchen Garden on Rocky Hill Road, take a look at the visit I made in June or visit their website.

Big Saturday Events

Lots of big local Saturday events this week:

Barstow Burger Fest (Hadley)
Grand Re-opening of War Memorial Pool (Amherst)
Mo Willems @ the Eric Carle Museum (Amherst)
Perfect Spot of Tea (Hadley)

For details, check the calendar page and click on the event links.

Wednesday Folk Traditions, Pt 2

Continuing the performance list from a previous post:

Happy 4th of July

July 11 La Charanga Libre, a newly formed ensemble of Valley musicians, performs authentic Cuban popular music of Charanga, a style introduced in Cuba in 1940 including Son, Cha Cha, Son Montuno, and Guaguanco. but known in New York as Salsa. Cuba and Puerto Rico remain the driving force behind this beautiful music, dancing, and singing emphasizing their true cultural spirit.

July 18 3rd Annual Horace Clarence Boyer Memorial Gospel Performance featuring The Total Praise Gospel Choir based at the Macedonia Church of God in Christ in Springfield, MA, the twenty -voice choir performs a repertoire of contemporary and traditional gospel songs, including works by Kirk Franklin and Fred Hammond. Our 31st annual Gospel performance.

 July 25 Layaali Arabic Music Ensemble perform the traditional music of the Arab world preserving the rich legacy of Arabic culture through soulful vocals, haunting rhythms, hypnotic instrumental improvisations, and electrifying percussion. "The music of Layaali moves the soul and stirs the spirit. A combination of tradition, activism, and pride, the beat of the musicians ... sends you to the Arab world and awakens your senses." -- Jeff Mendez, The Palestine Center, Washington, D.C.

WEDNESDAY FOLK TRADITIONS 2012- 31st season. Performances are held Wednesday evenings at 6:30 pm. in the Sunken Garden at the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive, Route 47, Hadley MA 01035. Admission is $10, $2 children 16 and under. Picnickers are welcome on the museum grounds starting at 5:00 pm. This is a smoke-free site.

For further information please call (413) 584-4699 or view www.pphmuseum.org.
Wednesday Folk Traditions is funded, in part, by grants from: the Marion I. And Otto C. Kohler Memorial Fund at the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts; and the Hadley Cultural Council, a local agency, supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency; and with generous support from many local businesses, including Hadley's Mountain Farms Mall and Easthampton Savings Bank, and the Walmart Foundation.

Wednesday Folk Traditions 2012

Wednesday Folk Traditions are coming back to the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum this summer -- check out the listing below for the great performance lineup.
All these performances are also listed on the calendar for easy reference.

WEDNESDAY FOLK TRADITIONS 2012 LISTING

 June 6 The Art Steele Blues Band, a staple on the New England scene, perform quintessential American music: "When we play we want to sweep people into our framework, paint a picture in their head and a feeling in their heart." "Blues is like religion for Steele...he has carried the mantle with fervor and zeal."- Donnie Moorehouse, BLUESWIRE magazine.

 June 13 Trine Cheile with Rosemary Caine- Trine Cheile, Gaelic for cheerful disorder, play an eclectic Celtic mix of chestnuts, including songs of those 'Wilde Irish Women' inspired by local Irish harpist and songster Rosie Caine and performed by a stunning quintet of Valley artists.

 June 20 Viva Quetzal- World/Afro-Andean/Latin/Jazz Fusion ... an astonishing array of exotic and familiar instruments and folkloric themes that creates a link among the rain forests of Central and South America, the carnivals of Brazil, the high plateaus of the Andes, and the urban barrios of Latin America and the United States. "more than eclectic or rhythmic, it's spiritual, it's all cultures existing as one. That's universal music!"- Rafael Charres, Cashbox Magazine (NYC)

 June 27 Gokh-Bi System - African hip hop ambassadors from Dakar, Senegal perform music that is both ancient and contemporary. They combine traditional drums with the forgotten ekonting, a beautiful and haunting string instrument from southern Senegal, adding unique four and five language rhythm-poetry, village dance styles and urban hip storytelling. "Hip hop takes a joyful, respectful place alongside traditionalism." -The New York Times

 Happy 4th of July

(Performances scheduled for after the Fourth of July will be posted in a few weeks.)

WEDNESDAY FOLK TRADITIONS 2012- 31st season. Performances are held Wednesday evenings at 6:30 pm. in the Sunken Garden at the Porter-Phelps-Huntington Museum, 130 River Drive, Route 47, Hadley MA 01035. Admission is $10, $2 children 16 and under. Picnickers are welcome on the museum grounds starting at 5:00 pm. This is a smoke-free site.

For further information please call (413) 584-4699 or view www.pphmuseum.org.
Wednesday Folk Traditions is funded, in part, by grants from: the Marion I. And Otto C. Kohler Memorial Fund at the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts; and the Hadley Cultural Council, a local agency, supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency; and with generous support from many local businesses, including Hadley's Mountain Farms Mall and Easthampton Savings Bank, and the Walmart Foundation.

Winkle Picker Festival

You can't tell me this doesn't look like tons of fun -- especially for the cold days of mid-February....

Chili/Golumpki Cook-off, 2011

I've been hearing about this cookoff for a few weeks now and just started seeing signs for it last week, but I can never read small, heavily-worded signs while I'm driving down the road....  This morning I finally had the camera in the car and enough spare time to stop and take the picture of the Hadley Firemen's Association's Chili/Golumpki Cook-off sign:

Sounds like a good time.  Hope to see you there!

Also coming up this weekend -- the 5K for Farmland.  Sunday, Hadley Common, 10 am.  For more information, visit the Kestrel Land Trust site.

Jazz... or Garlic?

O, the disappointment I felt when on the radio today I heard announced the Northampton Jazz Festival being presented this Saturday -- the same day as the North Quabbin Garlic & Arts Festival.  Words cannot describe the excitement of hearing about the jazz festival and then the sudden and heartfelt regret at its timing.  I love jazz.  I love live music.  I love food.  But the annual tradition at our house for the first Saturday of October is to make our way north and east for a little bit of music, a little bit of craft, a little bit of autumn, a little bit of food, and a whole lot of garlic.  It hasn't failed us yet.  And this year, if I'm brave, I'll even try the garlic ice cream....
Which will you choose -- jazz or garlic (or something else)?
I guess if I'm really lucky, I might be able to get to the garlic early -- and the jazz late.

9/29: PS -- there's also the Source to Sea Cleanup on Saturday.

Three Counties of Fun

The 3 County Fair is here for the weekend, from Friday (2) through Monday (5).  Get on over to the fairgrounds in Northampton and enjoy the agricultural exhibitions, the rides, the tasty treats, the music, the demolition derbies, the horse and oxen pulls
Want to know more?  Here's a little piece of history from the fair, and here's what's going on this year.

Looking for more fall fairs and festivals?  Check out the calendar page.

Fall Festivals & Fairs & Other Events

'Tis the season the Pioneer Valley really begins to flourish.  Last year I created a calendar with local event listings, but this year, I think I'll just stick to a post and update it whenever I find something new.
*Updated 8/27*
(Admission fees vary by event, and some events allow children in for free.)

Aug 26-29:
Cummington Fair @Cummington Fairgrounds, 97 Fairgrounds Rd.  Entrance fee.

Aug 27-29:
Vermont Blues Festival @Mount Snow.  Tickets required.

August 28:
Red Fire Farm's Tomato Festival @Red Fire Farm, 7 Carver Street, Granby.   Admission Fee.

Sept 3-6:
3 County Fair @3 County Fairgrounds, Northampton.  Admission fee.
Blandford Fair @10 North Street, Blandford.  Admission fee.

Sept 7-12:
Brimfield Antique Show

Sept 9-12:
Franklin County Fair @Franklin County Fairgrounds, Greenfield.  Admission fee.

Sept 11:
Annual Honeybee Festival @Warm Colors Apiary, 2 South Mill River Rd, South Deerfield.  Free admission.

Sept 12:
COVAC Benefit Bike Race

Sept 17-Oct 3
The Big E @Eastern States Expo, West Springfield.  Admission fee.

Sept 18-19:
Old Deerfield Fall Craft Fair @Village of Old Deerfield, outdoors.  Admission Fee.

Sept 23-26:
Belchertown Fair @Belchertown Town Common.  Free admission.

Sept 25-26:
Hancock Shaker Village Country Fair @HSV, 34 Lebanon Mountain Rd., Hancock.  Admission fee.

Oct 2-3:
Berkshire Harvest Festival @Berkshire Botanical Garden.  Admission included w/parking fee.
Garlic & Arts Festival @Forsters Farm, 60 Chestnut Hill, Orange. Admission Fee.

Oct 9-11:
Paradise City Arts Festival @3 County Fairgrounds, Northampton.  Admission fee.
Ashfield Fall Festival @Ashfield's Main Street.  Free admission.

Nov 6-21:
Fall Chrysanthemum Show @Botanic Garden at Smith College, Northampton.  Suggested donation.

Nov 12-13:
Twist Fair @ Northampton Center for the Arts, Northampton. Admission fee.