image description — Bottom row, from left: Ayva Schiff, Hailey Patel, Bridget Collins, and Bridget Nicotra. Second row from left: Conor Prince, Jimmy Jay Chassi, Luis Herrara-Gomez, and Piero Merino.

Berkshires Beat: Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants Hosts Lenox Students

01:26PM / Monday, April 30, 2018Print Story | Email Story

Accounting on it

The Massachusetts Society of Certified Public Accountants, the professional association of CPAs for the commonwealth of Massachusetts, previewed what an accounting career future would look like for students from Lenox Memorial High School at its "Is Accounting for Me?" conference at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst on April 27. The conference included interactive accounting exercises and workshops, discussions about accounting careers and CPA services, information about college programs and student life, and a networking lunch with college students, faculty and CPA practitioners.

Students got the chance to hear from professional CPAs about their jobs and to talk to college accounting students about their coursework and experience. Students also took part in an accounting based case study competition focusing on personal finances. UMass Amherst professor Cathy Lowry led a breakout session specifically for community college students looking to make the transition into a four-year school. Students were informed on what they need to focus on while in community college and how to successfully transfer into a four-year program.

Teachers selected the students in attendance based on their aptitude for accounting. The MSCPA also has a membership option for high school students. The free membership allows young people access to the 11,000-member organization and offers career counseling, scholarship opportunities and summer programs.

The following Lenox Memorial High School students attended the event: Jimmy Chassi, junior; Bridget Collins, senior; Luis Herrera Gomez, senior; Bridget Nicotra, senior; Conor Prince, senior; Avya Schiff, senior; Hailey Patel, junior; and Piero Merino, junior.

Preschool art

The Dalton Preschool will host its third annual Spring Art Walk display in the windows of hosting local business, including Union Block Bakery, Academy Mortgage and Hot Harry's, all located at 395-403 Main St., opposite the Dalton CRA, through May 6. The display includes sample works and descriptions of preschoolers' art work, including watercolors, easel paintings and magnet paintings.

Dalton Preschool (known formerly as Dalton Co-op Nursery School) is an independent, non-profit preschool that has been a community institution committed to providing quality Early Educational Programming for young children in the greater Dalton area since 1969. Fully licensed through the Massachusetts Department of Early Education and Care as a group preschool program, the preschool serves to enhance the natural growth and development of children from 2 years, 9 months old to 5 years old.

Enrollment is now open for the 2018-19 academic year. Applications are available upon request at the front desk of the Dalton CRA.

Aging gracefully

The Pittsfield Council on Aging and the Friends of the Pittsfield Council on Aging will be hosting a series of events, beginning Tuesday, May 1, in celebration of the 25th anniversary of the opening of the Ralph J. Froio Senior Center at 330 North St. The anniversary celebration, themed "Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow," will include the following events and activities:

May 1: Ribbon-cutting ceremony in recognition of the marquee's revitalization starts at 10 a.m. Immediately following, there will be an open house and guided tours of the senior center, highlighting the center’s various programs.

May 2: Free luncheon for seniors; reservations are suggested.

May 3, 4, 7 and 8: Tours of the senior center will be available throughout each day.

May 8: Ice cream social for seniors, 1-3 p.m.

May 10: The anniversary celebration will culminate with a reception 5 to 7 p.m. at the Colonial Theatre. The event will include hors d’oeuvres and cash bar; there is a suggested donation of $25 per person.

To schedule a tour of the center, make a reservation for an event, or obtain tickets for the anniversary celebration, call 413-499-9346.

How about a haiku

The Hoosic River Watershed Association invites everyone in North Adams and Williamstown to celebrate the Hoosic River by writing haiku inspired by the river and its surroundings. The haiku will hang for a week on the new trail and suspension bridge in back of Tourists (access from Ashton Avenue) in North Adams. On May 5, the event will open with music, refreshments and readings.

Residents can write your haiku on paper about two-and-a-half inches by eight inches. Paper and pens will be available at the North Adams and the Milne Public Libraries. Illustrations are welcome. Residents can leave poems at the libraries or email them. A collection of the poems will be displayed in both libraries.

Earth Day at BArT

In an effort spearheaded by sophomore Kylie Taylor, the BArT Student Ambassadors partnered with the Adams Department of Public Works to tackle trash pick-up on Monday, April 23, in observance of the first annual BArT Earth Day. The Ambassadors and the entire BArT ninth-grade met in front of the Adams Town Hall to pick up tools and coordinate with the DPW workers. They picked up trash and raked at the Town Commons, raked leaves on the Town Hall lawn, and gathered trash along part of the Ashuwillticook Trail and nearby Russell Field.

"The Earth is important, our community is important, thank you for making this morning's clean-up a success," Kylie said to her classmates at a rally following the 45-minute cleanup. She expects the event is the beginning of a long-standing BArT tradition.

The BArT Student Ambassadors serve as BArT representatives and liaisons both on and off campus. As a part of representing BArT in the surrounding towns and cities they find different ways to give back through volunteering and taking part in community events.

MassParks Parking Passes

The City of Pittsfield's Recreation Program has received a 2018 MassParks Pass from the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation, which will be available at the Berkshire Athenaeum. There are now two MassParks passes on file at the library. The MassParks Pass provides residents with free parking for one vehicle (excluding buses or vans) to visit any of the more than 50 facilities in the Massachusetts state parks system that charge a day-use parking fee.

The day passes can be picked up between the hours of 9:30 a.m. and noon Monday through Friday, and must be returned before 9:30 a.m. the following day. On Saturdays, pick up is between 10:30 a.m. and noon. The library is located at 1 Wendell Ave.

Building bridges

The Pembury Bridge Club in Pittsfield is offering free lessons. Eight weekly sessions are available to beginners or returning players and social players who want to learn modern bridge.

Lessons will begin Wednesday, May 2, from 12:45 to 3:30 p.m. through June 20. Each session includes the lesson, followed by a guided novice game. Lessons, handouts and refreshments are free.

Pembury Bridge Club is located at the South Congregational Church at 110 South St.; free parking is in the rear. For more information, call 413-655-2416 or send an email.

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The Classical Beat: Look For a Profusion of Events at Tanglewood From Fall and Into Next Spring

by Stephen DanknerSpecial to iBerkshires
03:15PM / Wednesday, August 26, 2026

LENOX, Mass. — Come late August, classical aficionados are grateful for the cornucopia of extraordinarily sonorous riches the Boston Symphony has bestowed upon audiences within the incomparably bucolic setting that is Tanglewood. It's been, as ever, a magical summer of glorious music making.

But wait – it's not over; for a cool, refreshing stylistic change of pace, with a tincture of Jazz, Broadway, Dance, Classical, Pops and Local Community events to buoy the spirits, be sure to check out the complete schedule of upcoming events at the storied Tanglewood Learning Institute, beginning in September. Read below for the complete TLI listings.

Tanglewood Learning Institute Announces Fall/Winter/Spring Season, Presenting Over 50 Events September 2026 through May 2027

TLI's most expansive season to date brings classical, jazz, Broadway, and dance talent to Tanglewood's Linde Center. Tickets now on sale.

The Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI) has announced the 2026–'27 fall/winter/spring season, the most expansive yet, with over 50 events at the Linde Center for Music and Learning on Tanglewood's campus and in the Berkshires community. Marking the third year of year-round TLI programming, the upcoming season offers a wide-ranging performance lineup of exciting classical, jazz, Broadway, and dance talent as well as the TLI Cinematics film series, new TLI Focal Point photography classes, and community engagement events.

The season begins in late September with TLI Jazz: Mark G. Meadows & The Movement (Sept. 18) and TLI Presents: Beijing Guitar Duo (Sept. 25). Berkshire-based artists appear throughout the season, including a dedicated weekend of TLI Close to Home performances (Oct. 30–Nov. 1). BSO musicians curate and perform five TLI Chamber Concerts (Oct. 18, Nov. 8, Feb. 28, April 11, and April 25). Last year's inaugural Berkshire Bach Portals series, a collaboration with Berkshire Bach Society, continues with four programs about the impact of Bach's music across artistic disciplines (Nov. 7, Jan. 30, March 20, and May 15). As currently planned, the TLI fall/winter/spring season concludes May 23 with a performance by Grammy-winning vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth. TLI events continue during the 2027 Tanglewood summer season.

Single tickets and choose-your-own subscriptions for the upcoming TLI season go on sale Wednesday, August 12 at 10 a.m.

TLI Presents

A wide-ranging lineup of soloists and ensembles will visit the Linde Center for TLI Presents programs, beginning with the Tanglewood debut of the Beijing Guitar Duo (Meng Su and Yameng Wang) in a program that shows the expressive range of classical guitar and includes works by Telemann, Giuliani, and Chinese American composer Tan Dun (Sept. 25, 7 p.m.). Award-winning Moldovan accordionist Radu Ratoi follows with a varied recital that reveals the remarkable expressive range of his instrument with pieces by Rameau, Bach, Philip Glass, Gubaidulina, Tchaikovsky, and others (Oct. 23, 7 p.m.).

Broadway comes to the Linde Center by way of two-time Tony-nominated singer and actress Christine Andreas ("My Fair Lady," "Oklahoma!," "The Light in the Piazza"), who brings classic and contemporary selections from the American songbook in her show S'Wonderful with Grammy-nominated composer and pianist Martin Silvestri. In a new format for TLI, this event will feature cabaret-style table seating with bites and beverages available for purchase (Nov. 13, 7 p.m.). Later that weekend, the Grammy-winning and four-time nominated wind quintet Imani Winds, renowned for blending classical masterworks with newly commissioned works and diverse musical influences, performs an adventurous chamber music program (Nov. 15, 3 p.m.)

Founded by retired Boston Ballet principal dancer John Lam, who led TLI 101: Dance at the Linde Center in July, Lam Dance Works returns to Tanglewood for an intimate evening where dance, live music, and the human voice illuminate memory, identity, and our shared humanity. The program features works by internationally acclaimed choreographers Peggy Baker, Jorma Elo, and Yury Yanowsky, with Artistic Director Lam offering audience insights before each work and a post-performance conversation with the artists. (Nov. 21, 7 p.m.).

Newly installed as a Berkshire tradition, BSO Holiday Brass returns to the Linde Center for four presentations, including a morning performance geared towards families (Dec. 18–20).

Colombian cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia, Silver Medalist and "Audience Favorite" at the 2019 XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition, presents a recital that pairs music by Bach and George Crumb with several of his own compositions (Feb. 26, 7 p.m.). Concert pianists Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung, each in-demand soloists in their own right, offer an afternoon concert featuring repertoire for four hands, including works by Bach, Mendelssohn, Debussy, Poulenc, and Piazzolla (March 7, 3 p.m.).

Actor and singer Jarrod Spector, most recently seen on Broadway as King George III in "Hamilton," shares his musical journey in "Jukebox Life," a cabaret-style evening of Broadway, rock n' roll, and crooner classics that traces his career from winning "Star Search" at age six to the bright lights of Broadway (April 9, 7 p.m.).

In a highlight of the season, pianist and composer Conrad Tao and choreographer and dancer Caleb Teicher give two performances of their collaborative and original program Counterpoint. The stylistically diverse music of "Counterpoint" includes the Aria from Bach’s Goldberg Variations, Art Tatum’s brilliantly virtuosic stride piano, Arnold Schoenberg’s ironic/modernistic take on the Viennese waltz, a delicate miniature from Tao and Teicher’s More Forever, and threading it all together, Gershwin’s perennially beloved "Rhapsody in Blue." Tao and Teicher’s earlier work," More Forever," is a Bessie Award-winning, New York Times critic’s pick which was lauded for "constantly extending the sonic aspects of dance" (April 17, 7 p.m., and April 18, 3 p.m.).

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