Ventfort Hall Announces New Board Members

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LENOX, Mass.— Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum announces the appointment of four new members to its board of directors.
 
Appointed to the board were James P. Galli, Kim Jakobowicz, Louis D, Schroeter III, and Jeremy Winchester.
 
James P. Galli, also known as JP, is a seasoned professional in the hospitality field with over 25 years of experience. From working with large branded properties to his current position as General Manager at Hotel on North, JP has consistently demonstrated his expertise and dedication to the industry.  JP is actively involved in his community and currently serves on the boards of the YMCA of the Berkshires and Downtown Pittsfield Inc.
 
Kim Jakobowicz retired from NYS employment in 2014 after 35 years as a COBOL programmer and project leader. Most of her state career was spent at the Division of Criminal Justice designing computer systems for local police agencies, and later at the Office of Cyber Security as a project manager overseeing firewall log monitoring for 64 NYS agencies. She began volunteering as a docent at Ventfort Hall in 2021 and for the last three years has helped out with the flower urns and pots around the property.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    
Louis D. Schroeter III, now semi retired from the metals industry, started metal fabricating in the carriage house of Sunnyridge in Lenox, MA and named the business Atlantis Iron and Design. He also opened a welding shop in West Stockbridge the same year. The business moved to Richmond in 1973 and incorporated as Atlantis Equipment Corp. In 1986 a plant was built in Stephentown, NY. In 1994 the company expanded into Adams and occupied 90,000 sq. ft. of manufacturing space in New York and Massachusetts. His semiretirement now allows him to spend time engaging in philanthropy, focused on education for future generations and preserving the icons of the past.
 
Jeremy Winchester is an educator, executive, and multi-modal artist in the performing arts. He is a Professor of Theatre at the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, where he also serves as the Director of MOSAIC, the college's public program for open arts and intersectional culture. Prior to joining the faculty at MCLA in 2016, he was the Executive Artistic Director of the nationally renowned Flint Youth Theatre. He is an affiliated artist with Cape Cod-based Pacific Performance Project/east, maintains an active freelance career with a focus on theatre for equity and social justice, and served for six years on the Board of Directors of Theatre for Young Audiences USA.

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The Classical Beat: Tanglewood, Sevenars Proffer Classical Glories

Stephen DanknerSpecial to iBerkshires

As Tanglewood enters its third week, the concerts will be awesome. If you're a pianophile and love concertos for your favorite instrument, masterworks by Ravel and Shostakovich are scheduled. In the third Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra  program of the season, BSO Maestro Andris Nelsons conducts two brilliant and virtuosic tone poems by Richard Strauss, "Don Juan" and "Tyll Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks." TMC Conducting Fellows Julian Gilewski and Lauren Smith lead Beethoven's 'Leonore' Overture No. 3 and Hindemith's "Konzertmusik" for strings and brass. Samuel Barber's masterful Violin Concerto will also be a welcome addition. Such diverse repertoire amply demonstrates that at Tanglewood, the stylistic diversity of musical offerings is both wide and deep.

Added to these delights, there's also the inviting Sevenars Music Festival in South Worthington, MA. This week, Sevenars welcomes the prizewinning Mada-Hugh piano duo in a tribute to America's 250th birthday, showcasing works by Samuel Barber, Leonard Bernstein, Aaron Copland, George Gershwin, Jennifer Higdon, Vincent Persichetti, Florence Price and others - including the pianists' own arrangements. 

Both venues present outstanding classic and contemporary music performed at magnificent venues in pristine, bucolic settings by marvelous performers. "Who Could Ask for Anything More?" Read below for the details.

Tanglewood

Friday, July 17, 8:00 p.m. in the Shed: BSO Music Director Andris Nelsons leads the Orchestra in a fascinating program of instrumental and vocal virtuosity. A recent work by Composer-in-Residence Carlos Simon, "Meditations on Grace," will open the program. Violinist Keila Wakao is the soloist in Samuel Barber's lovely and highly virtuosic Violin Concerto, with its thrilling "perpetual motion" finale. Stellar operatic soloists Renée Fleming and Thomas Hampson will sing selections from composer John Adams' 1987 landmark opera "Nixon in China."

Saturday, July 18, 8:00 p.m. in the Shed: Japanese composer/conductor  Mamoru Fujisawa, known professionally as Joe Hisaishi leads the Boston Symphony in three of his works, and also the scintillating Piano Concerto in G by Maurice Ravel, with Jean-Yves Thibaudet the spectacular soloist.

Sunday, July 19, 2:30 p.m. in the Shed: Maestro Nelsons returns to the Shed's podium to direct the BSO in a program of Haydn (Symphony No. 22 'The Philosopher',) Shostakovich (Piano Concerto No. 1) with the stunning virtuoso pianist Danill Trifonov and accompanied by BSO Principal Trumpet Thomas Rolfe. Beethoven's Symphony No. 2 concludes the program.

Monday, July 20, 2:30 p.m. in Ozawa Hall: The Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra, led by TMC Conducting Fellows, and Maestro Nelsons, is featured in Richard Strauss' virtuosic symphonic poems "Don Juan" and "Tyll Eulenspiegel's Merry Pranks." Beethoven's "Overture to 'Leonore' No. 3" and Paul Hindemith's "Konzertmusik" for strings and brass complete the program.

Sevenars Music Festival

Sunday, July 19, 4:00 p.m.: The Mada & Hugh Piano Duo, comprised of Romanian-born pianist M?d?lina-Claudia D?nil? and Korean-American pianist Hugh Sung, stands at the forefront of innovative 4-hand piano performances.

Together, M?d?lina Claudia D?nil?  and Hugh Sung offer a unique command of classical mastery, which they joyously bring to their performances. Their repertoire spans the ages, from timeless classics to their own dazzling arrangements of popular tunes, all the while thrilling audiences with their exceptional artistry and creativity.

The Sevenars Academy is located at 15 Ireland Street, just off Route 112 in the historic village of South Worthington, MA. Admission is by donation (suggested $20.) Phone: (413) 238-5854). Online: www.sevenars.com. Refreshments will be available at no charge.

 

 

 

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