Tanglewood
413-635-5165, (winter: 617-266-1492)
West Street, Rte 183, Lenox, MA 01240

Since 1937, the Boston Symphony Orchestra has called Tanglewood its summer home. The entire enterprise started in a large tent on the grounds of the Tappan family estate, moving to the famous Shed in 1938 (eventually being named in honor of the BSO's conductor Serge Koussevitzky), added an innovative acoustically enhanced canopy in the 50's and became a virtual mecca for music lovers. Today, the 250+ acres include the Tanglewood Music Center, with the Seiji Ozawa Hall, the Leonard Bernstein Campus, and a number of smaller studios, classrooms and performance spaces. For most people, though, the Tanglewood experience includes the obligatory picnic on the expansive lawns; over 300,000 visitors annually enjoy the vast array of offerings, from the BSO, the Boston Pops, the Jazz Festival, the Popular Artists Series and the open air beauty and aural excellence echoing through the Berkshire Hills.

Berkshire Opera Company
Mahaiwe Theater
40 Railroad St.
Great Barrington, MA
Phone: (413) 644-9000
Fax: (413) 644-9030
E-mail: info@berkshireopera.org

After 16 years of wandering the Berkshires, on September 21, 2000 we purchased the beautiful and historic 700-seat Mahaiwe Theatre in the heart of Great Barrington, Massachusetts. Under the leadership of world-renowned architect Hugh Hardy, we’ve already begun the process of restoring this intimate acoustical gem and former vaudeville house to its original 1905 grandeur. It will take a few years, but when the restoration is completed, Berkshire Opera Company will be a summer festival presenting three operas concurrently with performances nearly every night of the week. The exciting journey has just begun!

Music Mountain
Falls Village, CT
860-824-7126

Music Mountain, the oldest continuing Summer Chamber Music Festival in the United States, celebrates its 72nd Season in 2001. Founded in 1930 as the permanent home of the Gordon String Quartet, Music Mountain's unique and beautiful campus on 132 acres in the Berkshire foothills is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

Music Mountain offers a marvelous setting for both the musicians and the audience. The centerpiece is Gordon Hall, one of the finest chamber music facilities in the country. With seating for 335 and legendary acoustics, Gordon Hall provides resonant and lovely sound, with views of the gardens, grounds and hills from every seat or from the lawn permitting listeners to savor music and nature as one.

"For String Quartets, Music Mountain is the place to be."
-The New York Times

Stockbridge Chamber Music Concerts
Concerts at Searles Castle
398 Main St.
Great Barrington, MA
Toll Free U.S.: 888-528-7728

Concert series and castle tours....

Since 1975, Elizabeth Artman Hagenah and members of the BSO have been providing seasonal chamber concerts featuring world class artists in an opulent setting. Tours and post concert receptions are offered in Searles Castle, designed by Stanford White and completed in 1886, financed by the widow of Mark Hopkins, one of the founders of the Central Pacific Railroad.

The castle is names for the interior decorator, who married Mr. Hopkins' widow. These concerts provide a rare opportunity for the public to enjoy the work of some of the day's finest professional musicians as well as to get some sense of the splendor of the 19th century Berkshires and to experience the richness of works by such masters as Verdi, Mozart, Strauss and so many others. In addition to music, there are also dramatic readings of verse.

Norfolk Chamber Music Festival
Ellen Battell Stoeckel Estate
Routes 44 & 272, PO Box 545
Norfolk, CT 06058
Telephone: 860-542-3000
Fax: 860-542-3004.

This Festival is situated on the Ellen Battell Stoeckel Estate—70 acres of rolling lawns, glorious gardens and historic buildings—in the rural town of Norfolk in Litchfield County, Connecticut.

The strong tradition of music in Norfolk dates back more than a century. Ellen Battell Stoeckel, an accomplished pianist and singer, began informal musical gatherings in Whitehouse, the Estate's 35-room family mansion. Mrs. Stoeckel and her husband Carl, son of Gustav Stoeckel, the first Professor of Music at Yale, founded the Litchfield County Choral Union in 1899 and built a music festival around its concerts. The Norfolk Music Festival quickly became one of the most important and prestigious musical events of its time.

On-line at: www.yale.edu/norfolk

Guthrie Center
The Old Trinity Church is located at:
4 Van Deusenville Road
Housatonic, MA 01230
Phone (413) 528-1955

Originally built as the St. James Chapel in 1829 in the Berkshires, and later expanded in 1866 when it was renamed the Trinity Church, The Guthrie Center has had a long and fascinating history. Anyone who has seen the film “Alice's Restaurant” will know the story of how Arlo Guthrie, the son of Woody Guthrie, a well respected and talented folk musician, came to visit and eventually settle in this location. The Trinity Church, where the song “The Alice's Restaurant Massacree” began and where the movie “Alice's Restaurant” was filmed, continues to service the local and international community.

If you have not seen the film or heard the song, both American classics from the 1960's, you should. Those who are familiar with Arlo and his adventures will be happy to know that he is offering The Summer Concert Series at Trinity Church, which begins late spring and runs through the summer. The goal is to “keep the local and global traditions of folk and acoustic music alive and well”.

The Guthrie Center keeps the philosophy of Woody and Marjorie Guthrie, to provide a place to work with the issues of our times. Their primary interest is in “developing a deeper understanding of the world and its peoples – through the music which gives our unique qualities a voice”.

On-line at: www.guthriecenter.org

Berkshire Choral Festival
245 North Undermountain Road
Sheffield, Massachusetts 01257
Telephone: 413.229.8526
Facsimile: 413.229.0109

Now in its eighteenth year, the Berkshire Choral Festival is a non-profit organization that brings together 200 choristers a week for a singing vacation for eight weeks each year. Singers rehearse, study, relax and perform the great choral masterpieces under the leadership of the most distinguished choral conductors. Five of those weeks take place in Sheffield, Massachusetts. The other three weeks occur in Santa Fe, New Mexico; Canterbury, England; and Salzburg, Austria.

At the Berkshire Choral Festival, choristers from across the country and around the world rehearse each morning and evening and attend optional classes in a wide array of musical subjects. Afternoons are for recreation including tours to popular sites, sports and other activities. The evening social hour often features distinguished guests from the performing arts. The highlight of the week is the concert featuring the chorus, orchestra and prominent soloists before an audience of 1,000 music lovers.

If you've sung with the Berkshire Choral Festival before, chances are you enjoyed one of the best weeks of your life. If you haven't, a memorable experience awaits you. In either case, we invite you to come sing with us. Non-singing spouses and friends are most welcome."

On-line at: www.chorus.org