Sherman Chamber Ensemble Offers Free Children’s Concert
July 8 performance at Sherman Library features
Ferdinand the Bull, Peter and the Wolf, Ping the Duck, Making Friends with Mozart
On Saturday, July 8 at 2 p.m. The Sherman Library and Sherman Chamber Ensemble present “Famous Children’s Stories in a Musical Setting” in a free concert for families and kids of all ages at the Sherman Public Library Barn, 1 Sherman Center, Sherman, CT.
The concert is extra-special this year, because it is part of the Chamber Ensemble’s 35th Anniversary Celebration.
The afternoon program opens with “Peter and the Wolf,” narrated and played by flutist Susan Rotholz.
A highlight will be an interpretation of the classic story, “Ferdinand the Bull” set to original music composed by artistic director, Eliot Bailen. Rotholz will narrate the story and be accompanied by Bailen on cello.
Written in 1936, by American author Munro Leaf, “Ferdinand the Bull” tells the classic story of a peaceful bull who only wants to smell the flowers in the meadow. But after accidently sitting on a bumblebee, he goes into a rampage, knocking other bulls out and crashing a tree to the ground. Mistaken as brave and fearless he is picked to fight in the bullrings.
However, Ferdinand was not interested in fighting; only in admiring the beautiful flowers thrown into the ring. So, he was taken back home where he once again could sit under his favorite tree and smell the flowers.
The Ensemble will also present “Mirette on the High Wire” – an original composition by Bailen for cello and flute. Based on the children’s picture book written and illustrated by Emily Arnold McCully, published in 1992. Mirette lives in a boardinghouse in France. One day her life is changed by a man named Bellini, a famous tightrope walker, who teaches Mirette how to walk on a tightrope.
The afternoon ends with a Dvorak String Quintet “show and tell” with the SCE musicians.
Bailen said the program will present classical music in a format that is both intimate and inspiring for children and their parents, and continues a long-standing partnership between the Library, the greater community and the Ensemble.
Christine Ranno, Library Coordinator of Children’s Services, said, “How many times in a child’s life will they have the chance to be this close to a cello or violin and such expert musicians? It is truly going to be a life experience for them.”
A Meet and Greet Reception with the artists will follow. Admission is free to the public. The program is sponsored by the Kemp Mandeville Children’s Educational Fund of the Sherman Chamber Ensemble.
To reserve free tickets email info@shermanchamberensemble.org or call (860) 355-5930. Subject to seating availability, walk-ins will be welcome.
ABOUT THE SHERMAN CHAMBER ENSEMBLE
World Class Music, Close to Home for over 30 Years
Founded in 1982 by cellist Eliot Bailen, Artistic Director, and flutist Susan Rotholz, the Sherman Chamber Ensemble offers a year-round schedule of performances for all ages at venues in Connecticut and New York.
Guided by its mission to bring world class musicians to our communities and schools to perform a diverse range of music with an approach that is intimate and inclusive, The New York Times described SCE as “about as close as it gets to the Platonic ideal of a chamber music concert.”
SCE offers Baroque programs, a summer chamber music series, educational activities and a year-round slate of musical events showcasing the best of live musical performance, from classical to bluegrass to jazz – plus children’s and family concerts, school residencies and pop/rock coffeehouses. In addition to concert subscription and ticket sales, support for the 2017 season comes from the Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development/ Connecticut Office of the Arts, private foundations, local businesses and many generous individual donors.
