Adirondack Paddlefest in Old Forge This Weekend
Going Solo: Organizing Backcountry Gear
The Anxiety Of An Empty Backpack
I
t may be due to some weird alignment of the stars, or a movement to start “Cinco de Mayo” early, but Friday May 3 there are four great art events in Saranac Lake.
With good timing, it could be possible for one to make all four events, but it’s more likely choices will have to be made. » Continue Reading.
For much of the past summer, Chris Shaw was busy organizing workshops and staging concerts of the region’s traditional music at the Adirondack Folk School in Lake Luzerne. “It’s vital that we preserve these songs,” said Shaw. “Nothing gives you better access to the Adirondack experience than listening to the music.” But it’s not the mission of the Adirondack Folk School to display the region’s hand crafted products behind glass, nor to make craftsmen into re-enactors; it’s to ensure that the traditions will be continued, said Shaw.
“That’s what’s so cool about the Adirondack Folk School; you don’t just learn the history of Adirondack pack baskets, you make one. It’s the same with music. We want to maintain the musical traditions, but also, to see them live and evolve,” he said. Shaw, a native of Lake George, has made a career of singing Adirondack folk songs and telling Adirondack tales. » Continue Reading.
The Adirondack Interpretive Center (AIC) will celebrate the winter season on Saturday, December 8 with a day of activities highlighted by a concert by Adirondack singer/songwriter/storyteller Chris Shaw.
Throughout the day, visitors will have an opportunity to create their own nature decorations and hang them on the center’s winter solstice tree. Visitors can learn about the winter solstice, hike or snowshoe on the trails, and watch birds at the feeders. Eggnog and punch will be served at 2 p.m.; participants are invited to bring a plate of cookies to share. The center will be open until 5 p.m., an hour later than usual. There is no fee for admission. » Continue Reading.
The New York State Museum will celebrate the Adirondacks and Lake Champlain on Saturday, November 3 with “Adirondack Day,” an inaugural daylong event that will complement the Museum’s exhibition on iconic Adirondack photographer Seneca Ray Stoddard.
The free event, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will include a concert, lectures, displays, tours and films presented by the New York State Museum and many of the North Country’s leading educational and cultural institutions. Participating are the New York State Museum, Adirondack Museum, Adirondack Life magazine, Fort Ticonderoga, Great Camp Sagamore, John Brown Lives, Lakes to Locks Passage, Mountain Lake PBS, Paul Smith’s College, The Wild Center, and the Trudeau Institute.
» Continue Reading.
Four Seasons, Four Years is a new Old Songs production featuring eleven singers and musicians from the Adirondacks performing a selection of songs extant in America between 1850 and 1865. This performance takes place at View (the former Old Forge Arts Center) this Saturday, September 29, 2012 at 7:30pm. The show includes both popular songs of the period as well as songs composed in response to the Civil War itself and events leading up to it. The songs are interspersed with historical narrative specific to New York State and the New York Volunteer Regiments. » Continue Reading.
The 21st Annual Whiteface Oktoberfest, in Wilmington, N.Y., is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, Sept. 29-30. During the two-day festival, includes family activities such as original vendors, arts and crafts, children’s amusement rides such as a hayride and inflatables, Bavarian food, drink and entertainment.
Whiteface Oktoberfest will offer traditional German music from Die Schlauberger, performing under the entertainment tent outside the base lodge each day and Ed Schenk on the accordion. The Cloudspin Lounge also features music from Schachtelgebirger Musikanten (Scha-Musi) and, performing at their forth Oktoberfest, will be Spitze and The Alpen Trio. » Continue Reading.
Fans of the HBO series “Treme” can turn off their television sets. The real thing is coming to Lake George. Tenor saxophonist Donald Harrison Jr and his band, Congo Square Nation, will present a special Saturday night performance during this year’s Lake George Jazz Weekend, which opens on September 15.
“It’s tremendously exciting that Donald Harrison is coming to Lake George,” said jazz festival curator Paul Pines. “I’ve been doing the Jazz Weekend for 29 years, and to me, this is the full flowering of everything we’ve done.” » Continue Reading.
The summer season ends and brings a close to numerous outdoor entertainments. During the summer months, throughout the Adirondack Park, there is an abundance of outdoor concerts, musicians and entertainers. My family feels so fortunate to have such professional talent at our disposal. Come autumn, the leaves change and so do the musical entertainment opportunities.
In its fifth season, Piano by Nature in Elizabethtown is one musical organization that strives to bring live music to the Adirondacks during the other months of the year. Artistic Director Rose Chancier started Piano By Nature with the concept of giving back to her community. » Continue Reading.
The Fourth Annual Hobofest, an all-day music festival “at-the-tracks” in Saranac Lake NY celebrating railroad culture and the “hobo spirit,” is happening on Sunday, September 2nd. This year’s Hobofest will take place under the “big top,” to assure against the variables of weather, from noon until 11pm. Eat and Meet Grill & Larder will serve local fare, also a children’s activities booth and festival & artist merchandise tables.
This year’s special guest is Washington State legend, Baby Gramps. A former street musician and train buff, Gramps plays antique resonator National Steel guitars, and sings his own unique arrangements of rags, jazz, & blues songs from the 20′s & 30′s, and many originals with wordplay, humor, and throat singing. His appeal is to a wide range of audiences from “jam-band” – having toured with Phish and the Flecktones- to punk to old timey traditional and to kids of all ages. He has performed across the States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. » Continue Reading.
My family has never gone to St. William’s on Long Point. I am aware of its special programming and always think that I have a full summer to attend just one of the free Thursday events. As we travel around hiking, swimming and eating our way through the Adirondack Park, suddenly the end of the summer looms and only one more special event is scheduled to take place on Long Point.
I get an e-mail reminder from Lisa Meissner of the acoustic group, Rustic Riders. Lisa and her husband Klauss will be performing at St. Williams on Long Point in Raquette Lake on August 23, 7:00 p.m. » Continue Reading.
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