Get ready for a musical week!

Starting this Friday, January 24, 2020 at 7:30 p.m., free local musical events abound, beginning with the marvelous baritone Brian Ming Chu accompanied by pianist Seth Trumbore will be giving a free concert, To the Soul of a Poet: the Romance of the 20th Century, at Church of the Holy Spirit, 2871 Barndt Road, Harleysville, PA (good news – the bridge is open, no more detours!) Free will offering and reception after concert.

Perkiomen School’s music department presents The Beatles Experience on Saturday night, January 25, 2020, beginning at 7:30 p.m. in Kriebel Theater, Keh’s Hall, 200 Seminary Avenue, Pennsburg, PA.  The concert, filled with Beatles music, features the Upper School Band, the Middle School Band, Perkiomen String Ensemble, and the Combined Chorus.

Step back in time to the 1960’s and 1970’s when Beatlemania was taking the world by storm. Come hear songs from albums including Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely-Hearts Club Band, Revolver and Rubber Soul to name a few! Over 22 Albums and 250+ Songs came from this influential band. Share an evening of celebrating their music!

Please wear your Best Beatles inspired attire, from the 1960’s – 1970’s and brush up on those lyrics because this is a sing-along kind of night!

For the littlest musicians, ages 0-6 years old; free family demonstration classes will be offered in the morning on Tuesday, January 28th and Wednesday, January 29th at the new Harmony Corner Music, 437 Dotts Street, Pennsburg PA (lower level; entrance by parking lot), MusicalME with Miss Cynthia (if this sounds familiar, then perhaps you’ve been to a MusicalME event with Make Music Upper Perk.)

And on Saturday, February 1st, the first Make Music Upper Perk volunteer meeting of  2020 will be held at Pennsburg UCC (775 Main Street, Pennsburg, PA) in the social hall. Everyone interested in volunteering is welcome to attend the meeting, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Volunteers are needed starting in February – not just on June 21st!

What’s New in 2020 for Make Music Upper Perk!

2020 will be the 8th year that Make Music Upper Perk has been celebrating music on June 21st. This all volunteer organized event will be held on Sunday – Father’s Day – this year (thanks to Leap Year, we are going from a Friday in 2019 to a Sunday in 2020).  Every year is a bit different in terms of venues, times, and musicians but that’s part of what keeps it fresh and exciting!

And also exciting, is the news that Make Music Upper Perk officially received its 501(c)(3) status at the end of 2019. That means that Make Music Upper Perk is formally a non-profit organization. Thank you to everyone who helped make this possible, including all our generous donors – becoming a non-profit costs money! – and to those who bought raffle tickets in 2019, including Michele Hohlfeld/Max Reliance who covered the costs of printing the tickets, and our raffle winners, Deb Kreider, Judy Miller and Anne Schultz.

Deb Kreider

Judy Miller

Anne Schultz

The first MMUP board meeting of 2020 was held this past Saturday, January 11th, and the first volunteer meeting of 2020 will be held on Saturday, February 1st at Pennsburg UCC (775 Main Street, Pennsburg, PA) in the social hall. Everyone interested in volunteering is welcome to attend the meeting, beginning at 9:30 a.m. Volunteers are needed starting in February – not just on June 21st!

Knitters are also needed, so that we can continue to grow our yarn installations the week of Make Music Upper Perk – starting a few years ago, volunteers “yarn bomb” outside the MMUP venues to add some color and whimsy to the day and showcase where MMUP musicians will be making their music. Knitters are welcome to be as creative as they wish; we just ask for a mix of bright bold colors. Long skinny “tree scarves” are always welcome. Some people have made “discs” to hang on the bushes and some evergreen trees, and one intrepid crafter crocheted nests to set in the branches.

 

Any and all musicians interested in playing as part of Make Music Upper Perk on Sunday, June 21, 2020 should register online – it’s a relatively fast, easy (and free) process, open to musicians of all ages, abilities and genres. The registration form will be online starting February 1, 2020. The final day to sign up to play in April 20, 2020.

Photographs from last year’s Make Music Upper Perk may be found at the following online locations – thanks to our roving band of seven photographers who traveled around five towns and stopped at over twenty places to take pictures of over 300 musicians who played over 135 sets over the course of 13 hours.

The photos are free to view and download. In some instances, where professionals have taken the photos, prints may be ordered from the photographers, as well. While some of the sites may require a password to enter or download the images, the passwords are free for the asking (and some are listed below). (Most of the photos at Pixieset will be taken down on February 10, 2020.)

• Make Music Upper Perk 2019; Pixieset (Jake Wink, Susan Royer, Lee Schultz, Erin Dry, and Alex Foreman photographers) – to download photos; enter your email address and enter password – 3846
• Art Olsen Photos  (Art Olsen photographer) – no password needed to enter site, just to download
• Littlewing Studio  (Kristi Morris photographer) – password to enter site is 0621

Experience the Arts and Live Longer!

A recently released study published this month in the BMJ (formerly known as the British Medical Journal) and reported nationwide, including in the Allentown’s Morning Call has confirmed the multiple health benefits of listening to music, viewing artwork, going to museums, and otherwise experiencing the arts;

Researchers in London who followed thousands of people 50 and older for 14 years discovered that those who went to a museum or attended a concert just once or twice a year were 14% less likely to die during that period than those who didn’t.

The chances of living longer only went up the more frequently people engaged with the arts, according to the study, which was published this month in The BMJ, formerly The British Medical Journal. People who went to a museum or the theater once a month or even every few months had a 31% reduced risk of dying in that period, according to the study.

The study controlled for socioeconomic factors like a participant’s income, education level and mobility, said Andrew Steptoe, a co-author of the study and the head of University College London’s research department of behavioral science and health.

ValleyArtScene certainly believes that the arts are a pathway to a happier, healthier life, and we will continue to do our part to showcase local and nearby opportunities for everyone to join in and experience the arts. (Including, of course, co-sponsoring Make Music Upper Perk – look for the latest news on MMUP on this blog later this weekend!)

painting by Maxine Sheaffer

painting by Maxine Sheaffer

paintings by Maxine Sheaffer

This is the final weekend for Young Visions  exhibit at Trenton City Museum, where local artist Maxine Sheaffer’s fabulous paintings have been on display since November 16, 2019. This wonderful little museum located in Cadwalader Park, Trenton, New Jersey is a not so hidden gem that’s easy to find and well worth the drive. Hours are Wednesday – Saturday: Noon to 4 PM, Sunday: 1 to 4 PM. Admission is pay as you wish and parking is free. Sunday, January 12th, 2020, is the last day of the exhibit. Maxine Sheaffer is the owner and artist in residence of Art on Main in East Greenville (and if you haven’t been to Art on Main, what are you waiting for? These cold days and nights are perfect for creating art, painting pottery, ornaments, and glasses, making silk scarves, and more!).

As young artists find their voice and establish their reputations, the Trenton Museum Society is pleased to highlight ten of them in YOUNG VISIONS. Their  interpretations will be on display as they balance the line between traditional, industrial, and contemporary work. Several of the artists have shown recently in Ellarslie Open 36 as up-and-coming artists to watch. Among them were prize winners Patrick Seufert, for his oil painting Duel Extension, and Cassaundra Flor whose large etching Aeolian Cityscape won Best in Show. The large, abstract paintings and sculptures of Vincent Hawley will occupy the Malloy Gallery. The hyper-detailed animal portraits of Maxine Sheaffer will fill the Holland Gallery.

A little closer to the home, Grace Notes Piano Studio is hosting their Annual Winter Piano Party on Friday night, January 10, 2020, at Palm Schwenkfelder Church (833 Gravel Pike, aka Route 29, Palm, PA), beginning at 7 p.m. The public is invited to this free musical event showcasing the talent of some of the Valley’s up and coming piano students.