Though the Dovells weren't singing about our Bristol, it's still kind of fun to hear their hit "Bristol Stomp," which surely can make some stomp right here in Connecticut:
*******
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
Showing posts with label music. Show all posts
September 2, 2009
April 28, 2009
'Rock For Wishes' needs help
For months, Troy Wilson has been working on a "Rock For Wishes" fund-raiser to collect money for the Make-A-Wish Foundation.
He's got five bands coming to the May 9 event and plans for an outdoor pig roast, too.
But the corporate sponsor that had promised to pony up $1,500 to cover the costs has backed out, Wilson said, so he's "feeling desperate."
He said he's looking for tax-deductible donations to ensure that the event is a success.
Slated to begin at 4 p.m. Saturday, May 9 at Bleacher's Sports Bar and Restaurant on Middle Street, the money raised will go to help the foundation make dreams come true for sick children who may face a bleak future.
If you can lend a hand, contact Wilson at (860) 544-5246 or (860) 384-4296.
Copyright 2009. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
March 4, 2009
School budget would preserve exising program, teachers
The city’s Board of Education gave its unanimous approval Wednesday of a proposed $104 million spending plan that would maintain existing programs and personnel.
It isn’t clear, though, whether the money it’s counting on will prove available.
The proposed budget asks for $3.7 million in additional spending over this year’s tally in order to cover rising health care costs, special education increases and higher salaries.
But the state may not up its school aid to the city and municipal decision-makers are pushing to freeze property taxes this year, which will make extra money for education hard to come by.
“We are in a tough position,” said Barbara Doyle, the school board chair.
Since the education panel can’t raise revenues on its own, she said, “we’re between a rock and hard place” in attempting to get the budget funded.
Tom O’Brien, a school board member who heads the finance committee, said he is optimistic that the budget won’t need to be pared before final approval by the city in May.
There is some federal stimulus money heading to Bristol, but officials are not yet sure how much of it can be used to pay for items that are in the budget.
It is also unclear what the state legislature plans to do. Gov. Jodi Rell called for maintaining the state’s education aid levels but not hiking them.
“We don’t know, really, what the revenues are,” O’Brien said.
One bright spot is that the schools are likely to end the fiscal year in June with a small surplus.
Steven DeVaux, the assistant superintendent for business, said the district will “comfortably avoid’ any shortfall this year because of its freeze on spending.
At least 75 people jammed the Board of Education meeting to plead for officials to keep funding the music program at current levels.
There is a contingency plan that calls for slashing the music budget by 18 percent, which would badly crimp the middle school music program.
But the budget approved Wednesday doesn’t touch the music program. It remains intact, unless the schools come up short on money, officials said. Even then, officials may opt to cut elsewhere.
Emily Lewis, a sophomore at Bristol Central High School, was one of many who pleaded for preservation of the music program.
Lewis said music has been “a staple of my school years” as she played three instruments and sang in five choirs.
“Life was never meant to be silent,” she said. “I hope that in Bristol public schools, it never will be.”
Scott Shuler, an arts consultant for the state Department of Education, said that the arts provide a crucial element in the education of many students.
He said Bristol’s music instructional time is beneath the state average now and would sink if cuts are made.
O’Brien said that if the schools are short of revenue, officials will talk seriously with employees about measures that might be possible to prevent layoffs or increases in class sizes. Some negotiations appear to have taken place already.
What you can do
There is a budget hearing on the school spending plan slated for 6 p.m., Wednesday, March 18 at the Board of Education where the city’s Board of Finance will review the request. It plays a crucial role in determining how much money the schools will get from city taxpayers.
Text of Emily Lewis' address to the school board:
My name is Emily Lewis and I'm a sophomore at Bristol Central High School. I'd like to first start by thanking The Board of Education for allowing me to speak at this meeting tonight. I feel very passionate about the music program and all those connected to it. I have been involved in this program for almost seven years and have had many wonderful opportunities for leadership, self-discovery and a greater appreciation of music. This has been a staple of my school years and I would hate to see future musicians denied this opportunity.
I can't imagine my life without the school music program. Music has given me the leadership skills and confidence that has brought me here, to talk on behalf of my fellow musicians, friends and students. I've been able to find myself and in the process have found a place where I'm never judged and always in good company. The students in the performing arts department, myself included, are in the tops of their classes and are looking for more out of their school experience than the average student. We don't watch the clock waiting for the bell to ring. We watch the clock waiting to go to band.
I was first introduced to Bristol's music program at an early age by attending my older sister's band and choir concerts. I knew I wanted to share the joy she got out of performing for others. Since joining the program I've played three different instruments and sang in five different choirs. During these years, I broke out of my musical shell and went from listening to Britney Spears and Back Street Boys to Broadway songs and classical pieces. I've had the chance to sing at Arlington Cemetery and play at Mystic Seaport. These are wonderful opportunities which opened my eyes to the world around me, musically and culturally. With music, I've found there is a world outside Bristol, Connecticut.
When I first came to high school, I decided it was time for my clarinet and I to go our separate ways. I just didn't want to wear wool band uniforms and march around in a funny looking hat. By the end of the school year, I had changed my tune. All my friends did band and loved it. They talked about the great times they spent at football games, competing in the Southington Marching Band Show and marching at the Big E. I decided I could try it for a year and if I didn't like it, it was only a year. That was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I can't begin to describe how proud I feel after marching off the field with the BCHS marching band. To memorize three pieces of music, ten plus marching patterns and play and march at the same time is no easy feat. It felt good to accomplish something I never thought I could do.
In twenty years when I look back on my school experience it won't the the sports, the parties or the friends that will come to mind. It will be my experiences in the music program. I will be proud to tell my children and grandchildren that I was able to be part of a group of students who together made the most important thing in the world: Music. Life was never meant to be silent. I hope that in Bristol Public Schools it won't ever be.
I can't imagine my life without the school music program. Music has given me the leadership skills and confidence that has brought me here, to talk on behalf of my fellow musicians, friends and students. I've been able to find myself and in the process have found a place where I'm never judged and always in good company. The students in the performing arts department, myself included, are in the tops of their classes and are looking for more out of their school experience than the average student. We don't watch the clock waiting for the bell to ring. We watch the clock waiting to go to band.
I was first introduced to Bristol's music program at an early age by attending my older sister's band and choir concerts. I knew I wanted to share the joy she got out of performing for others. Since joining the program I've played three different instruments and sang in five different choirs. During these years, I broke out of my musical shell and went from listening to Britney Spears and Back Street Boys to Broadway songs and classical pieces. I've had the chance to sing at Arlington Cemetery and play at Mystic Seaport. These are wonderful opportunities which opened my eyes to the world around me, musically and culturally. With music, I've found there is a world outside Bristol, Connecticut.
When I first came to high school, I decided it was time for my clarinet and I to go our separate ways. I just didn't want to wear wool band uniforms and march around in a funny looking hat. By the end of the school year, I had changed my tune. All my friends did band and loved it. They talked about the great times they spent at football games, competing in the Southington Marching Band Show and marching at the Big E. I decided I could try it for a year and if I didn't like it, it was only a year. That was one of the best decisions I've ever made. I can't begin to describe how proud I feel after marching off the field with the BCHS marching band. To memorize three pieces of music, ten plus marching patterns and play and march at the same time is no easy feat. It felt good to accomplish something I never thought I could do.
In twenty years when I look back on my school experience it won't the the sports, the parties or the friends that will come to mind. It will be my experiences in the music program. I will be proud to tell my children and grandchildren that I was able to be part of a group of students who together made the most important thing in the world: Music. Life was never meant to be silent. I hope that in Bristol Public Schools it won't ever be.
*******
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
July 1, 2008
"Good Luck Back"
Some candidates for political office issue long, boring white papers detailing policy initatives. Others issue shallow press releases about make-believe issues. And still others, or at least Republican congressional candidate Joe Visconti, release a new song.*******
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
Copyright 2008. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
December 14, 2007
Holiday concert slated for Sunday may be KO'd by snow
Reporter Jackie Majerus just sent this along:
A holiday concert by the Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble planned for Sunday afternoon will likely be postponed because of the storm, said Dave Carpenter, conductor.
Carpenter said Friday that the concert, scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday at the Prospect United Methodist Church on Summer Street, will probably not happen as planned.
A nor’easter is expected to bring snow, sleet, rain and freezing rain throughout the day Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.
If the weather is as yucky as forecasted, Carpenter said, the concert won’t be held.
However, if luck prevails and the storm misses the area, the show will go on, Carpenter said.
Common sense will dictate whether the show will go on as planned, he said.
“We will definitely reschedule,” said Carpenter. “We’ll do a winter concert. We’ll make it work.”
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble is an all-volunteer community band that provides free concerts periodically throughout the year.
The Sunday concert is to be the group’s Christmas show. If it is rescheduled, some of the selections will remain on the program, but others won’t since a new date won’t take place until after the holiday.
*******
Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
A holiday concert by the Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble planned for Sunday afternoon will likely be postponed because of the storm, said Dave Carpenter, conductor.
Carpenter said Friday that the concert, scheduled for 2 p.m. Sunday at the Prospect United Methodist Church on Summer Street, will probably not happen as planned.
A nor’easter is expected to bring snow, sleet, rain and freezing rain throughout the day Sunday, according to the National Weather Service.
If the weather is as yucky as forecasted, Carpenter said, the concert won’t be held.
However, if luck prevails and the storm misses the area, the show will go on, Carpenter said.
Common sense will dictate whether the show will go on as planned, he said.
“We will definitely reschedule,” said Carpenter. “We’ll do a winter concert. We’ll make it work.”
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble is an all-volunteer community band that provides free concerts periodically throughout the year.
The Sunday concert is to be the group’s Christmas show. If it is rescheduled, some of the selections will remain on the program, but others won’t since a new date won’t take place until after the holiday.
*******
Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
November 10, 2007
Playing with heart
By Jackie Majerus
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble played a special memorial concert this evening for Allison Burritt, a woman who was part of their “band family,” said conductor Dave Carpenter.
Allison Burritt of Plainville, who died October 18 at age 54 of cancer, was the mother of four grown daughters, including Melissa Burritt, a flute and piccolo player in the band.
The band, which played everything from “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” to “Bolero” and “What a Wonderful World,” never sounded better, perhaps because of the feeling they put into their music tonight.
“They’re a nice bunch of people,” said Elton “Skip” Burritt, husband of Allison and a volunteer with the band.
Assistant director Niece Zabawa said the performance at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Stafford Avenue was important to the group.
Everyone in the all-volunteer band turned out Saturday evening to play except two members, Zabawa said. One of the two who couldn’t make it was getting married, and the other was in the wedding, Zabawa said.
Both Zabawa and Carpenter said it was especially meaningful for the players to reach out to a fellow band member and her family in this way. During the concert, Melissa Burritt had her usual place in the flute section.
Allison Burritt was a “nice lady,” said Carpenter.
The Burritt family is involved in the local music scene beyond the Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble. Skip Burritt sings in the Plainville Choral Society and at area churches, including St. John’s, where he is a member.
Allison volunteered with the Plainville Choral Society and was a longtime member of the Fife and Drum Corps.
The Bristol band was planning a benefit concert at the church for the Burritt family, said Carpenter, to help with staggering medical expenses.
Tragically, Allison Burritt died before the concert.
“It became a memorial service,” said Carpenter.
The band opened with “America the Beautiful,” followed by “Shenandoah,” “Amazing Grace,” and ”Over the Rainbow.” They then performed “An American Elegy,” a tribute to the victims of the Columbine massacre, “A Trumpeter's Lullaby” with a solo by Carpenter and ended the first set with “What a Wonderful World.”
A shorter, second set followed, opened with “Balladaire,” followed by “Bolero,” “King's Mountain,” “Palladio,” and ending with “Variants on a Shaped Note.”
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble will play a Christmas concert on Sunday, Dec. 16 at Prospect United Methodist Church on Federal Hill. The time isn’t set yet, but it’ll be mid-afternoon. Come early for a good seat, and bring a donation to help cover the costs of sheet music, rehearsal space and other expenses of this community band with a heart as big as a drum.
*******
Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble played a special memorial concert this evening for Allison Burritt, a woman who was part of their “band family,” said conductor Dave Carpenter.
Allison Burritt of Plainville, who died October 18 at age 54 of cancer, was the mother of four grown daughters, including Melissa Burritt, a flute and piccolo player in the band.
The band, which played everything from “Somewhere Over the Rainbow,” to “Bolero” and “What a Wonderful World,” never sounded better, perhaps because of the feeling they put into their music tonight.
“They’re a nice bunch of people,” said Elton “Skip” Burritt, husband of Allison and a volunteer with the band.
Assistant director Niece Zabawa said the performance at St. John’s Episcopal Church on Stafford Avenue was important to the group.
Everyone in the all-volunteer band turned out Saturday evening to play except two members, Zabawa said. One of the two who couldn’t make it was getting married, and the other was in the wedding, Zabawa said.
Both Zabawa and Carpenter said it was especially meaningful for the players to reach out to a fellow band member and her family in this way. During the concert, Melissa Burritt had her usual place in the flute section.
Allison Burritt was a “nice lady,” said Carpenter.
The Burritt family is involved in the local music scene beyond the Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble. Skip Burritt sings in the Plainville Choral Society and at area churches, including St. John’s, where he is a member.
Allison volunteered with the Plainville Choral Society and was a longtime member of the Fife and Drum Corps.
The Bristol band was planning a benefit concert at the church for the Burritt family, said Carpenter, to help with staggering medical expenses.
Tragically, Allison Burritt died before the concert.
“It became a memorial service,” said Carpenter.
The band opened with “America the Beautiful,” followed by “Shenandoah,” “Amazing Grace,” and ”Over the Rainbow.” They then performed “An American Elegy,” a tribute to the victims of the Columbine massacre, “A Trumpeter's Lullaby” with a solo by Carpenter and ended the first set with “What a Wonderful World.”
A shorter, second set followed, opened with “Balladaire,” followed by “Bolero,” “King's Mountain,” “Palladio,” and ending with “Variants on a Shaped Note.”
The Bristol Brass and Wind Ensemble will play a Christmas concert on Sunday, Dec. 16 at Prospect United Methodist Church on Federal Hill. The time isn’t set yet, but it’ll be mid-afternoon. Come early for a good seat, and bring a donation to help cover the costs of sheet music, rehearsal space and other expenses of this community band with a heart as big as a drum.
*******
Copyright 2007. All rights reserved.
Contact Steve Collins at scollins@bristolpress.com
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)