Life in North Georgia, Real Estate in the Mountains

Tuesday Night at 7:00 you have another outstanding cultural opportunity as Beverly Gilbert returns to the Casual Classics stage and this time she will bring violinist Lorenz Otzen to perform with her.  Ms Gilbert’s solo piano concert last year was stunning and this year’s appearance should be even more special.

Casual Classics Concert Series

The Casual Classics Concert Master, Suzanne Shull, invites you to join your friends and neighbors for a major downtown performance right here in the mountains.   The costs of the Casual Classics Concerts are underwritten by series donors so admission to all concerts is Free.  The concerts are held at the New Lebanon Presbyterian Church on Bent Tree Drive just North of Cove Rd.

Come on out and bring a friend.  You won’t regret it!

See you ’round the Mountains,

Don

Exciting news for Casual Classics Patrons, TRIO patrons, Tater Patch enthusiasts, and all who are interested in creative musicianship!  This is about the artist who will be at New Lebanon on Nov. 10 at 7:00 as part of the Casual Classics Concert Series.  I pre-ordered this C.D. and have been listening to it for a week – can’t wait for her concert!  This is her best C.D. yet with lots of humor and an interesting variety of vocalists.  We will make sure that she has some C.D.’s with her for autographing on the 10th.
Please forward this to everyone you know who wants to attend an amazing “singing” event, and be prepared to join in.  She can make a chorus of frogs sound like a heavenly choir!

Suzanne Shull, Casual Classics Concert Series.

Atlanta Music Guide – Oct. 28, 2009
http://www.atlantamusicblog.com/news/2009/10/cd-review-elise-witt-valise.html
http://www.mindspring.com/~emworld/pages/record.html

In case you can’t open the link, here’s the review below.

Elise Witt
Valise
EMWorld Records
By Al Kaufman
Elise Witt is one of those local treasures that nobody knows about. The multi-linguist from Switzerland, who has called Atlanta home since 1977, has been a cultural ambassador to South Africa, China, Italy, Nicaragua and Switzerland, represented Georgia for the Kennedy Center’s 25th Anniversary Celebration, has studied under Bobby McFerrin, sung under the direction of Robert Shaw for the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra Chorus for 20 years, created singing workshops for adults and children all over the globe, and hosted musicians from outside countries to play locally.
The kicker is, in addition to all that, she has one of the purest and sweetest voices you are likely to ever hear. Valise is Witt’s “suitcase of global, local, and homemade songs.” Witt was a German-speaking three-years-old when her family moved to the States from Switzerland. Her more recent work with refugee families in Atlanta caused her to look back upon her own new beginnings in a foreign country and pay homage to that time, which she does here with a wonderfully diverse and eclectic mix.
When you are as nice and as well-traveled as Witt, you make a lot of friends, and she seems to call upon almost every one of them on this CD. The most obvious example is on “Blessed Nation,” a poem written by Pete Seeger in which Witt added some lyrics and a melody. Besides her three-woman chorus, Witt calls upon folk legend and recent Atlanta transplant John McCutcheon for lead vocals for one verse, and former Weaver and co-founder of the Old Town School of Folk Music in Chicago, Frank Hamilton, for another.
Longtime partner Mick Kinney adds his piano and vocals (and violins, and accordions, and guitars, etc.) throughout, most notably on “Our Favorite Things,” in which Kinny updates the lyrics from the Sound of Music classic tune. In this modern version, “Thai food and T’aiChi, Qigong and I Ching/These are a few of my favorite things.”
But this CD is all Witt. She pays homage to the old Motown style on “Venus Between Us,” then to bebop with “Jackie.” She even does a bit of white housewife rap on “Clothes Swap.”
She sings in German, French, and Spanish. She scats, swings, and serenades. She takes the listener on a journey throughout the world of music, and what a delightful journey it is.
Elise Witt celebrates her CD release at Callenwolde Fine Arts Center, 980 Briarcliff Rd, Atlanta GA 30306 on November 1 at 6:00 p.m.
http://www.mindspring.com/~emworld/pages/record.html

I just got this note on the Casual Classics Series and wanted to pass it on – despite the site being temporarily closed.

Take care,

Don

________________________________________________________________________

Greetings Chamber Music Enthusiasts,

Season 4 brings 4 concerts for 2009-10.  Please mark your calendars for the following dates.  We are working on brochures and advertisements, however word-of-mouth is the best way to get the news out.

I hope to see you at all four concerts!

Suzanne Shull
Concertmanager, Casual Classics Concert Series

All concerts are at 7:00 PM at New Lebanon Presbyterian Church, 389 Bent Tree Drive, Jasper.  Parking is ample and admission is free.

September 15, 2009: Robert Henry, winner of national and international piano competitions, likes to inform audiences with clever repartee regarding the music.

November 10: Elise Witt, folk musician and recording artist, has traveled throughout the world and brings insight and authenticity to her songs. She will be accompanied by musicians who are also recording artists.

February 2, 2010: Beverly Gilbert, piano, returns and brings husband Lorentz Otzen on the violin.  They are seasoned chamber music performers who appreciate the informal nature of the Casual Cl assic Concerts .

April 13, 2010: The Peachtree Brass will astound and delight. Their approach is upbeat and their musical arrangements of familiar classical works puts them in a league with the Canadian Brass.

If you would like to make a tax deductible contribution to the series in time to be listed the first program, you may send a check to Casual Classics, PO box 1452, Jasper GA, by Sept. 10. Categories are: Angels ($500 and up) Patrons ($250 to $499) Donors ($100 to $249) and Friends (up to $99).

This series is funded exclusively by people who think that great music should be accessible to all.

Please mark your Calendars for two important local events.

Monday March 16, 2009

Casual Classics Concert

The 3nd Concert of the 2008-2009 Season will be held at New Lebanon Presbyterian Church on Monday Evening, March 16th at 7:00 PM.  The Riverside Chamber Players  will return this year and bring bass player Doug Summers so that they can perform the Divorak Quintet and a Rossini duo for bass and cello.  Last year’s Chamber appearance was a rousing success and this year’s performance promises even more.

Admission is FREE.  The Casual Concerts Series is sponsored by Jasper Muse, Inc.  A 501-c-3 non-profit organization dedicated to supporting music performances and music education in Pickens County.   New Lebanon Presbyterian Church is Located on Bent Tree Drive about 1/2 mile North of Cove Rd.

________________________________________________

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Tater Patch Players Fundraiser for the New Theater

The Tater Patch Players will host a huge fundraising GALA at the Chamber of Commerce Building from 7:00 pm to 9:00 PM on Saturday, March 21, 2009.  The Players are in the midst of a $400,000 fund raising campaign to purchase a new theater.  There will be plenty of food, costumed characters a silent auction and a live auction.  It promises to be a great evening and they need your support to make this new theater a reality.

Admission is $10.  The Pickens County Chamber of Commerce is located at 500 Stegall Drive adjacent Lee Newton Park just West of Downtown Jasper.  Please come out and support “The Best Little Theater in North Georgia.”

See you ’round the Mountains,

Don

Lucky, Lucky You – you are one of the first to know about a great free concert occurring next week right here in Jasper.  The Full Moon Trio is returning on Tuesday night, October 28th and if  you are a fan of Classic Southern Folk Music you can’t afford to be any place else on Tuesday night.  Kathleen Hartfield, vocal and guitar, Al Piper on the fiddle and L.A. Tuten on bass will will take you back to the folk music of the South just as you remember it – even if that’s not where you’re from!   For those of you who weren’t able to purchase a CD last year, they promise to have plenty available this year and will sign one for you at intermission or after the concert.  Continue reading »