The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire & Hudson Valley Cultural Preview

Jun 26-Jul 3, 2024

Jun 25, 2024

With so much going on culturally speaking in our greater Berkshires/Hudson Valley region, this is my highly selective, curated snapshot of some of the most promising upcoming events …

SEO JUNGMIN BRINGS KOREAN ZITHER to PS21

Korean virtuoso Seo Jungmin brings her gayageum, the 25-string Korean zither, to PS21 in Chatham, N.Y., on Wednesday, June 26, at 8pm. Jungmin’s music -- accompanied by percussionist You Byungwook and singer Kim Yulhee -- straddles the borders between traditional and contemporary Korean music. Kingston, N.Y.-based 12-string guitarist and composer Alexander Turnquist opens the evening. (Wed, Jun 26)

ENGLISH POST-PUNK ROCKERS DRY CLEANING BOOKEND REGION

Dry Cleaning, a post-punk guitar band from South London, fronted by spoken-word vocalist Florence Shaw, bookends our region with appearances at Opus 40 in Saugerties, N.Y., on Thursday, June 27, at 6pm, and at the Solid Sound Festival at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Mass., on Saturday, June 29. Shaw’s heavily accented deadpan vocals float above the group’s stinging guitar sound that recalls any number of post-punk groups, including Sonic Youth, the Feelies, Television, and Joy Division. (Thu, Jun 27; Sat, Jun 29)

JON BATISTE BRINGS SOUL-JAZZ-POP BLEND to TANGLEWOOD

Whether he is conducting his own symphony at Carnegie Hall, collaborating with the likes of Lana Del Rey, Stevie Wonder, Willie Nelson, or Roy Hargrove in the recording studio, writing for and appearing in TV series (Treme) or leading a late-night talk show band (The Late Show with Stephen Colbert), in any number of musical styles, including jazz, hip-hop, pop, and classical, five-time Grammy Award winner Jon Batiste is the very incarnation of American music. He brings his eclectic blend to the Shed at Tanglewood in Lenox, Mass., on Friday, June 28, at 7pm. (Fri, Jun 28)

WILCO’s SOLID SOUND FESTIVAL RETURNS to MASS MoCA, FEATURING JASON ISBELL, NICK LOWE, IRIS DEMENT, OTHERS

The biennial Solid Sound Festival, starring and curated by indie-rock avatars Wilco, kicks off at MASS MoCA in North Adams, Mass., on Friday, June 28, through Sunday, June 30. In addition to the headliners, who will perform several times as Wilco as well as in the band members’ offshoot groups, including Autumn Defense, Mikael Jorgensen, Saccata Quartet (featuring guitarist Nels Cline and drummer Glenn Kotche), and Jeff Tweedy, musical guests include Jason Isbell, Nick Lowe, Iris Dement, Young Fresh Fellows, Miracle Legion, Sylvan Esso, and Mary Halvorson & Tomas Fujiwara. (Fri-Sun, Jun 28-30)

Tim Eriksen (photo Daniel Corrigan/courtesy artist)

TIM ERIKSEN HEADLINES ECLECTIC ROOTS-MUSIC FESTIVAL at RACE BROOK LODGE

Cordelia’s Dad frontman Tim Eriksen headlines the second annual eclectic, rootsy Down County Jump Music Festival at Race Brook Lodge in Sheffield, Mass., taking place Friday, June 28 through Saturday, June 29. Music includes swamp pop, ragtime, Hawaiian, New Orleans jazz and R&B, gospel, old-time folk, and a whole lot more. (Fri-Sat, Jun 28-29)

ELEVATOR REPAIR SERVICE’s ‘ULYSSES’ KICKS OFF BARD SUMMERSCAPE

The experimental theater company Elevator Repair Service brings its singular approach to the world premiere of its rendition of James Joyce’s Ulysses to kick off this summer’s Bard Summerscape season at the Fisher Center at Bard College in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., from Thursday, June 27, through Sunday, July 14. Building on their rich history of staging modernist works — including Gatz, The Sound and the Fury, The Select (The Sun Also Rises) -- Elevator Repair Service (ERS) tackles the monumental work that gave rise to the adjective “Joycean.” In the hands of ERS, this translates to seven performers sitting down for a sober reading but soon finding themselves guzzling pints, getting in brawls, and committing debaucheries as they careen on a fast-forward tour through Joyce’s funhouse of styles. With madcap antics and a densely layered sound design, ERS presents an eclectic sampling from Joyce’s life-affirming masterpiece. (Thu, Jun 27-Sun, Jul 14)

Steve Forbert (photo Marcus Maddox/courtesy artist)

STEVE FORBERT BRINGS FOLK-ROCK to EGREMONT BARN

Steve Forbert burst out of Greenwich Village folk clubs and downtown punk clubs to national fame in 1979 with his Top 20 hit, “Romeo’s Tune,” years before anyone described the kind of music he writes and plays as Americana or roots-rock. Nevertheless, Forbert has consistently produced story-songs and portraits for over four decades, and his live performances are the stuff of legend. Catch him at the Egremont Barn on Friday, June 28, at 7pm. (Fri, Jun 28)

ARI HEST BRINGS POP-FOLK to PARK THEATER in HUDSON

Grammy Award-nominated singer-songwriter Ari Hest brings his rich, expressive voice and virtuosity on guitar and piano to Park Theater in Hudson, N.Y., on Friday, June 28, at 8pm. Hest has toured with the likes of Martin Sexton, Ani DiFranco and Suzanne Vega, and his pop-friendly folk-rock should appeal to fans of Marc Cohn and Jackson Browne. (Fri, Jun 28)

A scene from Urban Bush Women's 'Scat!' (courtesy BFC)

URBAN BUSH WOMEN PRESENT WORLD PREMIERE at BARD FISHER CENTER

Urban Bush Women celebrates its 40th anniversary with Scat!, a new dance-driven jazz club spectacular that tells the story of two people making their way in Kansas City from the Great Migration to the present. Performed with a live band to an original jazz score by Craig Harris, this world premiere -- at the Bard Fisher Center in Annandale-on-Hudson, N.Y., from Friday, June 28, through Sunday, June 30 -- tells the powerful journey of the Zollar family and what happened when dreams encountered the harsh realities of American life in the 1940s and ‘50s. (Fri-Sun, Jun 28-30)

Also of note:

Singer-songwriter Laura Wetzler brings her multimedia presentation, “Bernstein and the Hebrew Muse” -- examining the enormous influence Leonard Bernstein’s Jewish heritage had on his work as a composer -- to Knesset Israel in Pittsfield, Mass., on Thursday, June 27, at 10:30am.

The Rhythm Future Quartet brings its jazzy sounds featuring guitar and violin and influenced by the Hot Club of France to the Foundry in West Stockbridge, Mass., on Friday, June 28, at 7:30pm.

Banjo innovator Tony Trischka brings Earl Jam, his tribute to the legendary Earl Scruggs, to the Guthrie Center in Great Barrington, Mass., on Saturday, June 29, at 8pm.

Thirteen-time Grammy Award nominee Bruce Hornsby brings his group, the Noisemakers, to UPAC in Kingston, N.Y., on Saturday, June 29, at 8pm.

Seventeen-time Grammy Award nominee Fred Hersch, an acclaimed and influential jazz pianist and composer, brings his trio to Maverick Concerts in Woodstock, N.Y., on Saturday, June 29, at 8pm.

Kaha:wi Dance Theatre brings its program The Mush Hole, inspired by the devastating residential school experience at Six Nations Reserve, to the University of Albany Performing Arts Center on Saturday, June 29, at 7:30pm.

Shakespeare & Company in Lenox, Mass., presents A Body of Water by Lee Blessing, a comedic thriller presented outdoors at the Roman Garden Theatre through July 21. The play stars Caroline Calkins, Bella Merlin, and Kevin O’Rourke.

Jacques Schwarz-Bart and Band bring their French Caribbean sounds to the Clark in Williamstown, Mass., on Wednesday, July 3, at 6pm, in a free concert on the Clark’s Reflecting Pool Lawn.

Fortepianist Daniel Adam Maltz performs piano works by Haydn and Mozart on a period instrument at Ventfort Hall in Lenox, Mass., on Wednesday, July 3, and Thursday, July 4, at 5pm.

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The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire & Hudson Valley Cultural Preview

Jun 26-Jul 3, 2024

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