The Craftsbury Chamber Players, a summer chamber music festival founded in 1966, are marking their 60th season with a historical exhibit and a series of concerts. The group, which originally performed only in Craftsbury, now splits its season between the Elley-Long Music Center in Colchester and the Hardwick Town House, though its roots remain in the Northeast Kingdom.
The exhibit, titled "The Music Plays On," is on display through October at the Babcock House Museum in Craftsbury, curated by the Craftsbury Historical Society. It features photographs, programs, and memorabilia from the ensemble's six-decade history, including images of the four founders and a pull quote from an original 1966 program.
Music director and cellist Fran Rowell, along with her sister and violinist Mary Rowell, both longtime residents of Craftsbury, recalled that the group's founders were Juilliard- and Yale-trained musicians who summered near Caspian Lake. The first concert was held at the Sterling School dining hall.
This season's programming continues a tradition of pairing classical staples with contemporary works. At the opening concert on July 15 in Colchester, the audience participated in Derrick Skye's "American Mirror" by humming and clapping. Five more concerts remain, including a July 22 performance in Colchester and a July 23 concert in Hardwick, featuring soprano Mary Bonhag.
The ensemble's longevity was bolstered by an unexpected gift: a check from the dissolved Scrag Mountain Music series, which split its assets among five Vermont music groups. "There's no reason to stop," Fran Rowell said.
Originally reported by Seven Days.
Photo: Umutcan Günüç via Unsplash. Photo is illustrative and not from the scene.
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