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The Riverside Parlor Series (aka the Castleman Concerts) Kicks Off

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How cool is this? Across the street in the middle of nowhere (in the main house of the 311 acre farm over there) there’s a new concert series budding. So incredible to have world class musicians perform just up the hill! Don’t tell anyone that we drove over both times since it was 94 degrees outside.

The Riverside Parlor Series is a dream of Barbara and Adam’s involving the beautifully renovated River House. The house has only had four owners since 1790.

We went to both performances, the first flute and piano and the second, two flutes.

The music was excellent.

Friday 8.15: Barbara O’Brien and Rodrigo Ojeda

Your host Adam Foster.

I particularly love the Poulenc. Here is an unretouched rough recording.


The piano plays the Moonlight Sonata by itself.

Sunday 8.17: Barbara O’Brien and Julie McGough


Fine Lines was composed by a then 9 year old Natalie Joachim (and honestly you can kind of discern that) who later became a member of Eighth Blackbird

We are looking forward to the next Castleman Concert.

Eighth Blackbird

3 Comments

I was snowed in. Art to the rescue. My business trip to Chicago included lots of art (really, lots) and the most moving music I have ever experienced outside of performing.

Other musicians will know that hard to describe feeling that sometimes comes in the midst performing. It happens to me most often when playing in a symphony orchestra, and on occasion when I am playing simpler music with Where’s Aubrey or the Bitter Liberals. When I heard Eighth Blackbird play their work Hand Eye in Chicago I experienced that feeling. But I was (obviously) not performing. Wow. Who knew?

So now I am a big fan. Just go see them perform.

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I just saw a second Eighth Blackbord performance at the Kennedy Center which was, not surprisingly, incredibly good. But I am still trying to figure out which piece of theirs was the one that moved me in Chicago. At a small reception after the show I talked it over with Lisa and Nick.

I think it was pulse.

Lisa Kaplan, piano

Lisa Kaplan, piano

Michael J. Maccaferri, clarinets

Michael J. Maccaferri, clarinets

Nicholas Photinos, cello

Nicholas Photinos, cello

Nathalie Joachim, flutes

Nathalie Joachim, flutes

The performance:

David Lang diet coke
Ted Hearne By-By Huey
David Lang grind
David T. Little Ghostlight (Fortas commission) World Premiere

David T. Little

David T. Little

David Lang wed
Bryce Dessner Murder Ballades

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Flying Birds.
Excellent Birds.
Watch them fly.
There they go.
Falling snow.
Excellent snow.
Here it comes.
Watch it fall.
Long words.
Excellent words.
I can hear them now.