Happy Valley Guitar Orchestra CD Release Concert

Saturday, May 21, 2016, 8:00 pm until 9:30 pm
Tickets: $15 general and $12 students/kids from 6:30 pm at the door (cash or check only). Please join us for a 7 pm pre-show mingle with the orchestra in the beautiful Shea lobby. Cash bar features BBC beer and Headwater Dry Cider.

Tickets are available at the door from 6:30 pm. Door sales are cash or check only. Please arrive early to meet the orchestra as we mix and mingle in the lobby of the Shea. All proceeds from the cash bar hosted by BBC and Headwater Cider go directly to support the "Light up the Shea" campaign.

The Northampton Center for the Arts is thrilled to present composer, performer, and guitar innovator Peter Blanchette directing the critically acclaimed Happy Valley Guitar Orchestra (HVGO) in its debut at the Shea and in celebration of its long-awaited second CD. "Unknown Album" features recent repertoire from Beethoven’s iconic 7th Symphony Allegretto movement, popular mid-west rockers Wilco, minimalist composer Philip Glass, South American composer Gustavo Santoalalla, and a new piece from Leo Kottke.

Blanchette on HVGO’s new CD: “I named it Unknown Album because this is music that’s never been heard before. Beethoven’s 7th certainly wasn’t conceived for electric guitars. 16th century French dances didn’t have back-beats, and Wilco’s One Wing wasn’t originally arranged with as counterpoint as a Beethoven Symphony. HVGO’s process -- where I arrange music for all these guitars and the musicians lend their particular guitar sound to the piece -- is always an exploration of great music. It’s a search for sounds unknown to the music as it was, and repertoire previously unknown to the guitar. And, what unifies our style, our sound, is the joy we have experience translating these masterpieces to the language of the guitar.”

HVGO is an avant-garde music ensemble, founded by Peter Blanchette in 2009 and comprised of more than a 15-20 acoustic and electric guitarists from widely varied traditions. HVGO is a resident company of the Northampton Center for the Arts, and is supported by the D’Addario Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, and the Frank Lucchesi Trust.

Special Thanks to Our Sponsors and Underwriters

Australis Aquaculture • Artisan Beverage Cooperative • Benjamin Company • Berkshire Brewing Company • Cohn and Company Real Estate Agency • Community Credit • Common Capital • Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts • Connecticut River Internists • Dean's Beans • Easthampton Savings Bank • FirstLight GDF Suezna • Gill Tavern • Goff Media • Great Falls Harvest • Green River Festival • Greenfield Community College • Greenfield Cooperative Bank • Greenfield Savings Bank • Loot • Massachusetts Cultural Council • Montague Bookmill Montague WebWorks • Northeast Solar • People's Pint • Rainmaker Consulting • The Rendezvous • Solar Store of Greenfield • Stobierski and Connor • Told Video • True North Transit • Turn It Up

Exciting News for A Happening IV: Leviathan

Cloudgaze and Eggtooth Productions are thrilled to announce that we have received a generous grant from the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice to support our 2024 Immersive Arts Festival, “A Happening IV: Leviathan.”

This festival will transform the Shea Theater into an exploration of theme, hosting installations, music, theatrical performances, and movement pieces, featuring the collective contributions of over 30 local artists. Audiences will experience otherworldly environments and narratives inspired by folklore, fairy tales, horror motifs, American literature, and the mythos of the Old Testament, all of which delve into the central question guiding the festival: "What does it mean to encounter something greater than yourself and to be consumed by it?" Through this theme, we explore how a community reemerges and imagines itself after destruction and transformation.

With the support of the Markham-Nathan Fund, we are excited to create an event that complicates perspectives and fosters meaningful dialogue. We are grateful for this partnership and for the work of the Markham-Nathan Fund for Social Justice.

Thanks to the Mass Cultural Council for their vital support this year.We'd also like to thank the Community Foundation of Western Massachusetts for their support in the form of a Flexible Funding grant. We couldn't do this work without you!