A New Season - #23! - For Friends Of Music And Fans

By SHANNON HICKS

Published: Aug 29, 2000 12:00 am

A New Season â #23! â For Friends Of Music And Fans

The board of directors of Newtown Friends of Music met recently to toast the successful completion of the organizationâs 22nd season, to elect new board members and officers, and to make plans for the upcoming season.

Newly elected to join the board was longtime Newtown resident Arthur Phillips, DMD. He joins board members Dieter Ashley, Arthur Reed, and MaryJo Tyler of Southbury; Travilla Deming of Redding; Lea Kinstler of Bridgewater; Jane Conningham and Wally Wood of Sandy Hook; and Cheryl Edelen, Dorothea LaBelle, Joan Popovic, and Dr Richard Salerno, all of Newtown.

Elected to serve as officers were Ellen Parrella, who will continue as NFoMâs president for the 13th straight season; Fred Parrella, who also continues in his role of vice president; Paul Gehrett, treasurer; Ian McMahon, recording secretary; and Travilla Deming, corresponding secretary.

The coming season promises an exciting program of five chamber music concerts for area music lovers, plus two new and exciting additions that will enhance the two-decade-old (plus) series.

First, through the generosity of longtime subscribers Mr and Mrs William F. Meyer, NFoM will now be able to provide a concert venue for a graduate student deemed âoutstanding.â The program will be called the PrÃ¦ludium Recital, and will serve as an introduction to a career of concert performances. The recital will be included in the subscription package as a gift of appreciation to all subscribers, providing them with a sixth concert opportunity.

Secondly, Newtown Friends of Music has embarked on an outreach program for the 2000-01 season in conjunction with two of its programs. In a collaboration with the Newtown public schoolsâ music department, secondary level students will preview and prepare for master classes based on intersections of the school curriculum and the music being performed in the NFoM concerts in November and April.

The students will be guests of NFoM at the Sunday concerts and their respective receptions. The musicians will extend their stay in Newtown until Monday, when they will visit the schools to coach students and rehearse with them the music that has been studied.

Michelle Hiscavich, a member of Newtownâs music department since 1988 and the director of music since 1995, together with former school teacher and member of NFoMâs board of directors Cheryl Edelen, will prepare the students for the artistsâ visit. Students will have the opportunity to meet with the artists, ask questions, learn from the professional musicians, improve their own techniques, and even perform a short concert with the world-renowned musicians.

The Seasonâs Performers

Starting the 23rd season will be a performance by The Broyhill Ensemble, under the direction of the violinist Gil Morgenstern, on September 24. The ensemble will perform a variety of stylistic and instrumental combinations.

The inaugural PrÃ¦ludium Recital will be presented on October 22, featuring Anna Grinberg, a graduate student at Yale School of Music. Miss Grinberg was selected for the honor because of her dedication and hard work to succeed in the competitive world of concert pianists.

The third concert of the season, on November 19, will see a return of the ever-welcome Ying Quartet. The siblings, who have appeared for NFoM to great applause in the past, will not only perform for the public but will also be the first musicians to participate in the new outreach program.

On February 25, Jacques Thibaud String Trio of Berlin will enchant audiences with its unique interpretation of the classics, all done without the use of music stands.

On March 25, the cellist Ole Akahoshi will make his return engagement to Newtown, accompanied by Elizabeth Sawyer-Parisot on the concert grand.

The final concert of the season will feature the venerable Alexander String Quartet presenting an all-Beethoven concert. The musicians will also conduct the second outreach program, working with Newtown school children in a master class format the day after the concert.

The campaign to sell season subscriptions for the 2000-01 performance year has begun. Ticket prices remain at $45 for adults for all six concerts, and $35 for seniors (age 65 and older). All school children are invited to attend concerts free of charge when they are accompanied by a ticket-holding adult.

Concerts are Sunday afternoons at 3 pm. They are performed on the stage at Edmond Town Hall, 45 Main Street in Newtown.

Tickets are also sold on a per-concert basis. For more information on the upcoming season or to request a brochure with more details including single ticket prices, contact Ellen or Fred Parrella at 426-6470, or write to Newtown Friends of Music, PO Box 295, Newtown, CT 06470-0295.

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It’s important to clarify the tone and context of Derek Pisani’s remarks, particularly the satirical line about suing Newtown for "Gross Stupidity." This was clearly a tongue-in-cheek jab at the exhausting culture of legal threats that’s become a staple on the local Facebook Group forums. It was a reflection of frustration over endless regulatory hurdles and obstructionism, and the desire to avoid common sense solutions not an insult aimed at residents. Satire, is meant to provoke thought and highlight the absurdities. If we are unable to distinguish between satire and literal threats, perhaps the comment hit closer to the truth than we’d like to admit. Rather than focusing on Pisanis style, we should be discussing the substance of what he’s pointing out: that Newtown’s progress is being routinely blocked by a small but vocal contingent who seem intent on saying “no” at every turn. They are saying no to any development, no to common sense solutions to crowd control, etc. Newtown deserves leaders who are willing to call things as they see them, even if their language ruffles feathers. That doesn’t mean they lack respect for constituents—it means they care enough to challenge the Mob and push for solutions. Isn't that what we elect people to do? I applaud Pisani's dedication, he certainly has earned my vote. Regardless, let’s not reduce conversation to tone-policing and outrage. Let’s focus on the issues that matter.

Who is Calling Newtowners Stupid?

Thank you for pointing out the trail access provisions included in the BOS motion—it’s an important clarification that deserves more attention in this conversation. If the development is, in fact, required to provide permanent free public access and commit to ongoing maintenance of this section of the Rochambeau Trail, that is a remarkably beneficial outcome for the town. oIt’s not every day that a private project shoulders the long-term burden of preserving and caring for a public historical corridor at no taxpayer cost—especially one that previously had no formal access, upkeep, or visibility. Let’s be honest: the idea that the only way to protect history is by preventing any development nearby is a rigid and unworkable standard. What’s being proposed here appears to strike a rare balance—historic preservation, public access, and smart development all rolled into one. That’s not a loss its a win. So rather than allowing a handful of voices to derail progress under the banner of “historic purity,” maybe it’s time to acknowledge the reality: this trail is better off with structured stewardship and visibility than remaining an overgrown ghost on old maps. Let’s move forward. Bring in the easement, bring in the public access—and yes, bring in the bulldozers!!! Progress and preservation can coexist. Let’s not let the NIMBY use fear or nostalgia keep us stuck in the past.

Discusses Rochambeau Trail And 6 Commerce Road

I've heard that several people are under the impression that the public might be banned from the Rochambeau Trail. Points 2 and 3 from the BOS motion (included in full below) make it clear that public access to the trail is part of the requirements for the developer. From what I understand, it requires free public access to the trail in perpetuity. Technically, this could be argued to be a "payment-in-kind," that attempts to balance public good with overall town growth. We can argue about weather that balance is acceptable and how the trail may be affected, but with the understanding that the trail is expected to be maintained as a publicly accessible trail regardless. July 15, 2024 Board of Selectmen approved motion: Discontinuance of Reservoir Road: Selectman Cruson moved the resolution: Resolved, that the Newtown Board of Selectmen, in accordance with Section 2-115(d)(8) of the Town Charter and Conn. Gen. Stat. §13a-49, and subject to the conditions set forth below, hereby discontinues an unimproved portion of Reservoir Road described as “Portion of Reservoir Road to be Discontinued “on that certain survey map which will be recorded on the Newtown Land Records titled “Map Showing Portion of Reservoir Road to be Discontinued” dated August, 2023 and revised September 15, 2023, and certified substantially correct by Gregory Szyszowski of SLR (the “Survey Map”), said discontinuance contingent and effective only upon the completion of the following: 1. The approval of an application for the development of land in the manner described in a letter from Attorney Thomas W. Beecher to First Selectman A. Jeffrey Capeci and Members of the Board of Selectmen dated May 30, 2024, pursuant to the “Residential Open Space Development” regulations of the Borough of Newtown by the Borough of Newtown Zoning Commission, and construction of that approval project within the timeframes required for special exception approval; 2. The inclusion of the discontinued portion of the road as part of the final Declaration of Conservation Restriction; 3. The conveyance of a mutually agreeable public easement to the Town of Newtown for pedestrian, bicycling, equestrian, and all other passive recreational uses (to exclude the use of motorized vehicles except as may be necessary by the Town or its designee to effectuate the purpose of the easement), and for municipal utility purposes; Be it further resolved, that Castle Hill Real Estate Holdings, LLC., its successors and assigns, shall not use any portion of the discontinued road as a vehicular road or access way to and from any developed portions of the property. Be it further finally resolved, that should any of the foregoing contingencies not occur, then the discontinuance contemplated herein shall not become effective and this resolution will become null and void. From: https://www.newtown-ct.gov/sites/g/files/vyhlif12216/f/minutes/bos_7-15-24_min-_att_final.pdf

Is this paper road (roads that only exist on paper map but not in reality) even owned by the Town? Many roads that predate the Town's road standards are privately owned and were never accepted by the Town, such as many of the nonconforming roads around the lake communities where the property owners own right to the center line. That is something we had to deal with when working on the Roads Ordinance a few years back. We also had to deal with a private road to run the utilities to the new SHS.

For anyone who wants to know, I cant post a link here, but Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority has an entire website. Look up "HRRA whats in whats out"

I Get It!

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A New Season - #23! - For Friends Of Music And Fans

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