Designed to coincide with the MacDowell Colony’s annual Medal Day festivities, the programs emblemize community spirit and shared ownership on many levels

(TRAVPR.COM) USA - August 2nd, 2013 - Peterborough, NH --When you say the name of Thornton Wilder’s classic play, you emphasize the Our, not the Town. That won’t change when the beloved story comes home to the very town that inspired it next weekend. The setting is indeed meaningful, but it’s that little possessive pronoun that reflects the spirit of the Monadnock Music Festival’s back-to-back concerts. Designed to coincide with the MacDowell Colony’s annual Medal Day festivities, the programs emblemize community spirit and shared ownership on many levels.

“One of the things that we want to do is really to showcase the cultural legacy of the Monadnock region and also to have our programming be more integrated with some of the other things that are going on in the region,” said William Chapman, executive director of Monadnock Music. “These concerts just fit like a glove.”

On Aug. 10, Monadnock Music will present Anthony de Mare’s Liaisons Project, a collection of piano pieces inspired by the works of Stephen Sondheim – this year’s recipient of the prestigious Edward MacDowell Medal. On Aug. 11, following the MacDowell Colony’s ceremonies, Ned Rorem’s musical version of Our Town will take the Music Festival stage.

“Everything really ties together nicely,” said Gil Rose, Monadock Music artistic director.

The connections to the MacDowell Colony, prestigious artist community and pride of Peterborough, are many. Rorem was a MacDowell fellow, as was Wilder, who wrote portions of Our Town while living there. And Liaisons,  in addition to celebrating Medal recipient Sondheim, features works by numerous former MacDowell fellows. De Mare himself was not only a MacDowell fellow, but he performed at the Monadnock Music Festival early in his piano career. 

“Here’s a pianist who came to us at the very beginning of his career, and now not only is he coming back but he’s coming back with music that fits the whole program of the weekend,” Chapman said. “It just completes the circle.”

On another level, Liaisons symbolizes the idea that great artists and great art belong to everyone. De Mare, who grew up in theater and had long admired Sondheim, said the composer was very open to having his work reimagined by a variety of musicians. “He was very gracious to write back to me and say he was intrigued and humbled by the idea,” said de Mare, who has been honored with some of those coveted awards in piano.

De Mare reached out to the leading composers from numerous genres, including jazz, theater, pop and opera, soliciting pieces that remained true to the essence of Sondheim’s genius but reinterpreted it for the piano. He ended up with a sampling of Sondheim’s most beloved pieces by more than 30 composers, including Steve Reich, Paul Moravec and Mark Anthony Turnage. The Monadnock Music Festival will feature 16 of the pieces.

“Some are direct transcriptions, some are reimagined, some are simple, some are difficult, all are in keeping with his style,” said de Mare. “For those who aren’t familiar with Sondheim, it’s actually a wonderful way to introduce him. For those who are familiar with him, they’ll hear him in a new and different light.”

De Mare said he was amazed by the way some of the composers retained the complexity of Sondheim’s compositions in their piano pieces. David Rakowski, for instance, put a delightful twist on “Ladies Who Lunch.”

“I didn’t think it would make a piano piece because it’s so character driven,” de Mare said. “But he managed to capture it. I think his understanding of the show and the characters really played a role.”

Similarly, Ned Rorem’s Our Town paints the classic play in a new light, condensing the dialog and adding the dramatic flair of music.

“The music is important. It helps characterize the people of Grover’s Corners very nicely,” said Rose, who is directing the production. “It won’t seem operatic to people though. I tried to present it with a light hand.”

Of course, the Peterborough connection makes the production all the more fun. The Peterborough Town House where the fictional town of Grovers Corners will come to life is on Grove Street. And if you visit the Peterborough cemetery nearby, you can find grave stones for the Webb and Gibbs families who people the play.

 “It just makes sense for Monadnock Music to present Our Town,” Chapman said. “It will have so many cultural and historical resonances. You could do Our Town anywhere but it wouldn’t feel the same and wouldn’t be the same.”

The Peterborough Town House is located at 1 Grove Street in downtown Peterborough. 

Tickets are $27 - $32 and available at www.monadnockmusic.org and at 603-924-7610. 

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