Talk and Musical Illustration of Early Music of Coastal Maine, Saturday August 19th

01 Tuesday Aug 2023

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Julia Lane and Fred Gosbee of Castlebay will talk about their research on early music of coastal Maine and “Illustrate” the music with their voices and instruments at the Meetinghouse on Saturday, August 19th at 3pm.

Since 1986 Castlebay has been weaving together Maine’s nautical and British Isles legacies transporting their audience through time and across the Atlantic. Julia Lane and Fred Gosbee have loved and researched traditional music for most of their lives and blend history, legend and experience into their personable performances. Finely crafted ballads with evocative imagery and beautiful melodies depict Maine characters, history, and life close to the elemental beauty of the sea and shore. Rich and exuberant renditions of traditional and original songs are supported with Celtic harp, 14-string guitar, fiddle & woodwinds.

The 1772 Old Walpole Meetinghouse, now celebrating its 251^st year will be open on Saturday, August 19th beginning at 1:00 pm for anyone who would like to see an exquisite example of colonial architecture including a soaring hand-carved pulpit which is particularly striking. The Meetinghouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and is considered by historians to be “one of the most beautiful and important historic buildings in Maine”.

The event is by donation and the proceeds will be used to restore the original 12 over 12 windows. Tax-deductible contributions toward the window restoration project would be gratefully accepted at the door or sent to Old Walpole Meetinghouse, P.O. Box 47, Walpole, ME 04573.

Old Walpole Meetinghouse is a non-profit 501c (3) historical and educational organization.

(photo: https://castlebay.net)

Kendall Dean Performing at the Old Walpole Meetinghouse, Saturday June 24th

19 Monday Jun 2023

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Professional vocalist and multi-instrumentalist, Kendall Dean, has recently returned to her native Maine and will be performing live at the Old Walpole Meetinghouse in Walpole, Me on June 24 at 7 pm. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door. Order tickets using Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/kendall-dean-live-in-concert-at-the-old-walpole-meetinghouse-62423-tickets-657534843417

A violinist, accomplished guitarist, and vocalist, Kendall’s music is rooted in Irish and Scottish traditional music, but its sound and versatility often break boundaries, crossing genres into blues, jazz, and country. Her ethereal vocal melodies have been referred to as “The voice of an angel” and her soaring, emotive violin riffs have been likened to the eclectic sounds of violinist Jean-Luc Ponty.

This is a concert for all to enjoy, as Kendall says, “I want people of all ages to be able to connect to my music. I want you to feel something. Connection is what life is all about.”

The venue of the 1772 Old Walpole Meetinghouse with its superb acoustics and its stunning example of colonial architecture will provide an exquisite backdrop for this unforgettable experience. For more information contact Kendall Dean at 207-380-5831

20th Annual Da Ponte Concert, Sunday September 11th, 2016

14 Sunday Aug 2016

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1772, da ponte string quartet, maine, Walpole Meetinghouse

Experience the 18th century in the glow of flickering candles for a very unique DaPonte String Quartet concert. The concert will be held at the all-original, pre-revolutionary, Old Walpole Meetinghouse on Sunday September 11, 2016 at 7:00pm (doors open at 6:30pm).

This year’s program will include:

Felix Mendelssohn (1809-1847)
String Quartet, Op. 80
Allegro vivace assai
Allegro assai
Adagio
Finale, Allegro molto

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
String Quartet in E Minor, Op. 59, No. 2
Allegro
Molto adagio
Allegretto
Finale, Presto

Tickets are $25 and are available only by pre-purchase. Ticket outlets are (by cedit card) through Brown Paper Tickets: (http://www.brownpapertickets.com/event/2569800), or (by check) at the Maine Coast Bookstore in Damariscotta, the Walpole Barn in Walpole (Rt. 129), or the Framers Gallery in Boothbay (Meadow Mall). To make other arrangements for tickets, please call 563-5471 or e-mail info@oldwalpolemeetinghouse.org.

The Meetinghouse is located 3.5 miles south of Damariscotta off Route 129 at 4 Meetinghouse Road in South Bristol.

The DaPonte String Quartet is comprised of Lydia Forbes and Ferdinand Liva on violin, Kirsten Monke on viola, and Myles Jordan on cello.

The Quartet has performed at Carnegie Hall, been featured on CBS Sunday Morning, and toured in France, Scotland, and Canada, as well as in over twenty American states. They have broadcast on nation-wide radio and television both in the United States and Canada, received awards from the NEA, Philadelphia Musical Fund Society, Music Teachers National Association, Chamber Music America, and Maine Arts Commission. They have also recorded three CDs, with a fourth coming next fall on Centaur Records.

The Meetinghouse is on the National Register of Historic Places and is an exquisite example of colonial architecture, which includes a soaring hand-carved pulpit. The proceeds from this concert benefit the maintenance of the structure. In particular, the original 12 over 12 light windows are in need of restoration.

Open seating for the concert is in the original box pews, and with the Quartet posed on a central elevated platform, gives the performance a theater-in-the-round effect. Quartet violinist, Dino Liva has commented, The Meetinghouse has the best acoustics of any venue we play.

Please bring a cushion for comfort and flashlights to guide you to your vehicles after the event.

Annual DaPonte Candlelight Concert

11 Thursday Aug 2011

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On the evening of Sunday, September 11, at 7 p.m., the tenth anniversary of 9/11 will be observed in a special way when the DaPonte Spring Quartet gathers to perform in the 1772 Old Walpole Meeting House in South Bristol, where creation of the new nation was debated over four centuries ago.

Tickets, $25, are on sale now for the 15th annual always-a-sellout DaPonte Candlelight Concert benefiting the all-original site. Funds raised this year will go towards painting the hand-shaved 1772 exterior shingles of the oldest continuously used church/meetinghouse in Maine still on its original foundation.

From a raised platform in the center aisle of the beautiful, intimate building, the quartet will introduce and play a particularly poignant program, designed to please and send people out into the night in a contemplative state. The quartet has chosen Beethoven’s Opus 132, “a healing piece,” Beethoven’s Opus 135, and Barber’s Opus 11, “one of the most beautiful pieces in the repertoire . . . also one of the most profound, both powerful and introspective,” according to DaPonte violinist Dino Liva.

Open seating is in the original box pews downstairs and around all three sides of the soaring balcony in the historic site, which has “the best acoustics of any place we play,” according to Liva.

An eigth-generation direct descendant of Henry Hunter (who helped create the Meeting House), Deacon Mary Hunter Bowers and Hunter family trustees will greet and seat guests, along with treasurer Fred Bowers and the concert committee members, Deb and Warren Storch, Betsy Kunkle, Larry Reed, Tim Dinsmore, Ken Smith and Sally Beaudette.

On the National Register of Historic Places, Old Walpole Meeting House is owned now by the Town of South Bristol. It is on Route 129, 3.5 miles south of Damariscotta.

Concert tickets are available at Maine Coast Book Shop in Damariscotta, the Walpole Barn on Route 129 in Walpole, and in Boothbay at Framers Gallery in Meadow Mall.

Tax-deductible contributions towards painting the Meeting House are welcome and should be sent to Old Walpole Meeting House, P.O. Box 47, Walpole ME 04573.