Among the selections to be performed by the widely-praised Cantare Choir will be an Algonquin prayer written by Kenneth Swift Eagle Custalow of the Mattaponi Native American Tribe and A Prayer of Desmond Tutu by British Composer and Conductor James Whitbourn.

The city of Richmond will host a Veterans Day Ceremony on Friday, November 11, at 4 p.m. at the World War I Memorial Carillon in Byrd Park.

“The City of Richmond is proud to honor the men and women who have served our country in the armed forces, and we will never forget their courage and commitment to protecting our freedom and fighting for the rights of the oppressed,” said Mayor Dwight C. Jones.

The City’s department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities is organizing the event which will include an invocation from Reverend Angelyn Poe, a concert on the Carillon bells by City carillonneur Larry Robinson, vocal selections by the Cantare Choir of the Greater Richmond Children’s Choir, and the presentation of a memorial wreath in honor of the Nation’s veterans.

For more information, call (804) 646-1031.

The photograph and the information below were provided by Catherine Patterson:

Pianist Alexander Paley (pictured above), whose performances have been lauded by the Washington Post as “superlative,” “stunning,” and “flawless,” returns to Richmond in October for three free concerts at First English Lutheran Church.  The Paley Music Festival’s fourteenth season features performances of Mozart’s complete works for piano four-hands and the American premieres of two pieces by Brazilian composer Joao Guilherme Ripper.

The 2011 Festival runs Friday and Saturday, October 14 and 15, at 8 p.m., and Sunday, October 16, at 3:30 p.m. First English Lutheran Church is in Richmond’s Fan District, at Monument and Lombardy.

Paley, introduced to Richmond as a recitalist in the Mary Anne Rennolds Chamber Concerts series, is a Moldavian-born and Russian-trained pianist who lives in New York and performs around the world. The upcoming 2011 concert season will take him to Beijing, China, for performances of all Mozart’s piano sonatas and pieces for piano four-hands. Paley will play all three Schumann piano sonatas in Hamburg, Germany. And, he will continue a three-season (2010-2012) engagement in Lithuania, performing and conducting all of Mozart’s piano concerti.

Other 2011 Paley Music Festival performers include Pei-wen Chen (piano), Charles West (clarinet), Akemi Takayama (violin), Daphne Gerling (viola), Clyde Thomas Shaw (cello), and Kathy Judd (violin).

Joao Guilherme Ripper, Director of Cecília Meireles Concert Hall in Rio de Janeiro and member of the Brazilian Academy of Music, is a prolific composer of chamber music, symphonic pieces, operas, and cantatas. “Brasilia,” the last movement from his “Chamber Symphony for Winds,” has become a wind ensemble staple.

The final concert of the 2011 Paley Festival features two Ripper works: his “Kinderszenen,” as well as a Trio for clarinet, viola, and piano.

The Festival’s 2011 “Fourteen Hands” season opens on Friday, October 14, at 8 p.m. Paley and Chen play Mozart’s Sonata in C Major, k. 521, and his Theme and Variations in G Major, k. 501, both for piano four-hands. The program also includes Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 8, in G Major, Op. 30, and Schubert’s final Piano Sonata, in B-flat Major, D. 960.

On Saturday, October 15, at 8 p.m., the Festival continues with two more Mozart piano four-hand Sonatas (D Major, k.381/123a and B-flat Major, k. 358/186c), followed by Schumann’s Violin Sonata No. 1 in A Minor, Op. 105.  Prokofiev’s “Overture on Hebrew Themes,” Op. 34, is next, a work scored for the unusual instrumental combination of clarinet, string quartet, and piano.

The program ends with Faure’s Quartet No. 1, in C Minor, Op. 15.

The 2011 Paley Festival concludes on Sunday afternoon, October 16, with a 3:30 concert.  Two more Mozart Sonatas for piano four-hands (G Major, k.357—unfinished—and F Major, k. 497) begin the program.

Two pieces by Joao Guilherme Ripper follow: “Kinderszenen” for clarinet, cello, and piano with a Trio for clarinet, viola, and piano.  The concert concludes with Dvorak’s Piano Trio No. 4 in E Minor, Op. 90 (“Dumky”).

Detailed information on program and performers can be found here.

For more information call (804) 355-9185.

Page Wilson

According to the City of Richmond’s published schedule for its 55th Festival of the Arts, a special tribute to singer/songwriter and radio host Page Wilson (1954-2011) will be presented on the Dogwood Dell stage on Sun., July 17, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. Admission will be free, so get there early to get a good seat.

Among the musicians who will perform live on stage will be bluesmen Terry Garland and Li’l Ronnie, slide-guitarist/singer Janet Martin (with her band) and Wilson’s own sidemen — known as Reckless Abandon when they perform as a group — who can be expected to dish out an ample helping of what Wilson liked to call Purebred American Mongrel Music.

For background on Wilson click here.

– Photo from PageWilson.com

Highlighting the annual festival will be the city’s Fourth of July Celebration at the Dell. This year, beginning at 4 p.m., it will feature local hip hop group Kids in Da Biz, jazz by Sharon North, a concert on the Carillon bells, and a selection of rousing patriotic music by the Richmond Concert Band concluding with a fireworks extravaganza.

Other highlights of the annual summer festival include a Gospel Music Fest on Sunday, July 10, from 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m., a Latin Jazz and Salsa Festival on Saturday, July 23, from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m., and a special tribute to local musician Page Wilson on Sunday, July 17, from 6 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. that will feature Terry Garland and Lil’ Ronnie, Wilson’s band Reckless Abandon, and the Janet Martin Band performing rock, blues and Americana music.

In addition to a wide variety of musical entertainment, the festival also brings dance, movies, and theater to the Dell, as well as an entire lineup of morning and afternoon entertainment especially for young audiences on the Ha’Penny Stage, which is adjacent to the Dell.

Families are encouraged to bring picnics and blankets to performances, however no alcohol or pets are allowed. The outdoor amphitheatre is located in Byrd Park at 1300 Blanton Avenue, which is just north of the Boulevard Bridge.

The Festival of the Arts is produced by the Cultural Arts Division of Richmond’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities. The complete schedule of programs can be downloaded from the city’s website.

– The information above was provided by Christy Everson with the City of Richmond.

From photographer and beekeeper David Stover comes news of an unusual film documentary, “Vanishing of the Bees,” with a discussion following the screening led by Christy Hemenway of the Gold Star Honeybees. The film will be shown free and admission is open to the public:

“Vanishing of the Bees,” narrated by Ellen Page, takes a piercing investigative look at the economic, political and ecological implications of the worldwide disappearance of the honeybee. The film highlights the positive changes that have resulted due to a tragic phenomenon known as “Colony Collapse Disorder.”

Date: Thursday, March 31, 2011

Show Times: 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m.

Where: Science Museum of Virginia, 2500 West Broad Street; call (804) 864-1400

Admission: FREE to the public

Providing viewers with tangible solutions they can apply to their everyday lives, Vanishing of the Bees unfolds as a dramatic tale of science and mystery, illuminating the greater meaning surrounding the relationship between humankind and Mother Earth. The bees have a message – but will we listen?

The sponsors include:

Science Museum of Virginia
Tricycle Gardens
East Richmond Beekeepers Assoc.
Richmond Beekeepers Assoc.
Virginia State Beekeepers Assoc.
Cindy Neuschwander & Jay Barrows
Rockwood Park Beekeepers Association

The bee image is a still from the film.

For more information contact David Stover: (804) 782-0988; david@davidstover.com

The 40-minute documentary, “Blank Street,” will be screened at 2 p.m. Sunday at the Byrd Theater, 2908 W. Cary St. in Carytown; the screening is free to the public. Doors open at 1:30 p.m.

Click here to read more about the film.

The Adoration of the Shepherds, Paolo  de’ Matteis. Museum Purchase, The Adolph D. and Wilkins C. Williams Fund. Currently on view in the Southern Baroque Gallery.

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Fan District Hub readers, your Virginia Museum of Fine Arts will be open on Christmas Day with free admission to all exhibitions.

In keeping with the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts’ goal of being accessible for all, VMFA is pleased to offer a special holiday gift to the people of the Commonwealth this holiday season — free admission to all special exhibitions on Christmas day.

All galleries will be open and general admission is always free.

“The holidays are times when family and friends gather together to celebrate the season and the precious gift of  time with each other. The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts is now open 365 days a year as a destination for meaningful visits and lively conversations that are always a part of a museum experience,” stated Alex Nyerges, Director.

VMFA will be open from noon until 5 p.m. Christmas Day and during that time, visitors are invited to view the museum’s two special exhibitions for free; American Quilts: Selections from the Winterthur Collection and Sally Mann: The Flesh and The Spirit.

VMFA’s Amuse Restaurant will offer guests a special Christmas day menu to enjoy with their family and friends.

About the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts:

With a collection of art that spans the globe and more than 5,000 years, plus a wide array of special exhibitions, the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA) is recognized as one of the top comprehensive art museums in the United States.

The museum’s permanent collection encompasses more than 22,000 works of art, including the largest public collection of Fabergé outside Russia and one of the nation’s finest collections of American art. VMFA is home to acclaimed collections of English Silver and Impressionist, Post-Impressionist, British Sporting and Contemporary art, as well as renowned South Asian, Himalayan and African art.

In May 2010, VMFA opened its doors to the public after a transformative expansion, the largest in its 74-year history. Programs include educational activities and studio classes for all ages, plus fun after-hours events.

VMFA’s Statewide Partnership program includes traveling exhibitions, artist and teacher workshops, and lectures across the Commonwealth. General admission is always free. For additional information, telephone 804-340-1400 or click here.

– The information above was provided by Suzanne Hall at the VMFA.

WHAT: Free Holiday Heart Screening and Open House

WHO:  Open to the Public

DATE: Saturday, December 11, 2010

TIME: 12:30 p.m. – 4:00 pm

LOCATION: Retreat Doctors’ Hospital, First Floor Boardroom, 2621 Grove Avenue.

COST:  Free

Retreat Doctors’ Hospital will be hosting a FREE heart health screening and open house on Saturday, December 11 from 12:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. Stop by the 1st floor boardroom of Retreat Doctors’ Hospital before the Fan Holiday House Tour for body mass index, blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol screenings as well as free parking, day-of-event tickets and to catch the trolley.

Click here for more information.

Appropriate to the occasion, Disney’s “Alice in Wonderland” (2010) will be screened from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

“Our series of movies in the parks have been a huge success,” said J.R. Pope, director of the Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities. “Families from all over the city have really enjoyed them. They’re a great way for families, and neighborhoods, to spend time together, and the price is right too.”

Richmond’s Department of Parks, Recreation and Community Facilities chose to offer its free movie series to provide families with an affordable recreation option in the current economic environment. All the movies have been free to attend, and free popcorn is handed out for as long as it lasts.

Audiences may bring drinks, food and chairs or blankets. Drinks and snacks may also be purchased from the concession stand at Dogwood Dell. As a reminder, no glass containers or pets are allowed at Dogwood Dell.

– The information above was provided by Christy Everson with the City of Richmond.

The Flying Squirrels and Puritan are asking fans to bring coats for donation to The Diamond on the 6th.  For each coat donated to Puritan Cleaner’s Coats for Kids, fans will receive a raffle ticket and have the opportunity to win baseball memorabilia, prize packages from team sponsors and one-of-a-kind ballpark experiences.

“The turnout for last year’s Ballpark Warming party was outstanding,” said Flying Squirrels’ Vice President Todd “Parney” Parnell.  “This year, we’re going to do things even bigger and better, and with the help of our friends in the community, we are excited to pack a bunch of trucks full of coats and have a blast doing it.”

“We can’t wait to work with the Flying Squirrels again on this event,” said Gary Glover, President of Puritan Cleaners.  “The Squirrels really know how to put on an event, and they’ve done a great job fitting into our community already.  Last year’s Inaugural Ballpark Warming Party collected approximately 800 coats, and the fans all seemed to have a great time at the event.  We’re looking forward to another great crowd on the 6th.”

2nd Annual Ballpark Warming Party

Who: Richmond Flying Squirrels, Puritan Cleaners

What: Coats for Kids Coat Drive (Ballpark Warming Party)

When: – Sat., Nov. 6, 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Where: The Diamond at 3001 N. Boulevard

Puritan Cleaners has collected well over 300,000 coats since the Coats for Kids’ inception 23 years ago. Included at the online home of Puritan’s Coat for Kids are store locations, flyers, coloring pages and videos. For more information on Puritan Cleaners and Coats for Kids, click here.

For those unable to attend the Ballpark Warming Party, coats can be donated throughout the month of November at any Puritan Cleaners location. Home delivery route managers are also collecting coats on their runs throughout the month.

Puritan Cleaners has 13 locations throughout Greater Richmond and also has an extensive home delivery program that covers much of the area.  They offer dry cleaning, laundry and alterations, as well as other related services.  They have been very active in the Richmond community, with outreach programs that include Coats for Kids, the 100,000 Meals for Kids Campaign, Thank You Patriot and Cinderella Dreams.

Season Ticket packages for the 2011 season of Flying Squirrels baseball are currently available.  For more information on the Coats for Kids Ballpark Warming Party or 2011 season tickets, contact the Flying Squirrels at (804) 359-FUNN (3866), or online by clicking here.

– The information above was provided by Jon Laaser with the Richmond Flying Squirrels.