Hark! We Hear Haunted Harmonies This Weekend

 Contests, Salem Event, Salem Festivals  No Responses »
Oct 062016
 

Part performance, part competition, part learning experience and a whole lot of musical entertainment, this Saturday, Salem residents and visitors will be treated to the first annual Haunted Harmonies A Cappella Festival.

Haunted Harmonies is a NEW one-day a cappella festival in Salem, MA built to educate high school and collegiate students on various elements of contemporary a cappella (group or solo singing without instrumental accompaniment) and enhance Salem’s Haunted Happenings celebration.

acappellaThrough workshops and exposure to professional musicians, students will gain skills to improve their musicality and knowledge of a cappella. Students will also provide family-friendly entertainment to the community while experiencing high-level performance opportunities in competition and exhibition on the streets of Salem during the Haunted Harmonies festival and throughout the month of October.

Inspired by the growing enthusiasm for a cappella performance, Haunted Harmonies was created by Alex Grover, Music Director of Danvers High School & former director of Salem High School’s a cappella group WitchPitch?, and Tina Jordan, Director of the Salem Witch Museum.

Jordan explains, “The audience is in for a wonderful musical experience.  Whether watching the competition at the Fountain Stage, hearing the Scholastic and Non-Scholastic groups perform at the four other stages on Essex Street, or attending the Professional Showcase in the acoustically amazing Murray Hall at the Bridge at 211 featuring Vox One, the award-winning a cappella jazz quintet that combines elements of blues, funk, gospel, and folk into their own brand of vocal music, the audience will have an opportunity to participate in something special.”

The Scholastic Competition will include:

  • S#arp Attitude from UMass Amherst,
  • Fermata Nowhere from UMass Lowell,
  • Unisons from Northeastern University,
  • Tonal Recall from Colleges of the Fenway,
  • 4Gotten Suitcase from Ramapo College,
  • Upper Structure from Berklee College of Music,
  • the ArgoNotes from Maspeth High School, and
  • Acapocalypse from Emmanuel College in Boston,
  • Saugus Sachimes from Saugus High School, and
  • Ingrid Sound from Danvers High School. 

The competition will be opened and hosted by Phoenix, a Boston-based, all female a cappella group.

Jordan continues, “What I love about the design of the festival is that the groups will learn from experts in the a cappella world, Phoenix A Cappella and Berklee College of Music & Women’s A Cappella Association, and will be able to take those lessons and apply them as they perform on the streets of Salem with a Haunted Happenings twist!

Because this festival happens so early in the school year, I think it will also help the individual a cappella groups become more connected, as some have incoming freshmen as new members of their groups and this experience will help them build their relationship with each other.”

The Scholastic Competition will be held on the Fountain Stage on Essex Street from 10am – 12pm and is free to the public. Each of the ten groups will perform and be adjudicated by a panel of professional a cappella performers and professors from Berklee College of Music and the Women’s A Cappella Association.

In the afternoon there will be street singing by non-scholastic performance groups from 1-4pm.  A cappella fans can see their favorite scholastic performers again during their Street Singing showcase from 4-5:30pm.  There will be five performance locations on Essex Street between Liberty Street and Washington Street.

The Pro Showcase featuring Vox One and the winners of the scholastic competition will be held in Murray Hall at 211 Bridge at 7pm. Advance ticket purchase is strongly recommended; tickets are $8.00 in advance, $10.00 at the door.

For complete information on Haunted Harmonies, visit HauntedHarmonies.com.

The a cappella festival is part of a month of musical programming on the Fountain Stage organized by Salem Gathering, and will coincide with this weekend’s Haunted Biz Baz Street Fair, which is produced by the Salem Chamber of Commerce. For complete information on the month-long Salem Haunted Happenings festival, visit HauntedHappenings.org.

Jordan concludes, “I think this festival will be a wonderful experience for the high school and colleges that will participate, but the real winners will be the visitors and residents who come out to enjoy the music and talent of these wonderful scholastic and non-scholastic performers.”

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Costumed Cats, Disguised Dogs, All Part of Salem’s “Howl-O-Ween”

 Contests, History, Salem Event, Salem Festivals, Volunteer Opportunities  No Responses »
Sep 282016
 

Have your pets been acting a little strange the past few days? Dogs and cats almost meeting in secret corners of your home? What could they have in common to discuss? How about this Sunday’s upcoming 2nd Annual Howl-o-ween Pet Parade.

howl-o-weenYes, a Halloween-themed parade with pets as costumed participants; steps off at Derby Sq., Oct. 2 at 1 pm.

“Salem is going to the dogs, and we couldn’t be happier about it,” explains Kylie Sullivan, Executive Director of Salem Main Streets, which is producing the 2nd Annual Howl-o-ween Pet Parade.

“Last year’s event was an enormous success with some amazing costumes,” she says “and we’re anticipating that this year will be even bigger. Salem is such a pet-friendly city; it seemed like a no-brainer that we needed a community pet parade during Haunted Happenings. It’s such a special way to engage our residents, appeal to our visitors, and celebrate our local businesses.”

The 2nd Annual Howl-o-ween Pet Parade will include a pet photo booth by Salem Pet Photo, an area with information about local rescues and pet-focused downtown businesses, as well as the parade and costume contest with prizes.

Kylie points out, “Pets of all species are welcome, but should be well-behaved and comfortable at a busy event where there are likely to be many dogs.”

While the  Howl-o-ween Pet Parade is a free event, pet-owning participants will be asked to register their pet’s name for judging and verify that all required vaccinations are up-to-date.

Spectators will be encouraged to join friends and families on Derby Square, along Artists’ Row, or perhaps even “tail”-gaiting on the Lobster Shanty’s dog-friendly patio.

Salem Main Streets along with Salem Pet Photo, the New England Dog Biscuit Company, Creative Salem, Artists’ Row, and a number of other community partners are producing this 2nd Annual Howl-o-ween Pet Parade.

This event is rain or shine.

For additional or specific pet-related details, contact Salem Main Streets at 978-744-0004, or by email at kylie@salemmainstreets.org, or visit the website at www.salemmainstreets.org .

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Love Salem? Don’t Just Say It, Show It! SATV Video Contest

 Contests, Salem Event, Volunteer Opportunities  No Responses »
Sep 252016
 

cameraSalem Ma gets a lot of verbal and printed love from residents, tourists and general all-around supporters. SATV, our community Public Access station has now announced a video contest, titled “How Much Do I Love Salem,” as a way for SATV members and producers to express their favorite aspects of the city.

Patrick Kennedy program director at SATV has put it succinctly: “Love the History? Make it a video. Love the Spookiness? Make it a video. Love the culture? Make it a video.”

He adds “Aside from expressing themselves, this contest gives SATV members and producers a chance to make a completely different type of video than they have made before. There will be prizes for first, second, third and fourth place, and all of the contest entries will air on SATV’s Public Access Channel 3.”

Salem Access Television exists due to an agreement between the cable provider and the communities it serves. Public access programming is community programming on cable TV.

It opens the door for individuals or organization to write, produce, direct, and perform in their own programs by providing the necessary training, equipment, and use of facilities free of charge. People not normally allowed easy access to the mass media employ it as a powerful resource for local expression.

  • Channel 3 features original, community produced and professionally produced programming from Salem and other surrounding communities.
  • Channel 15 features educational T.V. from the local to the global level.
  • Channel 22 features political and issue-based programming, as well as municipal meetings and local election coverage.

The “How Much Do I Love Salem,” contest runs until February of 2017 and will be the main focus of SATV’s 2017 Annual Meeting, which takes place in the middle of March.

Any Salem resident, member of a Salem organization or employee of a Salem business can join and learn how to use video equipment to make videos about their interests.

SATV offers this training free of charge. Throughout these class sessions, you can become a certified access user. Then you can use video equipment to make your own programs. The basic elements of TV production are covered: camera-operation, lighting, audio, directing, script writing, editing, etc.

The class includes a group project, which is an in-studio, 30 minute talk show format program which actually gets played on the air! Students who successfully complete the classes and participate in the group project become certified to use SATV equipment.

Again,the classes, channel time, and use of equipment are free. Sounds like a good deal!

For more information about the contest or SATV in general, you may contact through e-mail: info@satvonline.org. Or call SATV at: 978-740-9432.

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Salem Maritime Festival Sails into Salem

 Salem Dining, Salem Event, Salem Festivals  No Responses »
Aug 042016
 

Maritime_Festival_Logo_NLShips, sawdust, sailors and song all in Salem this weekend as the National Park Service celebrates the 28th year of the Salem Maritime Festival.

The Salem Maritime Festival will run August 5th, 6th and 7th, featuring live music, historical reenactors, harbor cruises, demonstrations, interactive programs, arts, crafts, and more! The Salem Maritime Festival is hosted by Salem Maritime National Historic Site in cooperation with the Essex National Heritage Commission.

But, take note, this is not your typical ocean-themed event with one or two seafaring craft docked in the harbor for walk-aboard tours. Visiting & Participating Vessels include:

  • Lobster Boats
  • Schooner Adventure
  • Schooner Ardelle
  • Sea Shuttle’s Endeavour
  • Schooner Fame, Full-scale replica of a War of 1812 Privateer
  • Sloop Friendship
  • United States Coast Guard Patrol Boat

Not surprising then that one of the most popular features of the Salem Maritime Festival will be the free 90-minute boat rides around Salem Harbor. In fact, on Saturday, festival goers will be given the opportunity to enter a series of raffles for chances to set sail in Salem harbor on some of the above-mentioned craft. Lottery entries begin 10:30am

Music is also a big part of this festival.

Friday, August 5th:

6-8pm, Squeezebox Stompers – Cajun/Zydeco

Saturday, August 6th (MC Merrill Kohlhofer):

10am, Wolf Music – Sea Chantey

11am, Ye Mariners All

12pm, Warszawiaki Orchestra – Polka Music

2pm, Campbell Music – Folk

3pm, New Bedford Harbor Sea Chantey Chorus

4pm, Mamadou –West African World-Fusion

6-7pm, Salem Philharmonic Orchestra

Sunday, August 7th (MC Tony Toledo):

11am, Wolf Music – Sea Chantey

12pm, Ron Reid Music – Steel Drum/Caribbean

1pm,Tony Toledo (MC) – Story Telling

2pm, Marina Evans – Folk

3-5pm, Atwater-Donnelly – Folk

And beyond this being a 3-day festival, beyond this being part of the Salem Heritage Days festival, it is also in honor of the National Park Service’s Centennial year.

On August 25, 1916, President Woodrow Wilson signed the act creating the National Park Service, a new federal bureau in the Department of the Interior responsible for protecting the 35 national parks and monuments then managed by the department and those yet to be established.

“The Centennial will celebrate the achievements of the past 100 years, but it is really about the future. It’s about kicking off a second century of stewardship for America’s national parks and for communities across the nation.  Most importantly, it’s about inviting you to join us.” — NPS

History. Adventure. Fun and games. And a lot more await you Aug. 5-7 in Salem Ma. Bring sunglasses. Bring your boat shoes. For full schedule of events, go to the Salem Maritime National Historic Site website.

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Lazy Days of Summer Giving Way to Heritage Days

 Salem Dining, Salem Event, Salem Farmers Market, Salem Festivals, Salem Shopping, SMS News  2 Responses »
Aug 022016
 

More than 40 different events over 10 days — if that doesn’t convince you to put Salem’s Heritage Days festival on your “to do” list for summer events, we don’t know what will. As we have already given the Festival a full write up, let’s consider this a gentle reminder! It takes place Aug.4-14th at Derby Wharf, Salem Common and other locales around Salem, inviting residents and visitors to explore Salem’s past and present through music, food and events.

Window Contest 037While most of the schedule is set, there are always possible changes, so just another reminder to check the schedule before attending.

Look it over. As the saying goes, there is something for everyone, no matter what your age.

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