7 minute read
Art
Exhibit by artist Brittany Wright
— through Dec. 3. Wright is a fulltime engineer and mom who enjoys painting and drawing. Links Bridge Vineyards, 8830 Old Links Bridge Road, Thurmont. 301-602-5733, linksbridgevineyards.com. ”The Magic of Glass” — through Dec. 3, Gallery B, 7700 Wisconsin Ave., Bethesda. National Capital Art Glass juried exhibition featuring works from 455 guild members, including mosaic, fused, stained and blown glass. Gallery hours are 2 to 8 p.m. Fridays, noon to 6 p.m. Saturdays and 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sundays. 301-215-6660 or bethesda.org/bethesda/gallery-bexhibitions. ”Notions of Place — Revisited” — through Dec. 9, McDaniel College, Esther Prangley Rice Gallery in Peterson Hall, 2 College Hill, Westminster. The exhibition includes interpretations by McDaniel College art faculty, alumni and current students focusing on the notion of “Place” as it pertains to work. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 5 p.m.Saturday. 410-857-2595 or estherprangleyricegallery.com.
”The Nature of Catoctin Mountain”
— through December at Urbana Regional Library, 9020 Amelung St., Urbana; satellite location of the Delaplaine Arts Center. This collection of photography is comprised of flora and fauna found in the Catoctin Mountain ecosystem. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. fcpl. org. ”Travels” — through December at Thurmont Regional Library, 76 E. Moser Road, Thurmont. Satellite location for the Delaplaine Arts Center. Photography by Beamie Young from the photographer’s travels and a desire to discover new images, patterns and narratives. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. fcpl.org. ”The Annotated Vessel” — through December at Brunswick Branch Library, 915 N. Maple Ave., Brunswick; satellite location of the Delaplaine Arts Center. Acrylic paintings by Maremi Andreozzi portray, embody and celebrated lesser-known historical female artists and illustrate the fine textiles and jewelry of the period. Hours are 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. fcpl.org. ”Accretion” — through Dec. 31, Delaplaine Arts Center, 40 S. Carroll St., Frederick. Photography and mixed media by Sean Dudley. Through a series of manipulation processes, Dudley’s photography focuses on the — sometimes imperceptible changes in human experience through the accretion of time and experience. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Free admission. 301-698-0656 or delaplaine.org. ”With Teeth” — through Dec. 31, Delaplaine Arts Center, 40 S. Carroll St., Frederick. Photography by Jillian Abir MacMaster, a PalestinianAmerican photographic artist from Frederick whose exhibition is a look into invulnerability and displays of protection and survival through something as ubiquitous as facial expression. Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Free admission. 301698-0656 or delaplaine.org. ”Life Forms” — through Dec. 31, Delaplaine Arts Center, 40 S. Carroll St., Frederick. A photographic exploration, by Ed Palaszynski, into the diversity and complexity of life and Palaszynski’s response to the question, “What does life look like?” Hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. Free admission. 301-698-0656 or delaplaine.org. ”Season to Season” — through Jan. 1, 2023, Blanche Ames Gallery, 4880 Elmer Derr Road, Frederick. Featuring Jing-Jy Chen. For gallery hours, call 301-473-7680, email bagalleryappointment@gmail.com or visit frederickuu.org. Crestwood Gallery Fall Exhibit — through Jan. 6, 2023, Crestwood Center, 7211 Bank Court, Frederick. Original works of art, including oil, watercolor, mixed media, wood carvings, and photography from some of Frederick’s most talented artists. Hours are 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. 240-215-1460 or frederickhealth.org. ”Variable Palettes” — through Jan 6, 2023, Adams County Wine Shop, 25 Chambersburg St., Gettysburg, Pa. Featuring the work of Dorothea Barrick. Hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday through Friday, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. adamscountywinery. com/events. ”Lore” — through Jan. 8, 2023, Gallery 115 at the Y Art Center, 115 E. Church St., Frederick. Features 15 artists from around the world including London, New York City, Wyoming and Maryland. Artists reimagine traditional folklore and explore original contemporary myth through a variety of perspectives. Artworks include an eclectic range of media including short film and an interactive installation. Gallery hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, noon to 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. https://www.instagram.com/ gallery_115_y.
”Joseph Holston: Color in Freedom, Journey Along the Underground
Railroad” — through Jan. 14, 2023, Washington County Museum of Fine Arts, 401 Museum Drive, Hagerstown. In this exhibit, Holston leads his audience through four movements that deepen our understanding of America’s Black enslaved people’s experience. Hours 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday; 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Closed Mondays and major holidays. Admission and parking are free.301-739-5727 or wcmfa.org.
Courtesy photo Gaslight Gallery will host “Life in the Theatre & Café Society,” an exhibit featuring artwork by Johnny Memphis (aka John Drnec), from Dec. 3 to Jan. 1. An opening reception will be held from 1 to 6 p.m. Dec. 3.
MUSIC
New Frederick Chorale music director harbors long passion for chorus music
BY ANGELA ROBERTS
aroberts@newspost.com
Heidi Ackerman, the Frederick Chorale’s new music director, had a bit of an unorthodox introduction to the singing group.
Soon after she was hired, the omicron variant of the coronavirus became the dominant strain of the virus circulating in the country. As it overwhelmed Maryland’s public health infrastructure, Ackerman held rehearsals over Zoom.
She’d introduce music by playing songs on the piano she had at home, and when people sang along, they’d keep their microphones muted.
After playing the last bars of a piece, Ackerman would ask chorale members if they wanted to rehearse the song again, or if they were OK to move on. They’d answer with a thumbs up or thumbs down.
“We made it work,” Ackerman said in a phone interview earlier this month. “But we are certainly thrilled to be back together in-person, singing as choral music was intended to be sung.”
The ongoing season is the first Ackerman and the chorale have spent entirely together inperson. She’s now helping the group prepare for its first holiday concert in two years, which will be performed on Dec. 4 and 5 at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in downtown Frederick.
Chorale members are excited to bring music back to the Frederick community this year, Ackerman said. The concert, “Stories in Song: A Frederick Chorale Christmas,” will be free to all who would like to attend.
When selecting songs for the concert, Ackerman took the lead from the group’s 51 members. She asked them to send her pieces of holiday music they have sung that have been meaningful to them.
The concert will open with the song “Welcome Here,” a bright and lively piece that the chorale has sung for years. One chorale member loves it so much, she included it in her wedding reception.
In the concert’s program, singers will share the reason why they suggested certain songs to the music director.
“It’s their stories that guide the flow of the concert,” Ackerman said.
Before joining the chorale, Ackerman — who lives in Baltimore, but is from Phoenix, Arizona — spent seven years of active duty service in the military, singing with the United States Army Field Band Soldiers’ Chorus.
In 2020, she decided she wanted to pursue conducting and performing outside of the military. She left the Army in February, and “we all know what happened in March,” she said.
Admittedly, it wasn’t the best time for a career change, she acknowledged with a laugh. “But it certainly led me to the Frederick Chorale.”
Besides directing the Frederick Chorale, Ackerman also directs the American Military Spouses Choir, which is based in Washington, D.C., and the Patterson Park Community Chorus in Baltimore.
Ackerman, who grew up singing in church, has long been acquainted with the magic of choral music. Though she went to college thinking that she would become a veterinarian, she later switched to a music degree.
“Why not give a go at what I love, what makes my heart beat?” she remembers thinking.
Singing is universal, Ackerman said. Everybody does it, well or not, even if their stage is just the shower or their car. But when it is done in community, when people use their bodies as the sole instrument for making music, and do it in harmony with others — what results, she said, is truly a gift.
“It’s just beautiful,” she said. “There’s nothing else like it.”
Follow Angela Roberts on Twitter @24_angier.
Photos by Victoria Chamberlain
Stories in Song: A Frederick Chorale Christmas
When: 4 p.m. Dec. 4 and 7:30 p.m. Dec. 5 Where: St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church, 118 E. Second St., Frederick Tickets: Free admission, donations welcome. Info: info@frederickchorale.org, frederickchorale.org Auditions for the Frederick Chorale will resume in January. Learn more at frederickchorale.org/auditions.html.
