Music has always been used to evoke the thin spaces between life and death, animal and human, and other phenomena beyond normal description. Versatile singer Kerry Ryer-Parke will explore songs of the supernatural, ranging from her background in traditional ballads to classical art song, jazz, and rock. She will be joined by colleagues and friends Joseph Alpar (santouri, voice), Virginia Kelsey (voice), Yoshiko Sato (piano), Peter King (guitar) and Cynthia Mangsen (voice and guitar) to cast a spell over your Halloween weekend.
Note: The starting time for this concert has been changed to 1:00 so you can attend it and the North Bennington Halloween Parade (which starts at 3:00). Feel free to wear your costume to the concert!
Kerry Ryer-Parke grew up without a television in the shadow of her parents’ folk club, hosting performers who sang the old weird songs from Scotland, England and Ireland. She and her twin sister Kelly developed an appetite for fairy tales and the macabre, and when they weren’t making potions in the woods out of leaves and berries or cursing noisy neighbors, developed a reputation at folk festivals for their close harmonies and uncanny unison singing. A graduate of Bennington College, Kerry is a performer of many musical styles, from oratorio, opera, early music and new work to folk, jazz and rock. Trained in classical performance, Kerry is also certified in LoVetri SomaticVoicework and the McClosky method for non-classical styles. She has been the Director of the Bennington Children’s Chorus since 1994 and the Bennington Voice Workshop since 2002. She joined the Music Faculty at Bennington College in 2013 and has been an Artist Associate in Voice at Williams College since 2000. As soprano soloist she has appeared with many orchestras and choirs in the Vermont/New York/Massachusetts area. She is the lead singer and bass player of the rock band The Prescription. Kerry’s interest in music and peacebuilding has led to training with Musicians Without Borders and the School for International Training, and travels to Sardinia, Corsica, Bosnia, Greece and Cyprus. She is currently in training to be a certified Alexander Technique teacher at the Balance Arts Center in New York.
Music at the Museum is presented to you at no charge thanks to the generous support of Alison Nowak and Robert Cane and the Vermont Humanities Council.
