Musical World Cafe Returns to Sharon Public Library

(SHARON, MA) – You won’t need to leave Sharon to savor the sounds and tastes of Europe, Asia and New Orleans on Thursday, March 26, from 6:00 – 9:00 pm. That’s when the Sharon Public Library (SPL) and the Friends of the Sharon Public Library will join forces once again to sponsor the Second Musical World Café. This popular community gathering, returning after a successful launch in December 2014, will feature an array of vocal, instrumental and movement performances by talented local musicians and dancers plus an exhibit of original artwork by members of the Sharon Creative Arts Association.

The program will begin in the Community Room at 6:00 pm with an interactive dialog and community presentation about the SPL and its future role in Sharon. Led by Library Building Program Consultant Cheryl Bryan, the 50-minute Community Forum, titled, “Your New or Renovated Library,” will offer Sharon residents the chance to express what they want and need from the library and an opportunity to complete the SPL community survey. Light refreshments will be served.

Following the Community Forum, guests will adjourn to the Foyer for a performance of traditional Greek music by the student band, Ta Nisia, (The Island), comprising vocalist Kristina Kalogeras, violinist Eleni Constantinou, violist Stavros Constantinou, cellist Chris Constantinou, and bassist Konstantinos Kalogeras, beginning at 7:00 pm.

At 7:30 pm, a Czech string trio featuring Sharonites and professional musicians Michael Korn and Beth Nussbaum on violin and Kathy Kalogeras on viola will present the Introduzione, Larghetto, Scherzo, and Tema con Variazioni of the Dvorak Terzetto in C Major, Op. 74. in the Community Room.

The AP Chinese School student trio made up of Anni Dou, Elizabeth Song and Mike Dou will celebrate the new season with their rendition of the traditional Japanese melody, “Spring in the North,” on saxophone and clarinet in the Reading Room at 8:00 pm.

Heating up with New Orleans Jazz

The Mark Berney Jazz Trio, led by Sharonite and jazz trumpeter Mark Berney with Ben Cook on electric keyboard and Jim Gray on tuba, will take listeners on a musical journey to New Orleans as they explore the roots of jazz and celebrate the influence of NOLA native Louis Armstrong, beginning at 8:05 pm in the Foreign Language area.

The program will close with a performance by Sharon’s Chinese Chorus and Taiji Fan in the Community Room.

Local artists will exhibit

Throughout the evening, oil and watercolor paintings by Sharon artists Lynne Atwood, Leslie Berman, Vera Cross, Elaine Levin, and Pat Lloyd will be available for purchase and viewing and delicious refreshments generously donated by local restaurants will be available for sampling. A portion of the proceeds from the artworks’ sale will be used to support The Friends.

“The purpose of the Musical World Café is to share different cultures through music, art and food,” explains teacher and clarinetist Elizabeth Leehey, who helped to organize the program. Drawing on her own and colleagues’ networks, Leehey recruited performers of different backgrounds for the event. In the face of recent cutbacks in music education in the schools, Leehey also hoped to spotlight the value of music in community life. The Musical World Café has been an effective vehicle for doing so. “As a member of The Friends, I wanted to create a musical program at the library to help raise awareness of the importance of music education and the importance of music in people’s lives,” she explains.

There is no charge to attend the Musical World Café on Thursday, March 26. All are welcome. For more information, contact SPL Director Lee Ann Amend at 781-784-1578, ext. 1425, lamend@ocln.org, or visit www.sharonpubliclibrary.org.

ABOUT THE SHARON PUBLIC LIBRARY

A member of the Old Colony Library Network (OCLN) with a collection in a wide range of traditional and digital formats, the Sharon Public Library (SPL) is committed to serving the informational, educational, cultural and recreational needs of all members of the Sharon community by providing access to a professional staff, a state-of-the-art facility and quality materials, programs and services.

ABOUT THE FRIENDS OF THE SHARON PUBLIC LIBRARY

Founded more than 25 years ago with the mission of supplementing the SPL’s annual budget, the Friends of the Sharon Public Library (The Friends) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to partner with the Sharon Public Library in serving the informational, educational, cultural, and recreational needs of the community through fundraising, programming, advocacy, and volunteerism.

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