September has graced the Berkshires with a remarkable spell of weather, setting the perfect stage (fingers crossed🤞) for upcoming outdoor events. Athletes are busy preparing for this weekend’s Josh Billings Runaground Triathalon, while music lovers are studying the hourly schedule and listening to the artists ahead of next weekend’s FreshGrass music festival. During this second week of September, we have 38 diverse performances that include classical, jazz, rock, folk, Americana, pop, soul, blues, and American Songbook. Below are some highlights for the week ahead, followed by our comprehensive show rundown.
Classical and Opera
We have four classical performances this week. You’ll find three of them on Saturday. In the afternoon, you can enjoy Lich Gate Concerts in the Park – Chamber Orchestra Concert at Sheffield Town Park. The program includes works by Elgar, Tchaikovsky, Bartók, and Vivaldi. At the same time, you’ll find From Mozart To Piazzolla: A Panorama Of Musical Expression, showcasing the music of Brahms, Beethoven, Piazzolla, Bartok, and Mozart at the New Marlborough Meeting House. Saturday evening, catch Ensemble Chamarré: Quartet for the End of Time at the West Stockbridge Congregational Church. The Ensemble will perform the powerful and moving “Quartet for the End of Time” written by Olivier Messiaen while he was a French prisoner of war during World War II.
Sunday afternoon, the fall series at the South Mountain Concert Hall in Pittsfield continues with the Calidore String Quartet, performing works by Haydn, Korngold, and Beethoven.
Jazz
We have just two jazz performances in the county this week – both at the Lion’s Den in Stockbridge. On Wednesday night, you’ll find the Jason Ennis Trio, and on Sunday evening, you can enjoy Michael Junkins and Friends. This week, Michael features Matt Steckler on saxophone. Jazz lovers may also want to check out the Sherri James Buxton Quartet, listed below under Something Else.
Popular (Rock, Pop, Folk, Blues, etc.)
This week, the popular music category has nearly 30 performances. We can’t highlight them all, but we will mention a few (see our calendar or show rundown below for all the performances).
The music starts Tuesday with Trevor Wheelock at Methuselah Bar & Lounge in Pittsfield. On Wednesday, the Misty Blues Trio with Gina Coleman performs at portaVia in Dalton as part of their month-long residency.
Thursday night has a great music line-up of four shows, starting with pop artist Brian Walker performing at Methuselah Bar & Lounge in Pittsfield. Down the road in Stockbridge at the Lion’s Den, you’ll find R&B, pop, and soul artist Glori Wilder. The folk-rock duo Undercover Cameo performs at Dream Away Lodge in Becket, while FERD is back at The Egremont Barn, bringing “a spirited blend of folk, bluegrass, and blues.”
Friday night also has a great line-up, particularly for folk music lovers. Consider heading up to North Adams to catch Railway Concerts presents: Amy Speace (pictured above) at Studio 9. Speace was originally discovered by Judy Collins, who recorded her song “The Weight of the World,” which was also named the #4 Best Folk Song of the last decade by New York’s WFUV radio station. Her stop in North Adams is one on her current tour that includes the East Coast, Nashville, and the UK. Just down the road at Tourists, you’ll find indie folk and country singer Anna St. Louis as part of Tourists’ Sing for Your Slumber series. At Dream Away Lodge, you can enjoy the “fierce folk” band 5 Pound Horse. If you want to check them out, watch this reel on our Instagram page, which is one of our most-played. Over at the Lion’s Den, catch Lincoln Foley, whose focus is the study and preservation of American roots music. Folk and Latin artist Clara Guatta performs as part of her Friday night residency at Tito’s Mexican Bar and Grill in Pittsfield.
Saturday early evening, catch the Hold On Honeys folk trio as part of the Becket Arts Center’s Music Brings Communities Together series. The improvisational trio The InBetweens are back at Dottie’s and Dorothy’s in Pittsfield – they will perform again Sunday night at Race Brook Lodge. Rock, blues, funk, and soul band the Outcrops are back at The Lion’s Den, while the Wanda Houston Band, a local favorite, is at The Egremont Barn. Steely Dan lovers will want to head to the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield to catch Reelin’ in the Years. You’ll find Vermont multi-instrumentalist Willoughby Morse, aka Good Baby w/ Erin Cassels-Brown performing Tourists. A trifecta of singer-songwriters come together to perform at Dream Away Lodge at the Songwriter’s Night-performing in the round: Cliff Eberhardt, Louise Mosrie and Bobby Sweet.
Sunday morning, you can enjoy folk music at the Domingo Brunch featuring Traveling Musical Storyteller, Eli Elkus at Dottie’s and Dorothy’s. In the afternoon, you can see Livio Gravini at Balderdash Cellars in Richmond. In the evening, you’ll find Seth Gallant & Helen Hummel (two solo acts) at the Dream Away Lodge. Seth is a Maine-based Americana performer, while Helen is a folk and Americana artist originally from Vermont but now living in Western Massachusetts.
Something Else
In our our Something Else category, you’ll find Stephanie Chou Quintet: Comfort Girl at the Adams Theatre on Saturday night. Comfort Girl is an 80-minute song cycle inspired by true stories of Asian “comfort women” abducted into sexual slavery by the Japanese army during WWII created and composed by Stephanie Chou, an American jazz composer, saxophonist, and singer who blends influences from her Chinese heritage with jazz and pop. Sunday afternoon outdoors at Lenox’s Lilac Park, you’ll find the Sherri James Buxton Quartet. Sherri is known as the unofficial cabaret diva of the Berkshires and will likely draw from a repertoire that includes jazz, American Songbook, and pop music.
You can read about all of these performances and more in our day-by-day show rundown below or jump right to our music calendar. Please note that our deadline for inclusion in the weekly narrative above and the day-by-day listing below is Wednesday at noon. Check our music calendar for shows we’ve added after our weekly publication deadline. Use the subscribe button below to receive this free weekly rundown of upcoming performances in your inbox each Monday. And if I missed a performance, please contact me, and I’ll add it to the calendar.
Monday
No performances.
Tuesday
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm Trevor Wheelock @ Methuselah Bar & Lounge, Pittsfield.
Wednesday
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Misty Blues Trio with Gina Coleman @ portaVia, Dalton.
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm Jason Ennis Trio @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge.
Thursday
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm Brian Walker @ Methuselah Bar & Lounge, Pittsfield.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Glori Wilder @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Undercover Cameo @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket.
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm FERD @ Egremont Barn, South Egremont.
Friday
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm Jim Witherall @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
6:00 pm Jason and Trev @ Knox Trail Inn, East Otis.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Lincoln Foley @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Live Music with Clara Guatta @ Tito’s Mexican Bar and Grill, Pittsfield.
7:30 pm Railway Concerts presents: Amy Speace @ Studio 9, North Adams.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm 5 Pound Horse @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket.
8:00 pm – 9:30 pm Anna St. Louis @ Tourists, North Adams.
Saturday
12:00 pm – 3:00 pm Zarvis & Pug @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
2:00 pm – 4:00 pm Abby Lappen @ Berkshire Mountain Distillers, Sheffield.
4:00 pm Lich Gate Concerts in the Park – Chamber Orchestra Concert @ Sheffield Town Park, Sheffield.
4:00 pm – 7:00 pm Hot Shot Duo @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
4:30 pm – 5:30 pm From Mozart To Piazzolla: A Panorama Of Musical Expression @ New Marlborough Meeting House, New Marlborough.
5:00 pm – 7:00 pm Music Brings Communities Together – Hold On Honeys @ Becket Arts Center, Becket.
6:00 pm – 9:00 pm the InBetweens @ Dottie’s and Dorothy’s, Pittsfield.
6:00 pm – 8:00 pm The Mikes @ Firehouse Cafe & Bistro, Adams.
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm Stephanie Chou Quintet: Comfort Girl @ Adams Theatre, Adams.
7:00 pm Ensemble Chamarré: Quartet for the End of Time @ West Stockbridge Congregational Church, West Stockbridge.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Dave Brown @ Methuselah Bar & Lounge, Pittsfield.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm Outcrops @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge.
7:30 pm – 10:30 pm Wanda Houston Band @ Egremont Barn, South Egremont.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Reelin’ in the Years @ Colonial Theatre, Pittsfield.
8:00 pm – 9:30 pm GOOD BABY w/ Erin Cassels-Brown @ Tourists, North Adams.
8:00 pm – 10:00 pm Songwriter’s Night-performing in the round: Cliff Eberhardt, Louise Mosrie and Bobby Sweet @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket.
8:00 pm Whiskey Traveler @ Knox Trail Inn, East Otis.
Sunday
10:00 am – 12:00 pm Domingo Brunch featuring Traveling Musical Storyteller, Eli Elkus @ Dottie’s and Dorothy’s, Pittsfield.
2:00 pm – 5:00 pm Livio Gravini @ Balderdash Cellars, Richmond.
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm Sherri James Buxton Quartet @ Lilac Park, Lenox.
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm Calidore String Quartet @ South Mountain Concert Hall, Pittsfield.
6:30 pm – 9:30 pm Michael Junkins and Friends @ The Lion’s Den, Stockbridge.
7:00 pm – 10:00 pm The InBetweens @ Race Brook Lodge, Sheffield.
7:30 pm – 9:30 pm Seth Gallant & Helen Hummel (two solo acts) @ Dream Away Lodge, Becket.
Please get out and support your local musicians and venues!
— Mark @ Music in the Berkshires