02/14/08 - Which High Paid School Administrator Is Responsible For Maintaing The Temporary Classrooms At Western Middle School?

The Western Middle School Bucket Brigade

Greenwich Public School Mismanagement:
New School Structures Are Leaking !!!!

Parents Are Complaining That Temporary Classrooms Are Leaking.

Parents want to know why that new classrooms are leaking water.,

Are problems due to improper installation by the school board or have the classrooms leaking, because of improper maintenance.

Da Ju Vu

It was water leaking that caused the sever mold problems at Hamilton Avenue School that put these little children in temporary classrooms at Western Middle School.

School parents are blaming school custodians for not removing snow from the temporary classroom roofs, in an effort to prevent the leaking water.

These temporary classrooms are not even
two years old !!!

Parents say they have been complaining about the leaking water for over one year, but they have been ignored by arrogant school administrators.

The children in these temporary classrooms are the very same children that were displaced by improper maintenance at Hamilton Avenue School.

This is another failure for the Incompetent Sternberg Administration.

02/14/08 - Happy Valentines Day - Greenwich Newswire For Thursday

Featured Greenwich News Reports

Greenwich gymnasts vault to fourth at FCIACs
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
Greenwich High gymnasts Sarah Wilbanks and Taylor Krasne wanted to make sure their final FCIAC competition would be a good one. The Cardinals’ senior duo ...

Greenwich Library, CT, Rescinds Permission for Pro-Palestinian ...
Library Journal - New York,NY
After significant criticism, including from the American Library Association, the Greenwich Library , CT, reversed its decision to cancel two talks by a ...

Greenwich Library reverses course on Mideast lecture ban
Newsday - Long Island,NY,USA
GREENWICH, Conn. - Greenwich Library officials, yielding to free speech arguments, reversed their decision to bar a group from giving two lectures on ...

Greenwich budget review School auditorium gets top billing
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
This was good news for supporters of one such project — the proposed renovation of the Greenwich High School auditorium and musical classroom space. ...

Old Man Winter hits Greenwich hard Weather causes outages ...
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
A technical glitch at a Prospect substation for Connecticut Light & Power left about 800 people without power in western Greenwich for about a half-hour ...

Love comes in many forms in Greenwich
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
Along Greenwich Avenue, storefront windows are decorated with pink and red hearts. Florists are busy arranging dozens of red roses and seating in ...

Greenwich fencing gets back on track, foils Hopkins
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
The Greenwich High School boys and girls fencing teams continued to build momentum for head coach Orest Stetsiv. After a slow season start against Guilford ...

Featured Greenwich Blog Posts

Baby Lapsit
Where: Greenwich Library at Rear Children's Room Pre-registered program for infants up to 12 months and a caregiver. Babies enjoy nursery rhymes, simple stories, songs, finger plays and movements. Take home a folder filled with the ...
Greenwich Library | Today's Events - http://www.greenwichlibrary.org

Greenwich Library reverses course on Mideast lecture ban
Greenwich Library officials, yielding to free speech arguments, reversed their decision to bar a group from giving two lectures on Israeli-Palestinian relations at the library.
NewsOnFeeds.com Top Stories - http://NewsOnFeeds.com/section/Top%20Stories/1/1

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====================================================

The Raw Greenwich News Feed
For Thursday

1. December trade gap narrows 6.9%

   Boston Globe

   ... gotten some disappointing news, but claims data is very solid," Michael Darda, chief economist of MKM Partners in Greenwich, Conn., said. "It is telling us that we are probably not in a recession and the labor market is not listing dramatically." ...

   
   

   Tags: Asia Tigers Fund, Financial Services

2. Lilly Pulitzer to Enter Fragrance Market

   Women's Wear Daily

   ... the scent market. The King of Prussia, Pa.-based bastion of preppy chic has signed a licensing agreement with Old Greenwich, Conn.-based PulsePoints LLC, which will bring Pulitzer-branded fragrances to stores this fall. "We've wanted to do a ...

   
   

3. NZ sharemarket plumbs new 16 months low

   XtraMSN Real Estate

   ... are being affected, munis (bonds) are impacted," said Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LLC in Greenwich, Connecticut. "There's a stench of fear that refuses to break." Here, the benchmark NZSX-50 index fell to a new low for the year of ...

   
   

   Tags: Ben Bernanke, Home, Mortgage, Personal Finance, Financial Markets

4. Man admits aid in Greenwich jewel heist

   Connecticut Post

   A Bridgeport man admitted in federal court Thursday that he torched a car as a diversion so a companion could rob a Greenwich jewelry store of $4.7 million in 2006.

   Tags:Bridgeport, New Haven, Violent Crime

5. Wall St falls sharply on credit market worry

   Theedgedaily.com

   ... Corporates are being affected, munis are impacted," said Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LLC in Greenwich, Connecticut. "There's a stench of fear that refuses to break." Stocks ended a three-day string of gains as the Dow Jones ...

   
   

   Tags: BenBernanke, Financial Markets, Jones Apparel Group, Apparel

6. One Fan Sees Divine Hand In Giants' Super Bowl Upset

   The Jewish Press

   ... the game against the Cowboys, Shemtov and his son-in-law, Rabbi Yossi Deren, co-director of Chabad-Lubavitch of Greenwich, Conn., spent an hour and a half putting tefillin on everybody. For the following week's NFC Championship Game, the Greenfield ...

   
   

7. Lampert slashes stake in Citigroup as shares fall

   Reuters

   ... "Lampert may have thought he was buying better assets, and many of these got totally wiped out." A spokeswoman for Greenwich, Connecticut-based ESL declined to comment. Shannon Bell, a spokeswoman for New York-based Citigroup, declined to comment. ...

   Tags: Banking, Financial Services, Citicorp, Home, Mortgage

8. Market falls sharply on credit market worry

   Earth Times

   ... Corporates are being affected, munis are impacted," said Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LLC in Greenwich, Connecticut. "There's a stench of fear that refuses to break." Stocks ended a three-day string of gains as the Dow Jones ...

9. US market drops on Bernanke talk

   The New Zealand Herald

   ... how many more credit market shoes are going to drop. said Michael Darda, chief economist at MKM Partners LLC, Greenwich, Connecticut. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 121.60 points, or 0.97 percent, at 12,430.64. The Standard & Poor's 500 ...

   
   

   Tags: Financial Markets, Ben Bernanke, Financial Services, Investment Services, Investment Banking, Goldman Sachs Group, Home, Mortgage

10. RER & The Environment

    Rental Equipment Register

    ... came from a request from the Gaslamp Quarter Association to come up with a cleaner burning fuel.... May 1, 2006 GREENWICH, Conn. United Rentals recently released the first in a series of white papers on issues of importance to the construction and ...

    
    

    Tags: Ornskoldsvik, Sweeden, World News, Vasternorrlands, Mill Creek, CA, La-Jolla

11. ProSales Presents Excellence Awards

    Builder

    ... Keim Lumber, Charm, Ohio (Showroom) The Remodeler's Choice, Minneapolis (Marketing) Interstate + Lakeland Lumber, Greenwich, Conn. (Web site) The breakfast also recognized three winners of honorable mentions: JAY-K Lumber, New Hartford, N.Y. ...

    
    

    Tag: Charm, OH

12. Stock Screen: After Failed Deal United Rentals Looks Cheap

    SmartMoney.com

    ... bought. Last summer takeover specialist Cerberus Capital Management agreed to pay $34.50 a share in cash for the Greenwich, Conn., construction equipment lessor. In November Cerberus backed out, saying it couldn't find financing. United shares fell ...

    
    

    Tags: Industrial Machines, United Rentals, Leasing

13. United We Stand

    SmartMoney

    ... bought. Last summer takeover specialist Cerberus Capital Management agreed to pay $34.50 a share in cash for the Greenwich, Conn., construction equipment lessor. In November Cerberus backed out, saying it couldn't find financing. United shares fell ...

14. Equus Total Return, Inc. Announces Follow-On Investment in Infinia Corporation and $2.11 NAV Increase

    PR Newswire

    ... share. The Series B financing round also included investments by GLG Partners (New York, NY), Wexford Capital LLC (Greenwich, CT), Khosla Ventures (Menlo Park, CA), Vulcan Capital (Seattle, WA), and Power Play Energy, LLC (New Canaan, CT). Infinia ...

    
    

15. Church bulletin

    Hgazette.com, Haverhill, MA

    ... years, overseeing growth and positive transition. Prior to that, he was assistant pastor of Harvest Time Church in Greenwich, Conn. Amendola also served as police chaplain for the Webster Police Department, and Sectional Presbyter for the Southern ...

    
    

    Tags: Boston, MA, Worcester

16. Girls' hoop teams on a roll; Staples boys excel

    Westport Minuteman

    ... On the surface, neither team seems to have a serious challenge. Westhill visits Wilton (6-13), Warde travels to Greenwich (3-16) and Ludlowe closes the season out at home against Trumbull (10-9). Joel Barlow has won three of its last four games to ...

    
    

17. My Vespa, Myself

    Observer.com - All Articles

    ... Spur.' Her most recent is hunter green with camel-colored leather upholstery, rented from a dealership in Greenwich, Conn. Three weeks ago, her chauffeur Abdul Jafeer ('a wonderful driver that's been with me for, like, 11 years') was alone ...

    
    

    Tags: Financial Services, Royce Value Trust

18. 
    Slushy mess out there

19. The Recorder - Greenfield, Massachusetts

    ... they had to cross too many rivers so they gave up and called for rides. Dwight Hilson and his wife drove up from Greenwich, Conn., to watch their daughter's ski meet at Bromley Mountain in Vermont. On Wednesday, while their daughter was in class at ...

    
    

    Tags: Alpine Skiing, Winter Sports

20. Scholastic roundup: GA hockey earns key win over Gunnery

    Norwalk Advocate

    Libby Miner picked the perfect time to play her best game of the season. The junior forward scored the game-winning goal off a pass from Xandra Hompe with 6:27 remaining yesterday as Greenwich Academy recorded ...

    
    

    Tags: Ice Hockey, Winter Sports

21. Couple finds absence does make hearts grow fonder

    Norwalk Advocate

    ... dancing all the time. 'We loved to dance,' he said. Tommy is now retired from his job as superintendent of Greenwich Towers, Ann from her job at Outdoor Traders on West Putnam Avenue. And up until last August, when Ann broke her hip, they ...

    
    

    Tags: Rockford, IL

22. Teen center won't press charges in scam, wants offenders disciplined by school

    Norwalk Advocate

    Greenwich police are close to identifying the culprits behind a counterfeiting scheme uncovered over the weekend at the Arch Street teen center, but said they may not pursue criminal charges.

    
    

23. Liz Kisses Ellen Good-Bye

    VMSD

    ... Windsong Brands LLC (Westport, Conn.); Barry Sternlicht, chairman and ceo of Starwood Capital Group LLC (Greenwich, Conn.); and former retail executive Marvin Traub, now president of Marvin Traub Associates Inc. (New York). The transaction is ...

    
    

    Tags: Westport, CT, Travel, Tourism, Hotels, Starwood Hotel And Resorts Worldwide, Liz Claiborne, Apparel

24. Slushy mess out there

    The Recorder - Greenfield, Massachusetts

    ... they had to cross too many rivers so they gave up and called for rides. Dwight Hilson and his wife drove up from Greenwich, Conn., to watch their daughter's ski meet at Bromley Mountain in Vermont. On Wednesday, while their daughter was in class at ...

25. Suit alleges Orion misled investors in prospectus
    WisInfo

    ... prospectus, but is still frowned upon by stock analysts, said Kathleen Smith, principal of Renaissance Capital, a Greenwich, Conn., company that also operates IPOHome.com. 'We don't like it when insiders sell in the IPO, period,' Smith said. 'It ...

    
    

02/13/08 - Greenwich Newswire For Wednesday

Greenwich News Reports

US RATE FUTURES-Inch higher, shaking off retail sales
Reuters - USA
... remains very vulnerable to negative shocks," said Alan Ruskin, chief international strategist at RBS Greenwich Capital in Greenwich, Connecticut. ...

Trinity's woes leave FCIAC up for grabs
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
Now there are at least five, six if you believe, as many do, that Greenwich's recent surge is proof they are capable of running off three straight

Greenwich Library in fracas over Mideast lectures
Boston Globe
GREENWICH, Conn.—Free speech issues and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict have come to the Greenwich Library. A group critical of Israel and US media ...

Greenwich Blog Posts

Greenwich Library bans lecture series
By CaptCT
It's shocking to see Greenwich Library, an institution committed to giving voice to all points of view -- including those expressed in Carter's book and Walt-Mearsheimer's book -- would try to deny a media watchdog group like If ...
My Left Nutmeg - Front Page - http://www.myleftnutmeg.com

Greenwich Library Steps On Free Speech
By andythibault(andythibault)
The group's director, Alison Weir, said she plans to come to Greenwich anyway, with the expectation that its presentation, "Israel-Palestine: Beyond the Headlines," will proceed as scheduled. Complete Article. Cool Justice Blog.
The Cool Justice Report - http://cooljustice.blogspot.com/

2's and 3's Story Time
Where: Greenwich Library at Children's Constellation Room Drop-in story time for 2 and 3 year olds with a caregiver. Program includes stories, songs, movement and finger plays. No registration required but space is limited. ...
Greenwich Library | Today's Events - http://www.greenwichlibrary.org

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02/13/07 - Finally: Greenwich Cops Reopen Bria Drug Death Case

News Article Via: Stamford Advocate & Greenwich Time

GREENWICH ROUNDUP BACKGROUND COLUMNS FOLLOW THIS GREENWICH TIME ARTICLE.

Source URL: http://www.stamfordadvocate.com/news/local/scn-gt-briafeb13,0,2737549.story

Police reopen fatal overdose case

By Martin B. Cassidy
Police reporter

February 13, 2008

Three years after closing the case, police are reinvestigating the 2004 fatal overdose of a Greenwich teenager following a civil suit they say has raised questions about whether drug or other charges are warranted.

Police reopened their probe after information from a civil case showing prescription and illegal drugs in John Bria III's blood as well as civil court affidavits an attorney for Bria's family said show inconsistent statements.

The evidence is from a separate suit against friends who were at a party at the young man's Pemberwick home the night he died, police Chief David Ridberg said. Bria, 19, was found dead by his father in his basement bedroom around 3 p.m. on Jan. 16, 2004.

Three years ago, then-Chief James Walters said the case had been closed without making any arrests, with investigators finding there was no criminal fault by the youths.

In March 2004, the Office of the Chief State Medical Examiner determined that Bria died of accidental heroin and cocaine toxicity.

After the case was closed, Bria's parents challenged police to reopen it, arguing the fatal overdose was due to a lethal stew of prescription and other drugs provided by his teenage friends.

"I had been thinking about (the case) for a while and the family had garnered more information during the civil case that led to us taking another look at the old case," Ridberg said. "We decided it warranted more investigation."

"We are looking into whether there is any criminal culpability in his death," Ridberg said.

The youths who attended Bria's party that night are included in the probe, Ridberg said.

Ridberg said police also are continuing a criminal investigation into the death of Kyle Lendenmann, a 17-year-old Greenwich High School student, found dead at his home on Feb. 23 of last year of what authorities said was a methadone overdose.

"We're in discussions with prosecutors on how to go about bringing both cases to a successful conclusion," Ridberg said.

Stamford police two weeks ago quickly charged a man with first-degree manslaughter for allegedly providing drugs and failing to call 911 when Dr. Ian Rubins, a Greenwich plastic surgeon, became ill from an overdose. Rubins later died.

Leonard Bajramaj, 32, of Stamford, has pleaded not guilty in that case.

Stephan Seeger, a lawyer for Bria's family, said he provided Ridberg with the toxicological results as well as civil court affidavits in which witnesses made statements that are inconsistent with those initially given to police.

The new evidence is drawn from a lawsuit filed by Bria's parents in state Superior Court in Stamford in 2005. Named in the civil suit are Katie Hanscom, Savannah Lamotte, Megan Caron and Jason Cunningham, four youths who spent time with Bria the night of his death, and Cunningham's mother, Donna Cunningham, who picked up her son the morning after the party.

The suit alleges the four youths gave Bria illegal and/or prescription drugs at the party. It also alleges that the defendants, except for Lamotte, worked to cover up rather than notify Bria's parents, police, paramedics or anyone who could render Bria medical assistance.

Last year Bria's family won a legal victory when a Stamford judge ruled against a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, finding that those who provide fatal doses of illegal drugs can be civilly responsible for injuries and deaths.

Eugene Riccio, an attorney for Caron, said his client was not responsible for Bria's death and had not been contacted by police for additional information."I firmly believe as to the claims against Ms. Caron that this lawsuit is without any basis," Riccio said. "I understand that John Bria's death was a terrible tragedy but Ms. Caron does not bear any responsibility whatsoever for it."

Katherine Nietzel, the Stamford-based attorney for Jason and Donna Cunningham, said there was no evidence that Jason Cunningham provided Bria with drugs. She said Donna Cunningham picked up her son at Bria's home the morning after the party and had no knowledge of the overdose.

Nietzel has filed a motion asking the judge to dismiss the Cunninghams from the case arguing that there is no evidence to support the claim that her clients' actions contributed to Bria's death.

"I'm hard pressed to see how any of the activity that night renders any of the parties present there culpable," Nietzel said. John Meerbergen, who represents Hanscom, said his client also would seek to have the suit against her dismissed.

"Katie Hanscom has no culpability whatsoever," Meerbergen said. "There is absolutely no evidence she gave anyone anything."

Lamotte's attorney, Jack Slane, of Heagney, Lennon &Slane in Greenwich, said his client was at Bria's home for 10 minutes the night of the party before leaving.

"That was the extent of her involvement at the party," Slane said. "Furthermore I will say her testimony in the civil deposition was identical to two statements she gave to police without the benefit of counsel."

John J. Bria Jr., Bria's father, declined to comment on the new police investigation or the particulars of the civil case.

Please Educate Yourself About This Poor Byram Boy That Was Left To Die....

• 01/04/08 - Greenwich Police Officers Sit On The Post Road Looking For Burned Out Tailights In Hopes Of Making A Drug Arrest
• 02/03/08 - The Stamford Police Know How To Properly Investigate A Drug Death
• 02/04/08 - Savannah Lamotte, would tell police about John J. Bria's Death: "Maria and Jason picked me up around 9 p.m. …
• 02/06/08 - Dr. Ian Rubin's Family Has Complained About The Press, But At Least The Family Got Justice.

02/12/08 - Greenwich Newswire For Tuesday

Greenwich News Reports

Rams crash Greenwich's party
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
By David Fierro Holding a four-goal lead over rival New Canaan after the first period, everything seemed to be perfectly in place for the Greenwich High ...

GHS boys basketball tops McMahon for fifth straight win
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
By Jesse Quinlan Having thrived as an underdog recently, the Greenwich High School boys basketball team returned home last night wearing the role of the ...

Greenwich Blog Post

2's and 3's Story Time
Where: Greenwich Library at Children's Constellation Room Drop-in story time for 2 and 3 year olds with a caregiver. Program includes stories, songs, movement and finger plays. No registration required but space is limited. ...
Greenwich Library | Today's Events - http://www.greenwichlibrary.org

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02/11/08 - Bill Clark Remember's A Wonerful Greenwich Woman

Elizabeth Watson 1944-2008

by Bill Clark

This afternoon the sanctuary at the First Presbyterian Church was just as full as it had been for the regular morning service. We were there to honor our beloved friend Elizabeth Watson, who was killed in a tragic accident a week ago Thursday.

Elizabeth stood only about four feet tall, but her physical stature was no measure of the huge impact she had on those who knew her. For some forty years she sang in the church choir, and rarely if ever missed a Sunday. Her enthusiasm for everything was infectious. She was child-like in her simplicity. Her emotions were nothing if not genuine. She loved life.

Elizabeth, you see, was slightly impaired. Not retarded - that's too strong a word, although those who didn't get to know her might have labeled her as such. She hobbled rather than walked; she was hard of hearing; she came right out with whatever she was thinking; and on a scale of prepossessiveness running from 1 to 10 would probably have come in at about 0.5. But none of that really mattered.

Outwardly unemployable, Elizabeth found work at three of our Town's best-known commercial institutions: D. W. Rogers department store, which went out of business after Elizabeth had worked there ten years; F. W. Woolworth's, which was sold to an upscale chain store after Elizabeth had worked there for ten years; and Mead's Stationery Store, which went out of business after Elizabeth had worked there for ten years. She outlasted them all.

Her final job was at the Pet Pantry, where she loved working with the animals and gave them all pet names - "my babies", as she called them. She was on her way to work at 6:30 AM that Thursday morning, on foot as always, and heading for her morning cup of coffee at Starbucks. In an alleyway less than fifty feet from the coffee shop, a large dump truck was backing out. Elizabeth, slight of stature and hearing-impaired, was as unaware of its presence as the driver of the truck was of hers. She was crushed to death.

Everyone in church this afternoon was crying. When we were with Elizabeth, we saw life through her eyes: simple, bright, and beautiful. Everything was wonderful - wonder-full - to her, and through her we all learned how beautiful life really is. She was a walking sermon; she was a real sweetheart in the truest sense of the word.

There will be an empty chair - hers - in the choir loft for the remainder of Lent. On Easter, it will be filled by someone else. But we will carry Elizabeth in our hearts as long as we live, mindful of her pluck and joy; and if sometimes life tries its best to get us down, we will remember her bright soprano voice saying, as she so often did, "Isn't it wonderful?"

Greenwich Gossip - http://greenwich-gossip.blogspot.com/

• Musical Magic at Christ Church
• Super Tuesday Comes to Greenwich / Update
• Manuscript Mavens Come to Greenwich Avenue! / Upda...
• Ave atque Vale, Cos Cob Food Mart
• Greenwich in Tampa
• I Had to Open My Big Mouth...//Update
• January Thaw
• New Year, New Post
• You Can't Please All the People All the Time (Howe...
• Holiday Choral Concert

02/11/08 - Greenwich Newswire For Monday

Greenwich News Reports

Greenwich Red Cross reaches out to tornado survivors
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
The Greenwich Chapter of the American Red Cross provides relief to victims of emergencies and disasters and helps people prevent, prepare for, ...

Greenwich Academy squash wins third national championship in four ...
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
By David Fierro

NEW HAVEN -- The Greenwich Academy squash team's tasty tradition of eating ice cream out of the silver, cup-shaped championship trophy was ...

Pedestrian killed on I-95 in Greenwich
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
A pedestrian was struck and killed on on the northbound side of Interstate 95 near Exit 5 in Greenwich early Sunday morning, according to state police. ...

Healing sought at Greenwich church after former priest is defrocked
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
By Martin B. Cassidy GREENWICH - Monsignor Peter Cullen asked for understanding from parishioners at St. Michael Church yesterday, saying it was regrettable ...

Greenwich Library has appointed Sharlene Cameron as the new ...
Greenwich Post - Greenwich,CT
Prior to joining Greenwich Library, Ms. Cameron was with Greenwich Country Day School, for seven years where she served as the director of programs for ...

Greenwich Blog Posts

Penn Charter, Greenwich Academy Capture High School Crowns
By billb
Penn Charter and Greenwich Academy took home the Division 1 titles at the 2008 US High School Team Championships this past weekend at Yale University. Penn Charter (Philadelphia) defended last years boy’s title by stopping Brunswick ...
US Squash News - http://w3.us-squash.org/news

Blood Pressure Screenings
Where: Greenwich Library at Health Information Center Free blood pressure screenings conducated by a registered nurse from Greenwich Hospital. This event takes place every Monday afternoon from 1-4pm in the Health Information Center. ...
Greenwich Library | Today's Events - http://www.greenwichlibrary.org

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02/10/08 - Greenwich News Reports For Sunday

Greenwich News Reports

Greenwich swimming ends dual meet season on a high note
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
By Mike Pignataro Hitting its stride at this point in the season is usually nothing new for the Greenwich High School boys swimming team. ...

Greenwich kids master the sport of bouldering
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
It's only natural, then, that Jordan, now a 10-year-old Greenwich resident, qualified for this weekend's National Bouldering Competition in Boulder, Colo. ...

Children get lessons on etiquette at Delamar on Greenwich Harbor
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
By Andrew Shaw They may still be burping, loudmouth, wild kids at heart, but thanks to an afternoon of etiquette lessons at Delamar on Greenwich Harbor, ...

Spotlight in priest scandal shifts to choir director
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
By Hoa Nguyen GREENWICH - Before his picture appeared in the New York Post, Michael Fawcett called his employer to say the tabloid was set to publish a ...

FCIAC Wrestling results
Stamford Advocate - Stamford,CT
Dan Maxwell (Greenwich), 10-0. 125 - Alex Blank (Ridgefield) dec. George Madkour (Danbury), 6-4; Semifinals: Blank major dec. Jason Camacho (Stamford), 13-1 ...

Greenwich Blog Posts

Vance Gilbert, singer/songwriter, in concert
When: Sunday February 10th, 2008 - 03:30 PM Where: Greenwich Library at Cole Auditorium Peterson Concert.
Greenwich Library | Today's Events - http://www.greenwichlibrary.org Publish Post

Sunday Real Estate Round-Up
By Deidre Woollard
--The estate of Leona Helmsley has put her Greenwich, Connecticut home on the market for $125 million, shown above. There is a great slideshow at the Greenwich Time that shows the home. --Ricky Martin already has a home listed in Golden ...
Luxist - http://www.luxist.com

Quick Report - Tengda - Greenwich
If it was the only restaurant of it's type in the area, we'd definitely be going back, experimenting more and figuring out which dishes we liked and which we should just skip. But we probably won't bother. Asiana in Greenwich and ...
Chowhound's Latest » Tristate Region - http://www.chowhound.com/boards/20

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02/09/08 - Greenwich Newswire For Saturday

Featured Greenwich New Report

GHS girls basketball team snaps 10-game losing streak
Greenwich Time - Greenwich,CT
For the Greenwich girls basketball team, the 2007-2008 season has been nothing but hard work and tiring practices leading up to every game they play. ...

Featured Greenwich Blog Post About Greenwich

VITA Volunteers
When: Sa turday February 9th, 2008 - 09:00 AM Where: Greenwich Library at Meeting Room Free Tax Assistance.
- http://www.greenwichlibrary.org

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02/09/08 - I declare after all there is no enjoyment like reading Bill Clark's posts! How much sooner one tires of anything than his blog!

Musical Magic at Christ Church

by Bill Clark

Last night saw the continuation of the "second Friday" organ concert series at Christ Church, and it was a doozy. Not one, not two, but THREE organists participated, all somehow squeezing onto the same organ bench for the grand finale. Of which more anon.

It was pleasing to your scribe to see perhaps the largest turnout yet to date for one of these concerts. He wishes that the right hand and left hand of the Christ Church bureaucracy would function as smoothly together as the six hands and six feet of the organists did; the front-office publicity for this series has ranged from spotty to inaccurate to non-existent (which is why your scribe missed the last concert). C'mon, folks, how hard is it to put a sentence or two in the weekly newsletter and the incessant e-mails? And let's get the time right: the programs begin at 7:30, but are preceded by a short introduction at 7:15. So why not just tell everybody to be there by 7:15, not 7:00 or 7:30? It doesn't take an S.T.D. (doctorate in Sacred Theology) to figure that one out.

And thus it was that at 7:15 Organ Scholar Isabelle Demers stepped before us to deliver the preview of coming attractions. She gave us a run-down of each piece in her charming French-Canadian accent, full of anecdotal and incidental information much of which was new to your scribe. Look for portions of her commentary interspersed below.

The first piece, by the prolific English composer John Rutter, was based on the medieval Easter hymn, O Filii et Filiae ("O Sons and Daughers of the King"). Associate Director of Music James Kennerley, the Wunderkind from across the pond, and Organ Scholar Enrico Contenti, a student at the Institute of Sacred Music at Yale, played the theme and eight variations. James obviously enjoyed belting out the triumphant notes of the stately hymn on the trompette en chamade, located on the gallery organ at the rear of the church and the organ's loudest and most brilliant stop. Meanwhile Enrico's brilliant and flashy fingerwork on the chancel organ provided a sparkling counterpoint in full stereophonic sound. The two of them shared the pedalboard, as their four hands and feet showed off the various tonal colors of the organs' palette. It was a virtuoso piece, exquistely performed by two virtuoso organists.

According to Isabelle, Rutter even worked in some musical jokes, such a theme from Gershwin's Porgy and Bess; John remains, in your scribe's opinion, the finest composer of choral and organ music alive on the planet today. For more about the connection between him and Greenwich, click on the following link:

http://greenwich-gossip.blogspot.com/2007/12/holiday-choral-concert.html

Next followed Cesar Franck's Piece Heroique, ably performed by Enrico. Once again, Isabelle helped to put this bravura composition into context for us: it was written by Franck at the end of the Franco-Prussian war of 1870-71, in which France came out on the short end of the stick (end of the Second Empire under Napoleon III; start of the Third Republic). The sombre military bombast of the beginning eventually gives way to a softer, more lyric theme which ultimately prevails, along with dying drumbeats in the pedal as the clouds of war give way to an apotheosis of the French soldiers who died on their country's behalf. For all the times your scribe had heard this piece before, this time he heard it with new ears. Enrico's rendition was awesome.

Gustav Merkel's Sonata in D Minor for Four Hands and Feet was, for this listener at least, the high point of the program. As Isabelle told us, this work was composed for a competition, in which it took first place. Rarely heard - after all, as Isabelle said, how many churches have two organs and two organists? - it is nonetheless a classic of the Romantic movement. Redolent of Mendelssohn and Rheinberger, it is a work of brilliant sonorities and mile-a-minute fingering and footwork. The opening Allegro Moderato makes use of the dominant seventh as though it were going out of style, filling the air with the musical equivalent of ear candy. The gorgeously lyric Adagio milks the sentimental possbilities of the organ for all they're worth (which in this case is quite a lot). The final Allegro con Fuoco and fugue offer more breath-taking bravura playing, with - surprise! - more dominant sevenths at the end. One can hardly call Merkel a giant of the world of organ literature, but if you ever have the chance to hear this piece, dear reader, you will no doubt enjoy it as much as your scribe did.

A word about the performers: James and Isabelle did the musical equivalent of the Vulcan mind-meld on Star Trek, and played as if their two bodies were governed by a single mind. Their faultless technique, their total synchronicity as fingers and feet and notes were flying in all directions, were truly wondrous to behold. Another reason why this was the high point of the evening for your scribe.

Another musical curiosity, though much more pedantic than the Merkel, was Samuel Wesley's Introduction to the Grand Fugue in E Flat by Johann Sebastian Bach. The title is almost longer than the piece itself, and of course the question that raises itself is Why? Why write an introduction when Bach himself had already written one, which he called a Prelude? Perhaps the answer is that Wesley was trying to do a Reader's Digest version so he could get straight to the fugue and not tax the patience of his Regency-era audience; or perhaps he found his own notes easier to perform than Bach's. In any case, his piece is no sooner heard than forgotten, although at least your scribe can now say he has heard it.

Wesley was an odd duck. His father, Charles Wesley, was one of the great hymn-writers of the Christian church ("Christ the Lord is Ris'n Today," "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"), and with his brother John founded the Methodist church. Samuel, on the other hand, seemed not to hold much stock in religious niceties; he cohabited with his wife without benefit of clergy for a lengthy period, and after siring three children with her moved on to the below-stairs maid, with whom he had another seven illegitimate children, the best-known of whom is Samuel Sebastian Wesley ("Lead Me, Lord," "Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace"). It would seem he made up in his colorful personal life for the rather pallid quality of his music.

OK, with the Introduction out of the way, the glorious Fugue itself naturally followed. Again, James and Isabelle did the honors, although they eschewed the four-hands four-feet version by Wesley's friend, Ivor Novello. Instead, they just shared Bach's solo version, handing off the three fugal subjects to each other one by one. Why three subjects? Well, the Saint Anne Fugue, as it is also known, is based on William Croft's well-known hymn tune, "O God, Our Help in Ages Past"; this theme represents God the Father. A more sinuous theme represents God the Son, weaving between heaven and earth, as it were. The final ebullient theme, dancing like tongues of fire, represents God the Holy Spirit. Bach weaves them together one by one, until at the end all three are playing in joyous counterpoint together, a musical dramatization of the Trinity. Isabelle reminded us of the reason Bach chose the key: it has three flats.

James then did a bravura performance of Marcel Dupre's Prelude and Fugue in C Major. Never one to use a single note where a dozen or more would do, Dupre quite probably did just what Isabelle suggested to us: compose a piece of such "fearsome techical difficulty", as James put it, so that he would be the only one capable of performing his own work. Well, if that was his intent, he reckoned without the awesome skill of James Kennerley, who played the whole thing masterfully without even breaking a sweat. Your scribe thinks that old Marcel is probably turning over in his grave with envy.

A two-organ concert would hardly be complete without the work of Antonio Soler, who was the pioneer in this rather abstruse field. James went up to the balcony console, while Enrico played at the main one, and we were treated to a pleasing antiphonal rendition of the Concerto I para dos organos.

And then it was time for all three organists to play at once. Isabelle was the monkey in the middle, with James on her left and Enrico on her right. They played the Allegro con Brio, the final movement of Beethoven's 7th Symphony. Once again Isabelle's opening words were very insightful: she told us how at the first performance the audience reacted negatively, likening the music to "drunken carousing". So once again your scribe heard a familiar piece with new ears, and realized that they and Isabelle indeed had a point. Closer to our town time, as James' program notes informed us, Sir Thomas Beecham said, "What can you do with it? It's like a lot of yaks jumping about."

Well, there was indeed a lot of jumping about, but the three organists of Christ Church were infinitely more graceful than yaks as they energetically performed this most energetic of works. It's a pity that Beethoven himself could not have been there, with his hearing intact, of course; he would undoubtedly have cried tears of joy at hearing his music so gorgeously performed.

Afterwards, we all traipsed into the Family Room for the traditional wine and cheese afters. Your scribe would like to note that there were actually five performers last evening: the three organists, and Neil and Joanne Bouknight. Neil ran the audio-visual setup that enabled us all to watch the action at the console on a large screen, while Joanne did the camera work to bring us the picture. And as if that weren't enough, they also set up, hosted, and cleaned up after the reception as well. In the pantheon of candidates for sainthood who daily inhabit Christ Church, Neil and Joanne are high up on the list.

Once again, we here in Greenwich were treated to a world-class musical performance, right here in our own Town. Some people move here for the beaches, some for the schools, some for the beautiful neighborhoods, some for the nature preserves; but whatever the reasons people give for living here, dear reader, your scribe hopes you will always be quick to add another: "I live here because of the fabulous music in this Town." Your scribe certainly does.

Greenwich Gossip - http://greenwich-gossip.blogspot.com/

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