The Mount Launches Spring Programming
Hildegard Hoeller Lecture on Wharton April 21
By: Mount - Apr 05, 2012
The Mount will kick-start its 2012 season with two programs planned for late April. On Saturday, April 21 at 3:00 PM, Berkshire resident, Wharton scholar and Professor of English, Hildegard Hoeller will give a informative talk on Edith Wharton and her changing views of New York, entitled Edith Wharton: Old and New New York. On Sunday, April 22, The Mount will present Music in the Drawing Room with an afternoon performance by Elizabeth Morse, principle harpist of the Berkshire Symphony.
Edith Wharton: Old and New New Y ork, Saturday April 21 at 3:00 pm, Free
Berkshire resident, Wharton scholar and Professor of English, Hildegard Hoeller will give an edifying talk on Edith Wharton and her changing views of New York. Looking at Wharton’s writings from her earliest short stories to her 1924 autobiography, this lecture will explore how Wharton revises her view of Old New York in light of emerging new New York and her life in France.
This event will be held in The Mount's Drawing Room and will start at 3:00 pm.
Seating is limited. For additional information and to reserve your space, call 413-551-5100.
Hildegard Hoeller is Professor of English at CUNY-CSI with an appointment in English and Women's Studies at the CUNY Graduate Center. She is the author of Edith Wharton's Dialogue with Realism and Sentimental Fiction and the past president of The Edith Wharton Society. Her academic and teaching interests are 19th and 20th Century American literature, with an emphasis on women writers and African-American writers. Her other publications include Keywords for Academic Writers , co-authored with Rebecca Brittenham, The Norton Critical Edition of Horatio Alger's Ragged Dick, and scholarly articles in journals such as PMLA, American Literature, American Literary Realism, Studies in American Fiction, American Transcendental Quarterly, ESQ, African-American Review, Edith Wharton Review, Dreiser Studies, and others. Her new book, From Gift to Commodity: Capitalism and Sacrifice in 19th Century American Fiction is forthcoming with University Press of New England (2012).
Music in the Drawing Room: An Afternoon Performance with Elizabeth Morse, Sunday April 22 at 3:00 pm, $20
Please join us for a Sunday afternoon musical performance by Elizabeth Morse, principal harpist of the Berkshire Symphony and Artist Associate in Harp at Williams College. The recital will include: George Frideric Handel’s Passacaglia and Concerto in B flat; Carlos Salzedo’s Suite of Eight dances; Lanes of Limerick from Angela’s Ashes composed by John Williams; and a Medley of Irish Tunes arranged by Dewey Owens.
The event will be held in The Mount's Drawing Room. Refreshments will be served after the performance. Tickets are $20; reservations are strongly encouraged. To make reservations or for more information, contact Kelsey Mullen at (413)551-5110.
Elizabeth Morse, principal harpist with the Berkshire Symphony Orchestra and formerly with the Rhode Island Philharmonic, is Artist Associate of harp at Williams College. She gave her Boston debut at Jordon Hall with Gunther Schuller conducting the Mozart Flute and Harp Concerto. The New York Musicians’ Club presented her in her New York debut at Lincoln Center Library. Representing the American Harp Society, Ms. Morse premiered the Concertino for Harp by Ernst von Dohnanyi at the Music Educators’ National Conference, followed by repeat performances with the Colonial Symphony, Oscar Shumsky conducting, and at the Boris Goldovsky Summer Music Festival. Other solo appearances have been with the Boston Symphony Orchestrated Events, New England Philharmonic, MIT Chamber Players and the International Music Festival of Las Vegas. Chamber music collaborations have included Williams Chamber Players, Boston Chamber Music Society, Boston Conservatory Chamber Players, Musicorda Festival, Stockbridge Chamber Concerts, Greylock Trio, Extensionworks, and John Williams and Friends at Tanglewood’s Ozawa Hall. Ms. Morse has also performed frequently on National Public Radio. This fall brings the release of her new CD, “Invitation to the Dance,” recorded at Symphony Hall with members of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
About The Mount:
The Mount is both a historic site and a cultural destination inspired by the passions and achievements of Edith Wharton. Designed and built by Edith Wharton in 1902, the house embodies the principles outlined in her influential book, The Decoration of Houses (1897). The property includes three acres of formal gardens designed by Wharton, who was also an authority on European landscape design, surrounded by extensive woodlands.
The 10 years Wharton called The Mount her home changed her forever; both as an artist and as a person. For Wharton, it was a period of self-discovery, growth, creativity, and validation, as well as agitation, in the most intimate areas of her life. While at The Mount, Wharton wrote both Ethan Frome and The House of Mirth.
Programming at The Mount reflects Wharton's core interests in the literary arts, interior design and decoration, garden and landscape design, and the art of living. Annual exhibits explore themes from Wharton's life and work.
The Mount will honor Wharton’s contributions and achievements by launching our 2012 season, Edith Wharton, 21st Century Muse, and will host performances, special events, readings, and lectures that highlight Wharton’s longevity and continued relevancy.
For additional information about both Edith Wharton and the Mount please visit EdithWharton.org