Camphill Village Kimberton Hills presents Astral Artists concert - January 30

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills presents a free concert on Monday, January 30, 2012 at 7:30 p.m.

Operatic performers Jonathan Beyer, baritone and Kristin Okerlund, piano, from Astral Artists, an organization that guides and promotes the nation’s most extraordinary emerging classical musicians, will offer an evening of music in Kimberton Hills’ Rose Hall. 

Astral Artists is a non-profit organization whose mission is to discover the most promising classical musicians residing in the United States, assist their early professional career development and present their world-class artistry to the community through concerts and outreach programs.  Camphill Kimberton is pleased to once again host these gifted musicians.  

Reviews of Jonathan Beyer include:

“The audience found its treat in a young, fresh-faced baritone named Jonathan Beyer. The 27-year-old appeared natural, plowing through an ambitious program. Beyer’s voice is big and virile. He produced tones evenly throughout the registers, showing no strain when pushing high and loud.”  -- The Washington Post

“Baritone Jonathan Beyer (Papageno) was the substantial voice that carried the piece. He brought proportion and context to difficult writing and maturity to his stagecraft. His Papageno was a model of articulation, but also of nuanced singing. An able comedian, he was musically arresting and brightly funny, his timing in both boosting the opera’s impact.” – Broad Street Review, Philadelphia

There is no charge for the concert, which is underwritten by the generosity of the Phoenixville Community Health Foundation.

CVKH Blog: Hootenanny on Saturday, July 16

The Hootenanny, a festival of local music and food, will be held July 16 from 3-10 p.m. at Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, 1601 Pughtown Road, Kimberton, Pa.

Join us for the following performers on the hay wagon stage:

3 p.m. - Dirk Quinn

4 p.m. - Aimee Wilson and the Factorye
5 p.m. - The Turnips
6 p.m. - Contra dance with Joe Pescatore
6:45 p.m. - Elisha Kane (on the acoustic stage)
7:20 p.m. - Tara and Friends
8 p.m. - Cowmuddy
9 p.m. - Mostly Maybe

The entertainment will also include village acoustic acts between sets.

The Hootenanny has been organized to celebrate the joy of local culture. In addition to the music, the Camphill Café will be serving food made with local, organic ingredients. Patrons who bring their own reusable plates and utensils will receive a reduced meal price.

There will also be local craft vendors, games, raffles and more. Children will have the chance to spot cows, chickens, sheep and more on the working dairy and vegetable farm.

The admission fee is $10, $8 in advance. Advance tickets can be purchased by contacting Bernadette@camphillkimberton.org or 610-935-8660 by Thursday, July 14. Attendees should bring their own blankets or lawn chairs.

CVKH Blog: Hootenanny set for July 16

Join us as we celebrate summer with our annual local food and music festival - the Hootenanny will be Saturday, July 16, starting at 3 p.m. and going until sundown.   

Performers include: Dirk Quinn, Aimee Wilson and the Factorye, Tara and Friends, Mostly Maybe, Cowmuddy, and a contra dance called by Joe Pescatore.

Come and enjoy music, organic food, artisan vendors, games and a hayride. Bring your own blanket or chair and stay a while.

$8 for advance tickets, $10 at the gate. Receive reduced meal price if you bring your own reusable plates and utensils.

To purchase tickets, email bernadette@camphillkimberton.org.

CVKH Blog: Events in May, June and July

Camphill Village Kimberton Hills will be host to a number of events this spring and summer.  Mark your calendars to join us for the following:

The Dylan Babitch Trio, May 27 at 8 p.m. in Rose Hall, featuring Dylan Babitch on piano; Jason Fraticelli on upright bass; and Mike Mahoney on drums.  $10 admission. 



Family and Friends Day, June 4 at 10 a.m., our annual gathering of our friends and family.

Im-pulse Eurythmy Performance, June 19 at 4 p.m. in Rose Hall, featuring a unique configuration of nine Waldorf graduates - five from Brazil and four from the United States, presenting their graduation performance.



Talk on the Egyptian Book of the Dead, July 3 in Rose Hall, presented by Denis Ruff.



Hootenanny, July 16, from 3 p.m. until dark on the Kepler Green, featuring local music and food, along with games and vendors.  Tickets are $8 in advance, $10 that day.  Contact 610-935-8660 for advance tickets. 

CVKH Blog: Family and Friends Day - June 4

Family and friends, mark your calendars to join us for our annual Family and Friends Day celebration on Saturday, June 4.  Join us for interesting programs, delightful conversation and a delicious lunch!

CVKH Blog: MGM Photography and Virago Baking Company team up to support Camphill Kimberton

Two area businesses have partnered to host a benefit for Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, a Chester County community that includes adults with developmental disabilities. On Saturday, April 16, Virago Baking Company in Lansdale will host a fundraiser featuring portraits by MGM Photography.

Come out to Virago Baking Company between noon and 4 p.m. to have your child’s photo taken. For a donation to Camphill Kimberton, you will receive your child’s portrait and a $50.00 gift card to MGM Photography. While you are waiting, be sure to order a delicious treat from the bakery.

“I am glad to give back to great people,” says Melissa Pappentick, artist at MGM Photography, who has sponsored charity fundraisers in the past. MGM Photography specializes in family and child photography and has been in business since 2007.

Virago Baking Company, an all natural bakery cafe, specializing in gluten-free, vegan and European style cakes and pastries is located at 322 1/2 W. Main St., Lansdale, PA 19446.

For more information on MGM Photography, visit http://www.mgmphotography.net/.


For more information about Virago Baking Company, visit http://www.viragobakingcompany.com/.

CVKH BLOG: A beautiful day for the Camphill Challenge

Thanks to all who participated in Sunday's Camphill Challenge - a bike ride event in support of the three Camphill Communities in Pennsylvania.  It started out a bit chilly at 8 a.m., but as the day continued it was sunny and beautiful for the remainder of the ride and the picnic that followed. 

More than 260 riders came out to support Camphill Kimberton, Camphill Special School, and Camphill Soltane.  We heard it was a tough ride - but exhilarating! 

Special thanks to Camphill Kimberton's sponsors: Phoenixville Federal Bank and Trust, BentleyRowland, Virtual Farm Creative, Kimberton Whole Foods, Carnevale Eustis Architects, and Denise Yarrison. 

Thanks so much! See you next year!

CVKH Blog: Camphill Challenge set for Sunday

The Camphill communities in Chester County will host the fourth annual Camphill Challenge cycling event on Sunday, October 17. Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, Camphill Special School, and Camphill Soltane are pleased to be working together on this collaborative fundraising event.


The bike ride, which begins and ends at Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, offers 50, 33, and 10-mile courses for all ages and ability levels. Cyclists will ride through Chester County during peak autumn foliage with beautiful views of horse farms, historic homes, and covered bridges. A picnic and music will round out the day.
By participating in the ride, you will be making a difference to three unique communities, each of which create environments where people with intellectual and developmental disabilities live with dignity and pride.

It's not too late to sign up.  For more information about the Camphill Challenge, to register for the ride, or become a sponsor, contact Bernadette Kovaleski at 610.935.0300, ext. 12 or bernadette@camphillkimberton.org, or visit camphillchallenge.org.

CVKH Blog: The Jasper String Quartet at Rose Hall, September 23

Astral Artistic Services, an organization that guides and promotes the nation’s most extraordinary emerging classical musicians, will offer an evening of music in Kimberton Hills’ Rose Hall featuring The Jasper String Quartet on September 23 at 7:30 p.m.

The Camphill Cafe will be open at 6 p.m. for light supper and refreshments. 


Hailed as “sonically delightful and expressively compelling” and “polished, engaged and in tune with one another,” the Jasper String Quartet’s unity comes from its belief in the timeless and lifelong pursuit of music’s depth and meaning. The concert will feature the music of Haydn and Beethoven.

Astral Artists is a non-profit organization whose mission is to discover the most promising classical musicians residing in the United States, assist their early professional career development and present their world-class artistry to the community through concerts and outreach programs. Camphill Kimberton is pleased to once again host these gifted musicians.

There is no charge for the concert, but donations are accepted.

To learn more about the Jasper String Quartet, visit http://astralartists.org/our-artists/current-roster/the-jasper-string-quartet/.

CVKH BLOG: Camphill Challenge set for October 17

The Camphill communities in Chester County will host the fourth annual Camphill Challenge cycling event on Sunday, October 17. Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, Camphill Special School, and Camphill Soltane are pleased to be working together on this collaborative fundraising event.

The bike ride, which begins and ends at Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, offers 50, 33, and 10-mile courses for all ages and ability levels. Cyclists will ride through Chester County during peak autumn foliage with beautiful views of horse farms, historic homes, and covered bridges. A picnic and music will round out the day.

By participating in the ride, you will be making a difference to three unique communities, each of which create environments where people with intellectual and developmental disabilities live with dignity and pride.

For more information about the Camphill Challenge, to register for the ride, or become a sponsor, contact Bernadette Kovaleski at 610.935.0300, ext. 12 or bernadette@camphillkimberton.org, or visit camphillchallenge.org.

CVKH BLOG: Great time at The Hootenanny

A warm, sunny summer afternoon was the backdrop for the annual Hootenanny - a festival of local food and music. Thank you to all who joined us for the fun! 

CVKH BLOG: A Beautiful Family and Friends Day

It was a beautiful day for our annual Family and Friends Day, held on Saturday, June 5.  This is one of the most highly anticipated events of the year at Kimberton Hills and all who attended had a wonderful time.  Visitors had the chance to learn about new endeavors for the various workshops, particpate in informative seminars, and enjoy a potluck lunch under the tent.   

Singing Crow - a tale from the Brandywine: May 7-9

Plan to join us as Kimberton Hills Productions presents a new musical: Singing Crow - A tale from the Brandywine, 1738, May 7-9 in Rose Hall. 

This year’s production is special, as it is an original musical written by Veronika Roemer who has directed previous Kimberton Hills productions including Heidi - The Musical and The Sound of Music.
 
The story takes the audience back to the early pioneer time in the Brandywine Valley. Two new settler families have arrived from England, looking for a new and better life. They have been told that all the native people, the Lenape, have left the valley.  But one day 12-year-old Maggie meets a Lenape boy, named Singing Crow, while she is out in the forest picking berries.


Instead of writing new music, Ms. Roemer chose to find original music from that time period.  As the story unfolds, we hear songs from the early 1700s, songs that settlers from the British isles would have brought with them as part of their cultural heritage, as well as Native American music.

Performances dates are:
Friday, May 7: 8 p.m.
Saturday, May 8: 3 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.
Sunday, May 9: 2 p.m.

Suggested donations:
Children: $5.00
Adults: $12.00
Families: $30.00

All performances are located at Rose Hall, Camphill Village Kimberton Hills, 1601 Pughtown Road, Kimberton, PA 19442. 

Thank you to Casa de Venezuela and The Hill School for an amazing benefit concert!

Many, many thanks to those who attended and participated in our Spring Benefit Concert on March 21. 

Beautiful music, dancing and artwork filled Rose Hall as we raised money for both Camphill Kimberton and Veninos - Venezuelan Children In Need.   The concert featured Venezuelan folk music performed by the popular Casa De Venezuela Music Ensemble, accompanied by their vivacious dance group.  The talented a cappella groups the Hilltones and the Hilltrebles from The Hill School, Pottstown, also presented a selection of folk music from around the world.

The collaboration of these four groups was magnificent!

"Musical heritage is something that exists in every civilization on the planet," said Stephen Longenecker, Oaklawn-Tuttle Chair of Vocal Music at The Hill School. "Therefore, it can act as a unifying force between cultures, encouraging us to focus on shared aesthetics and emotions rather than physical or political differences.  We hope that you will be reminded that music knows no boundaries of race, gender, class, or ability, and that through music, we can better understand what it is to be a part of a 'common humanity.'" 

During the concert, there was an exhibit of Venezuelan-inspired paintings by local artist, Mary Jo Kimball Hopton. Her paintings are available to view at http://www.veninos.org/, and on Facebook during March 2010. Additionally, Chester County scenes captured in painting by Tim Swartz, in prints by Anne Keen, and in photos by Red Hammer were on display and available for purchase.

We look forward to working together next year on a follow-up concert.  Stay tuned for details! 

Special thanks to the following people for their efforts:  Jane Blake, Rebecca Blake, Emilio Buitrago, Mimi Coleman, Erin Graver, Stephen Longnecker, Cathy Skitko, Rachel Martin Swartz.  Thank you to the following stores for their donations for the artists' reception: Acme, Giant, Kimberton Whole Foods, Wegmans, and Los Mariachis.

Benefit Concert featuring Casa de Venezuela and Hill School A Cappella Groups

Join us Sunday, March 21 when Veninos, a charity dedicated to improving the lives of street and shanty town children in urban Venezuela, and Camphill Village Kimberton Hills join hands and present a benefit concert in Rose Hall at 2 p.m.

Performing will be Casa de Venezuela Music Ensemble (pictured at left) and Dance Troupe and the a cappella groups, Hilltones and Hilltrebles, from The Hill School, Pottstown (pictured below).

On display that afternoon will be an exhibit of Venezuelan-inspired paintings by local artist, Mary Jo Kimball Hopton. Her paintings will be available to view at www.veninos.org, and on Facebook during March 2010. Additionally, Chester County scenes captured in painting by Tim Swartz, in prints by Anne Keen, and in photos by Red Hamer will be on display and also available for purchase.

A ticketed reception will follow the concert offering a chance to meet the musicians and enjoy Latin American refreshments. Tickets: $10 for students and senior citizens, $15 for general admission and $25 for concert and reception. All proceeds will be split between the two charities, Veninos and Camphill Kimberton.

For advance tickets, call 610-935-0330, ext 12 or e-mail bernadette@camphillkimberton.org.

For more information, visit:

Veninos – Venezuelan Children In Need: http://www.veninos.org/
Casa de Venezuela: http://www.casadevenequela.net/
The Hill School: http://www.thehill.org/

Fall Festival and Hoedown - October 3

We'd like to welcome you out to the farm at Camphill Kimberton! We are setting up the stage, making great food, and starting autumn with a party. Bring your own blanket or chairs and get ready for a good time!

The Fall Festival and Hoedown will feature live music and fun family activities on Saturday, October 3 from 3-9 p.m. here at the village. Highlights of the day include:

Live folk and bluegrass music: 3-9 p.m.

Games: 3-6 p.m.

Donkey cart rides: 3-6 p.m. (donations accepted)

Pumpkin painting: 3-6 p.m. (donations accepted)

Folk dancing: TBA

Local artisans and fair trade crafters: 3-9 p.m.

Juggling demonstration: TBA

Cost is $10 per person. Children 10 and under are admitted free. Rain or shine.

Come and join us as we welcome autumn!

If you are interested in volunteering that day, please contact bernadette@camphillkimberton.org. We can always use some extra help. Thank you!

A Wonderful Family and Friends Day

Thank you to all who visited Kimberton Hills for our annual Family and Friends Day! It was a beautiful afternoon filled with musical selections from the Sound of Music, the dedication of our Memorial Garden, and a delicious lunch on the green. We hope to see you all again soon.