Author Archives: Curt Ebersole

Caramoor follow-up

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Lots of gratitude!

Congratulations — everyone — for such an electric and exciting performance this past Saturday! The blackout, the rain, the flipped order of the fireworks and concert: somehow all of these came together to inspire you to perform at such a high & engaging level! I heard it in the first downbeat of the Star-Spangled Banner, and it continued throughout the entire concert. Let’s all celebrate the contributions to our success from Russ & Donny (American flags donation); Chris Larsen (cherry bomb ornament gifts for our friends at Caramoor); Eric (percussion rental and equipment moves coordination); Gina, Nate, Jake, David, Stan, Dave, Chris, Marianne, Eric, Ava (Mike’s daughter) and Mike (June moving crew); Barton (WSW American Overture); the entire percussion section (White Rose feature); Jessica (Ticheli and more/see below); Stan (Ticheli trumpet solo); MaryKay (vocal soloist); 90+ Westchester County handbell ringers, greeted and organized by David (1812); and Mark, Chris Larsen, Chris Carbone, Rachel, Deb, Janice, Marge, & Marianne (Stars & Stripes solo features)! And I must thank our Board as well for all the time devoted to our cause. If I still missed anyone, please forgive me!

I was truly embarrassed to realize that I did not include Jessica in my extended thanks after the sound check and at the end of the performance. She not only brought her amazing musicianship to conducting An American Elegy on July 4, but I am also so grateful to her for helping to conduct the Fall, Winter, and Spring sectionals, as well as stepping up to take on additional conducting responsibilities for the Dunton and Nelhybel on the winter concert, in addition to the Ticheli last week. Please join me in offering her thanks and congratulations!

The season in review

Since September, we scaled many summits:

  • RevFest Concert in September with 1812 and REAL cannons!
  • Pines of Rome in November
  • Trittico and Bamboo Shoots and City Streets in February
  • Maslanka Symphony No. 4 in May
  • We increased our social media presence and donor relations projects
  • The Board updated our Bylaws
  • More BandCamp albums were produced and uploaded to share our live performances
  • Assessed and considered a total of 24 alternate rehearsal/performance sites, and visited 12 of those sites for further consideration
  • Moved our main rehearsal operations and percussion to UUFNW in Mount Kisco, while rotating rehearsals with New Rochelle and White Plains to vary the drive for members coming from afar
  • Spent scores of hours discussing, negotiating, visiting, and finalizing our contract with Hackley, starting with performances only in Diller and expanding to include equipment storage and rehearsals in the APR. All this led to our new designation as an Ensemble-in-Residence at Hackley School!
  • First rehearsals in Diller and the APR — it appears that these are amazing spaces in which we can do our best work!

You all contributed to these amazing accomplishments, and I am so proud to be associated with you all!

Slack

We now have 52 members on Slack in the WSW Members workspace. It’s the best vehicle for connecting with other members, especially when messages need to be sent quickly! If you haven’t joined, please consider doing so!

Looking ahead

Next year’s dates are posted on the right side of my home page (for you) and on our public-facing site as well (thanks Rebecca & Eric!). I have most of the Fall rep scanned, but I will alert you when it’s all completely ready to go. Our opening rehearsal is Monday, September 14 in the APR. Auditions are Tuesday, September 8 in the APR. (If you know someone interested in auditioning, contact Katherine.)

I’m putting weekly posts on hold for now. I’ll post interesting and non-critical items to Slack, and will write my next formal post here in August, as we move closer to the start of the new season.

Thank you again to everyone for this massively successful season of 2025-2026. I look forward to the future with you!

First rehearsal in the APR on Monday

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Personnel commitments for 2026-2027

We have 35 responses. But that leaves about 30 responses to go. They are due this coming Monday, June 29. If you have not already, please complete this form so Katherine has no need for follow up reminders!

Rehearsal on Monday, June 29

  • This is our first rehearsal in the APR. We will set up facing the outside wall. Please allow the percussionists some extra elbow room as they learn to navigate the equipment moves in the elevator.
  • Check the homepage for directions to the Lower School building and the rehearsal plans for this rehearsal.
  • We will use our Wenger black chairs for APR rehearsals. They are stored in the area outside right of the APR proper, above the building entrance. Please set up your own chair, and please return that chair to these stacks after rehearsal (no higher than 8 chairs in each stack, please).
  • Bring a music stand (WSW or personal, either is fine). We’ll discuss long-term music stand storage during this rehearsal. Some final decisions regarding this storage are still taking shape.

Dress rehearsal on Wednesday. July 1

  • Check the homepage for the rehearsal plan. There is no intermission on Saturday night, so we will not take a break, but I have padded the times for each selection a little bit to give you a little rest between selections. The plan is to run each selection without stopping, if possible.
  • MaryKay Messenger will be on site to review and run her vocal numbers.

Performance on Saturday, July 4

  • 3:45 pm – Arrival/attendance on stage. Park in Lot E. If you need to leave the grounds after the performance before the fireworks begin, you must inform the parking lot attendant on arrival, and park in Lot Z, as close as possible to the exit. Leave cases/change of clothes in the mens’ and women’s dressing rooms backstage.
  • 4:00 pm – Sound check in the Venetian theater
  • 5:45 pm – Handbell ringers rehearsal in the Venetian theater
  • 6:00 pm – Dinner provided for performers/crew only, backstage picnic table area
  • 8:00 pm – Performance. Following the performance, you are welcome to sit, relax, and debrief with band members, family, and friends at the tables/chairs along Pavilion Plaza, the area between the Venetian Theater and Lot E.

Will we sell out again?

Lookin’ real good we will!

Screenshot

Monday in DILLER HALL!

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This week:

  • Gratitude to the moving crew!
  • Personnel commitments – please complete the form!
  • Finding Hackley and Diller Hall for Monday’s rehearsal

Gratitude to the moving crew!

The move is complete! We have officially moved to The Hackley School! Many thanks to the crew who volunteered yesterday, and especially to Eric, who organized everything and led the brigade. A big thank you to everyone who lifted and  lugged and stacked and drove around the county to make this happen! Pictured above (left to right): Gina, Nate, Jake, David, me, Stan, Dave, Chris, Marianne, Eric, Ava (Mike’s daughter), and Mike. 

We are grateful to Björn Olsson & Karina Ringeissen for 21 years of rehearsals and performances at TMH, and to Patricia Compton at UUFNW for their kindnesses and assistance during this transition year.

It’s truly time for “A New Dawn” in 2026-2027!

Personnel commitment form

So far we have only 17 responses to the form for next season. Please fill out this form by next Monday, June 29 so we can plan for our inaugural season at Hackley!

First rehearsal at Hackley

Check out the rehearsal plan for Monday. It includes time at the beginning of rehearsal to walk around to explore the space. 

On Monday we are rehearsing in Diller Hall, our new performance space, at Hackley School. See photos below to help with directions. The June 22 rehearsal is scheduled in Diller Hall, and the next two rehearsals on June 29 and July 1 are scheduled in our new rehearsal space, the All-Purpose Room (APR) in the Lower School at Hackley. Directions and further info for that site will be sent next week.

IMPORTANT:

  • Bring a music stand to rehearsal Monday. It can be the TMH stand or a folding stand — whatever is most convenient. That stand will go home again with you after rehearsal.
  • Use the first 15 minutes of our June 22 rehearsal to look around and explore. Feel free to take photos with friends and your section in different areas of the hall. Eric set up a Google Drive dropbox folder set up to collect photos. Diller Hall is beautiful and we want you to get to know it right away. Go ahead and use the lobby stairs to go up to the 2nd and 3rd rings and check out the view from there. When you’re ready, access the stage from the side hallways or the short stairway directly from the orchestra seating area to the stage. And yes – go ahead and post photos to social media; we checked with Hackley and they approve whole-heartedly!

Finding Hackley

The Hackley School is located about a mile from TMH. Set your GPS for 293 Benedict Avenue, Tarrytown. The entrance is directly across Benedict from The Castle Hotel & Spa.

Take the first left into the parking lot.

Once you’ve parked take the stairs up the hill. The Allen Center for the Performing Arts & Technology is right there at the top of the hill.

If you have a large instrument or equipment, drive up the hill to the fork, and go left. You can pull up into the circle under the overhang, unload and then park.

Or drive past the Center to use the loading dock entrance:

On concert days there is overflow parking in the lot up the hill, above the PAC.

Use the doors at the far right to come into the lobby. 

The entrance to the hall is immediately on the left. Or take the stairs up to see the view from the 2nd and 3rd rings.

Please leave cases/coats backstage, not in the seats of the orchestra section of the hall. There is overflow space available in Black Box Theater on level 2, stage right.

If you’re curious, here are the website for the school and a very cool virtual tour:
Hackley website – https://www.hackleyschool.org/
Hackley virtual tour – https://hackleyschool.sprxvr.com/

See you all on Monday evening!

Final rehearsal Monday at UUFNW

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Personnel commitment form for 2026-2027

Please complete the 2026-2027 Personnel Commitment Form by Monday, June 29. The form includes all dress and performance dates, guest artists, and repertoire highlights. We need to hear from everyone in order to plan personnel for next season!

Rehearsal Monday at UUFNW

This Monday, June 15 will be our final rehearsal at UUFNW in Mount Kisco.  Check out the rehearsal plan here. Make sure you have a lead pencil/Apple pencil for this rehearsal. I

IMPORTANT: Just as we did when we moved from TMH to UUFNW, we need everyone’s help to move the WSW stand(s) you took home in December. After Monday’s rehearsal, take ALL WSW music stands home (don’t leave them behind for the moving crew) so none remain at UUFNW. We will advise when to bring them to Hackley.

Our deepest gratitude goes out to Patricia Compton and the UUFNW community for helping us during this time of transition!

Tim and I will be in Pennsylvania Friday to Sunday this weekend for my mother’s memorial service. If you need to email me, I’ll reply late Sunday or early Monday morning.

Equipment move on Friday, June 19

We have about 9 volunteers committed to the truck move on Friday from UUFNW & TMH to Hackley. Those volunteers should plan to meet at UUFNW at 9:00 am. We expect to be finished about 12:30 pm. Please see details in the #move-equipment-volunteers-june-19 channel in the WSW Members Slack workspace. If you would like to become a volunteer, speak to Eric or Curt on Monday.

Caramoor updates for July 4

Reminders for Caramoor:

  • Saturday, July 4 at Caramoor/Venetian theater
  • Arrive 3:30-3:45 pm
  • Sound check at 4:00 pm
  • Dinner at 6:00 pm. Vegetarian and gluten-free options will be available.
  • Performance at 8:00 pm
  • All performers should park in LOT E, unless you need to leave after the performance/before fireworks begin. Then tell the parking attendant that you’re with the orchestra but need to park next to the exit in Lot Z.