New style music boxes are a favorite gift for Valentine’s Day. I have a number of music boxes in my collection and one of my favorites is a large, rare Regina music box from 1899. It was made after the company moved from Germany to New Jersey. These antique instruments used large metal disks to… Read more »
More Cowbell
I have an extensive collection of a few hundred cowbells, ranging from tiny to gargantuan, which makes the famous Saturday Night Live skit “More Cowbell” ring a bell with me, so to speak. I even incorporated a Dharma Cowbell into the Woodstock Chimes line, so popular it’s out of stock at the moment! It’s funny… Read more »
A new piece by Russell, collaborations, anniversaries and a festival
With the 21C Music Festival about to begin (January 16-20), we are so lucky to be based in Toronto where we can take in its awesome line-up featuring the great Terry Riley and our friends and fellow-percussionists, Sō Percussion.
Come visit Ulster County with your BIKE and HIKING BOOTS!
Woodstock Chimes headquarters is in the heart of New York’s Ulster County, a destination for people seeking natural beauty, cultural enrichment and fun with the family. Whatever the season, there are plenty of good reasons to visit the area, and in 2019 even more are on tap. After years of planning and meetings, a major… Read more »
Happy New Year from Woodstock Chimes founder Garry Kvistad
Happy Holidays from Woodstock Chimes CEO Garry Kvistad
Garry Kvistad with Tuned Sleigh Bells
Tale of a Library
In the 1970s, as I was searching for recordings by George Hamilton Green, I discovered that in virtually every antique shop that had 78 rpm records on its shelves, I could find a few records on which either Green, or his brother Joe, or another xylophonist was playing. By the early 1980s, after rummaging through… Read more »
It’s a Laughing Matter
Diane and I recently attended a performance by the four comedians from the TV show Impractical Jokers. It was my birthday present from Diane but like many good presents, we both got to enjoy the gift. I knew they were really funny and popular but I was amazed at just how popular they are. There… Read more »
Unusual Instruments, Part 6 – Antique Roller Organs
I can’t help myself. I am addicted to music and collect objects of musical beauty. I am especially drawn to mechanical musical instruments and have been fortunate to add many to my collection over the years. In fact, you could say I invented my own by creating the first musically tuned windchimes, which are mechanical… Read more »
Giving Thanks for all YOUR help! Drumming At 50
Here in Canada, we celebrate Thanksgiving on Monday, October 8. What more fitting time to give a BIG THANK YOU to all of you who contributed to our Kickstarter Campaign for Drumming At 50. September was definitely exciting – if a bit nerve-wracking! We were fund-raising for our Video Recording with Sō Percussion and friends… Read more »
Help us Kickstart DRUMMING’s 50th anniversary!
Epic. Exhilarating. Revolutionary. Iconic. Words that describe Steve Reich’s monumental DRUMMING. Russell Hartenberger had a thought. And now that thought has evolved into an exciting project, backed 100% by Steve Reich: We have joined with the wonderful Sō Percussion to create a videography of DRUMMING in celebration of the piece’s 50th Anniversary!
Camping with the Madame
Diane and I have been campers ever since our daughters were very young, for 30 some years. We started camping on our honeymoon in 1977 in central Saskatchewan, using a small pup tent and traveling by canoe on a huge lake for a week without seeing a soul. When the kids were young, we upgraded… Read more »
Mahler and Mountains
In early August I was, for the second time, able to “see the U.S.A in my Chevrolet,” (a phrase that is most meaningful to the first-generation of TV watchers from the 1950s/60s). The first time was in 1999, when Ruth and I drove for three long days in our spanking-new Chevy Venture van filled with… Read more »
September 4-6 at Ithaca College: Come join us for Free Events!
From Sept. 4 through 6, NEXUS will be kicking off Ithaca College’s school year with a series of exciting events. All PRESENTATIONS (INCLUDING THE Sept. 6th CONCERT) ARE FREE and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC as well as to the Ithaca students. We are thrilled that Gordon Stout, (marimbist, composer, and educator – lucky Ithaca College!),… Read more »
Podcasts, Playing, Prepping, Publishing: a Summer Recap
If you’ve followed us on Facebook, you’ll know it’s been a busy and varied summer. Bill has been involved in Eastman’s Summer Horizons with young music students in his wonderful program “Creative Music Making”. We will be presenting that program at Ithaca College in early September, so stay tuned, as it will be open to… Read more »
