Our popular Sunday morning series is back for a fifth season – with a new, updated name! We want to make sure that everyone knows that we feature a diversity of musical styles, all served in a beautiful, one-of-a-kind environment.

Join us for light breakfast and live music from 10:00 a.m. to noon in the Atrium at the Reading Public Museum. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. Here's our lineup:

Sunday, October 31, 2010- The Paragon Palm Court Ensemble

Enjoy "Breakfast at Tiffany's"! As a special complement to our exhibition, Tiffany Lamps: Articles of Utility, Objects of Art, The Paragon Palm Court Ensemble will present elegant musical gems from the Art Nouveau era. The ensemble, consisting of Yuko Naito (violin), Alistair MacRae (cello), Leslie Cullen (flute), and Rick Benjamin (pianoforte), will perform original c1890-1920 salon music scores from the collection of Anthony Gasparro, Philadelphia's leading "society" musician of the Victorian and Edwardian eras.

The members of the Paragon Palm Court Ensemble -- all top New York concert and recording players -- are veterans of Rick Benjamin's Paragon Ragtime Orchestra, one of the world's best-known re-creators of historic music.

The Paragon Ragtime Orchestra is the world's only year-round, professional ensemble re-creating "America's Original Music" - the syncopated sounds of early musical theater, silent cinema, and vintage dance, popular at the time of Tiffany Studios' heyday. The PRO came into being as the result of Rick Benjamin's 1985 discovery of thousands of turn-of-the-century orchestra scores once belonging to Victrola recording star Arthur Pryor. Over the years, the PRO has been heard on the soundtracks of several motion pictures and television programs. The Orchestra's audio and video recordings have been widely praised, and considered instrumental in rekindling interest in America's rich traditions of theater, cinema, and dance orchestra music.

 

Sunday, November 28, 2010- Josh Taylor & Trey LaRue

Josh Taylor and Trey LaRue, an acoustic jazz duo from the Reading area, have been performing together for over 20 years. Their repertoire covers a wide range of jazz styles from many different eras including Gypsy, hard bop, Bossa Nova, and blues. Selections from Django Reinhardt, Thelonious Monk, Jobim and Wes Montgomery are common in a typical set. Arrangements are focused on providing a full sound with minimal instrumentation.

 

Sunday, February 13, 2011 - "Love, Broadway" presented by Genesius Theatre

Happy Valentine's Day from The Reading Public Museum! Genesius Theatre presents Love, Broadway — a revue of the great love songs from the Broadway stage, including those happy, sad, sweet, lonely, lovely, wacky, funny... falling in love, falling out of love, wanting to be in love, never wanting to love again songs that continue to touch our hearts.

Many stars from our local community theatres will be featured in this production. Tama McConnell, Kevin Cooper, Jennifer Parker Scott, Jason Denlinger, Erin and Bob Aregood and a cast of over 30 others will be performing your favorite musical theatre love songs, like If I Loved You, Til There Was You, Some Enchanted Evening, If I Can't Love Her, I Can Hear the Bells, and Tell Me On A Sunday.  What a wonderful way to celebrate Valentines Day! Come join us and bring someone you love.

 

Sunday, March 27, 2011 - Gamut

In conjunction with the 21st annual Boscov's Berks Jazz Fest weekend we're happy to highlight the local jazz group, Gamut.

This dynamic quintet, formed in 2009 and headed by keyboardist Erwin Chandler and saxophonist Ken Blekicki, present live performances that truly run the gamut of musical styles -- from jazz standards to contemporary jazz to original compositions.

Their newly released CD, Arrival, features 10 songs -- many written or arranged by Chandler and Blekicki, who are joined by Bob Carl on bass, Bobby Livingood on trumpet and John Rozum on drums.

Members of the quintet are first-call musicians, and have been featured sidemen with artists such as Jimmy Dorsey, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis, John Lennon, Johnny Mathis, Henry Mancini, Simon & Garfunkel, Billy Joel, Liza Minelli, and many, many more.

Chandler is the proud recipient of the Valley Forge Freedom Foundation Award for his composition, The Constitution. He also is a recipient of the prestigious Frank Scott Award which is presented annually by the Berks Arts Council in conjunction with the Boscov's Berks Jazz Fest.

Masterclass with Gamut Following this Concert

At 1:30 p.m., participate in a special Masterclass -- "IMPROVISATION - Reading Between the Lines" --  with members of the group, Gamut. This event, presented by the Reading Musical Foundation, is free and open to musicians of all ages and instruments, as well as interested spectators.

Following the earlier concert in the Atrium, Gamut will lead musicians through an interactive, hands-on workshop focused on jazz improvisation in the Museum's Auditorium. Please contact Keri Shultz at 610-376-3395 or kshultz@readingmusicalfoundation.org to reserve your spot. Space is limited.

 

Admission to Bagels, Bach & Beyond is $30 for Non-Members and $20 for Members and includes light breakfast, the concert and admission to the Museum after the show. Limited seating – pre-registration is suggested. Call 610-3711-5850 x264, or CLICK HERE for a registration form (PDF).

Proud sponsors (for the fifth consecutive season): Hair On The Avenue