Celebrating Grace Paley

Family and friends of author Grace Paley are celebrating her life and writings Friday. She was born in the Bronx on December 11, 1922, but later made her home in Thetford, Vermont. She passed away two years ago at the age of 84.

Today on Vermont Edition, you'll hear a 1998 recording of Paley reading "The Loudest Voice". First published in 1959, "The Loudest Voice" is told by Shirley Abramowitz, a little Jewish girl in the 1930's who remembers her childhood as a place where “every window is a mother's mouth bidding the street shut up” and where her own voice is always the loudest.

Shirley is called upon to narrate her school's Christmas play, a situation that prompts some pretty interesting conversations. The characters, humor and insight are classic Paley and a wonderful holiday story.

Listen at noon or at 7 to Vermont Edition. You can post your own reflections on Paley's life and work here.

Your Wish Come True

You're in the car, cooking dinner, or getting ready for bed. As usual, VPR Classical is on. A melody catches your ear and captures your heart. You MUST know what it is! But alas, you don't catch the composer or artist. Is the name of that sweet piece you'd love to hear again lost forever? Thankfully, the answer is no.

The new and improved VPR Classical Playlist is now available at VPR.net. All you have to know is the day and time you heard the piece. You can look back at what you've heard today, yesterday, last week - even last month, 24 hours a day. You'll find all the information you need, including a link to ArchivMusic to purchase the CD if you wish.

Please let us know how the VPR Classical playlist works for you. And, as always, we love to receive your comments and requests.

P.S. Remember, copyright restrictions prevent us from publishing playlists before the music is played.

185 down, 66 to go

That's the count in my quest to visit all 251 of Vermont's cities and towns and become a fully vetted member of the 251 Club.



My most-recent trek took me through the southern tier of the state, where I visited Bennington, Pownal, Stamford, Readsboro, Whitingham, Wilmington, Searsburg, Jacksonville and Woodford. Time and again, I'm amazed at how many lovely towns there are in this state. And I'm agog at finding places and facts that I'd never heard of before.

This trip introduced me to Brigham Young's birthplace in Whitingham (yes, both Young and Joseph Smith (Royalton) were born in Vermont), the Museum of Black WWII History and the Green Mountain Racetrack, both in Pownal. I've wanted to visit Readsboro ever since listening to Susan Keese's audio postcard about the town's inhabitants who were drawn there because of its similarity to the Tyrolean Alps of northern Italy. It didn't disappoint. And I loved stopping into Old Bennington to see the Congregational Church, the Bennington Battle Monument and the site of the Catamount Tavern.

My dilemma now is how quickly I want to reach 251. I think it's so much better to take it slowly and savor each stop along the way.

[Editor's Note: Listen to the entire series of Audio Postcards from Vermont Towns at VPR.net.]

No Starburst Were Harmed in the Making of this Documentary (well, not that many...)

On Tuesday evening, VPR will air "States of Marriage," a documentary examining how several states have approached legal recognition for gay and lesbian couples. VPR's Patti Daniels shared her experience producing this project:

Most mornings last week I came in to work thinking, ‘this might be the final day of production and we’re done!’ But today it’s official – VPR’s documentary on same-sex marriage airs tomorrow evening and we’re ready to go. Our crack production engineer Chris Albertine and I will finalize a few details this afternoon, but right now I have a few minutes to give you a behind-the-scenes look at the final stage of producing a radio documentary.

We’ve logged many hours over the past few weeks in an editing suite working to finalize the elements of this broadcast. This is the detail work, tinkering around the edges. We stare at a computer screen with row upon row of audio files as Chris engineers the sound to make it just right.

The bigger part of the challenge has already been overcome by now. We started in the spring with one big question: how to tell the story of so many different states finding their own approach to the question of same-sex marriage? Our initial research generated a multitude of possible directions. Over the summer Jane Lindholm and I recorded at least 20 interviews, some of them lasting hours, with key political and advocacy leaders in five states. In addition to that, we combed through hours of archival sound to document the events that unfolded in Vermont and elsewhere. All of those dozens of hours of tape needed to be transcribed, prioritized, and developed into a cohesive, compelling story... all in just 51 minutes. Throughout the project, we wrestled with journalistic questions of balance, interpretation, and historical record.

And now, Chris and I are down to the nitty gritty: fueled by coffee and Starburst candies, we fixate on mere seconds of audio: should the music fade in more gently here? Where can we shave off seconds to meet the time limit? Do we have another take of that voice track? Can we get more cowbell? (Just kidding about the cowbell...)

You can learn more about States of Marriage at VPR.net. I hope you enjoy listening to it as much as I enjoyed putting it together.

-- Patti Daniels, producer, “States of Marriage: The Debate Over Gay Rights”

Live Music In The House

What's better than a live music event in the performance studio? Two.

Robert DeCormier and Counterpoint stopped by last night for a dress rehearsal, in advance of their concerts next weekend:You can listen to VPR Classical next Wednesday morning at 11 for a sneak preview of Counterpoint's upcoming holiday concerts.

Today we're pleased to welcome Ensemble Liber to the studios! They're in concert tonight at 7:30 as part of the UVM Lane Series, and they're warming up as I write this for an 11am live recital with Walter Parker, starting in around 10 minutes:I haven't seen their set list but as I was taking pictures in the studio I caught a few bars of Hugo Distler, a few bars of Tomas Luis de Victoria...it's going to be a special performance, I can tell already.

Also coming up next Wednesday evening, local bassist (and poet, and photographer...) Ellen Powell stops by for conversation and music in Jazz with George Thomas, starting at 9pm. You can hear these, and many other, live performances after broadcast: visit the Live Performances page at VPR.net.

VPR's prEview E-Newsletter for December 2, 2009

Ask me what my favorite time of year is in Vermont, and I’ll respond like a kid in a candy store. At the sight of the first snow, winter is the most miraculous thing that’s ever happened. But by February, it’s all about ANY sign of life under the melting snow. In August…well, we all know nothing can top August in Vermont. Ooh! Ooh! Until October, that is.

If you think that’s bad, don’t even try to ask me to pick a favorite public radio program. I can’t even pick a favorite from this edition of prEview. Before you call me wishy-washy, I dare you to try! Read on for more about “States of Marriage,” VPR’s documentary that examines the path to same-sex marriage in Vermont – and around the country. Plus, share your favorite music of 2009 for Vermont Edition’s annual music show, and a recipe for ginger tea to ward off oncoming colds.

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Documentary: States of Marriage
Tuesday, December 8, 7 p.m., and Saturday, December 12, 4 p.m.
Ten years ago this month, the Vermont Supreme Court set in motion a historic change in the legal status of gay and lesbian couples. VPR examines how Vermont's civil unions law was a precedent for same-sex marriage in other states, and how the political fight over marriage has been waged across the country. Learn more online here.
http://www.vpr.net/episode/47448/

Specials: Climate and Copenhagen
Wednesday and Thursday, December 2-3 on VPR
World leaders meet next week in Copenhagen to find ways to stave off the effects of climate change. Listen to Vermont Edition today at noon for a discussion about the connection between weather and climate change with VPR’s Eye on the Sky meteorologists. Then, listen tomorrow at 8 for “The Climate Race,” a special documentary from Marketplace.

Vermont Edition: Annual Music Show
Thursday, December 17, noon on VPR
2009 has been a great year in music, and Vermont Edition's Annual Music Show is a chance to share your favorites with VPR listeners. Jane Lindholm and Bob Kinzel co-host our annual audio tour of great tunes, noteworthy artists and albums that deserve a second, third, or fifteenth listen. Visit our website to share your music picks for 2009.

Live Classical Performance: Ensemble Liber
Friday, December 4, 11 a.m. on VPR Classical
Walter Parker welcomes Ensemble Liber, a vocal quartet specializing in medieval and renaissance music, to VPR’s performance studio for a live performance. They preview their upcoming Lane Series concert of old and new seasonal music.

Classical Performance: Counterpoint
Wednesday, December 9, 11 a.m. on VPR Classical
Listen for an in-studio performance by Vermont's professional vocal ensemble Counterpoint, led by Robert DeCormier. They’ll preview their upcoming concerts celebrating the winter solstice and talk with Walter Parker.

Live Jazz Performance: Ellen Powell
Wednesday, December 9, 9 p.m. on VPR
George Thomas welcomes Vermont musicians Ellen Powell, Thomas Cleary, and Steve Wienert
to VPR for a live performance next Wednesday. They'll improvise on a mixture of standards and originals, and we’ll discuss the state of jazz in Vermont. Learn more online here.

Holiday Programming
Beginning December 11 on VPR and VPR Classical
VPR has many gifts for you to unwrap this holiday season. From Willem Lange’s rendition of “A Christmas Carol” to the harmonies of Counterpoint, our holiday program schedule celebrates the many traditions of the season. Visit our website to find out when your favorites are on the air, and best wishes from all of us at VPR.

VPR Cooks: Ginger Tea
Every time someone sneezes or coughs at the office these days, it’s followed by an emphatic disclaimer: “It’s not the flu! I swear! It’s allergies! It’s just a cold!” So far we’ve been lucky, but it never hurts to have a special concoction to (we hope!) ward off illness. VPR volunteer Eugenia Saganich shared this recipe for ginger “tea” to do just that.

Want to get prEview via email? Sign up here!

The Eye on the Sky Guys on Climate Change

From Vermont Edition Editor Steve Zind:

We hear a great deal about climate change globally, but we're curious how these changes are affecting our region. So we've asked VPR's Eye on the Sky meteorologists Mark Breen and Steve Maleski of the Fairbanks Museum and Planetarium to talk to us about the long term trends they're seeing in New England's weather - and help us understand if any of the changes we observe from our windows, like seasonal variations and migratory habits of New England birds are related to global climate trends.

It'll be interesting to hear their take, too, on the renewed
debate over climate change research and find out, in their view, what conclusions we can have confidence in and what questions remain.

VPR continues its coverage of the issue tomorrow night at 8 with a special documentary from Marketplace, The Climate Race. We hope you'll join the conversation!