suns along the Mohawk

A week ago, the Sunday Schenectady Gazette called Sylvie Briber an “ambassador”, who “makes friends for the Stockade” (March 21, 2010, p. E4).  Of course, her Stockade neighbors know that three of the many things that Sylvie does well — in addition to editing The Stockade Spy –are making friends for herself (and her dog Lollipop), singing at church and community events, and baking delicious, professional-looking desserts.  Yesterday, at The Schenectady County Historical Society, Sylvie celebrated the realization of a dream 37 years in the making.

– as always, click on a photo for a larger version and scroll over it for a description –

At an event she called “A Garden Sweet: favorite art songs“, Sylvie presented her first CD, which has the same title.  The new album of “art songs” (poems set to music) features Sylvie’s vocals with piano accompaniment by Karen Ranung, her longtime voice instructor.

– click here for a brief event-calendar description of the event –

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– the flyer for the Garden Sweet event & featured artists Karen Ranung [R] and Sylvie Briber –

Below, you’ll find a small batch of photos taken at the premiere of A Garden Sweet (with my usual disclaimers about a lack of indoor photography skills), plus a few more details about an event that attracted a full-house of Sylvie’s friends and admirers (over 60 people).

Sylvie thanked lots of people for their help making the CD (and its premiere) a reality, including Katherine Chansky, the SCHS librarian; James Krakat and Marcel Roberts, the owner-operators of Success Recording Studio (at 249 Green St. in the Stockade); Gregory Solomon of Parcel Post Plus in Niskayuna, who especially helped with the CD’s opus-like brochure; and, of course, Bob Briber, literally her helpmate and willing factotum.

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– Sylvie’s shamrock shortbread cookies (with a touch of lemon zest) and an almost-too-pretty-to-eat fruit basket thrown together at the last minute by Bob Briber –

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– friends and delicious desserts: two things Sylvie loves to make —

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– songs heard on Saturday from the CD album A Garden Sweet:

In My Garden (1929, poem by Lester O’Keefe, music by Idabelle Firestone

The Pasture (1940, poem by Robert Frost, music by Charles Naginski

Where Heaven Is (1929, poem by Elizabeth Evelyn Moore, music by Geoffrey O’Hara

.  The Green Dog (1939, poem and music by Herbert Kingsley

Shy One (1920, poem by William Butler Yeats, music by Rebecca Clarke

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– front and back covers of the CD; click to enlarge to see details, song list –

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-Bob [L] and Sylvie Briber at the premiere of “A Garden Sweet” –

p.s. Contact Sylvie or Bob, if you’d like to acquire your own copy of the CD “A Garden Sweet.”