A performance of reading excerpts and music chronicled in letters and memoirs during the American Civil War will be presented in four Montgomery County venues, beginning in July.
Wanda Burch will present excerpts from letters written by soldiers and their families. The Glen, N.Y. historian and author received a 2022 individual artist grant from Saratoga Arts for “Music in the Midst of Madness: Respite from the Turmoil of the Civil War, Burch will be accompanied by historian/musician Ronald Burch and vocalist, Gisella Montanez Case.
The presentation explores music of all kinds played by soldiers and their families during the years of the Civil War. Letters to home and letters from home were the Civil War soldiers and their family’s “soul on paper.” Music offered a place where hearts and souls could mend and find humanity, even when the hardships of war forced their way into the most protected and private places that struggle to keep body and spirit together and whole.
“Music in the Midst of Madness: Respite from the Turmoil of the Civil War” is scheduled for six venues in Montgomery County: Wednesday, July 20, 6:30 p.m. – Old Fort Johnson, NY5, Ft. Johnson; Sunday, July 31, 3 p.m. – Schoharie River Center, 2031 Burtonsville Rd., Burtonsville; Saturday, Oct. 1, 7:30 p.m. – Conservancy Hall, 1538 State Highway 161, Glen; Saturday, Oct.15, 10 a.m. – Margaret Reaney Memorial Library, St. Johnsville. For more information, email Wanda Burch, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; Facebook: www.facebook.com/wanda.burch.1/.
