An Evening of Chamber Music will be presented 7:30 p.m. Friday in the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church. This will be the inaugural concert for firstARTS, the church’s newly established concert series.
The performance features Christina Placilla, violist, and Jonathan Sidden, tenor. They will be joining First UMC’s director of music ministries, Matthew Michael Brown, pianist for this concert.
The program includes works by Brahms, Sibelius, Bridge and others. Admission is free. An offering will be received for the Music Memorial Fund.
The church is located at 217 S. Church St.
For more information, call 704-636-3121.
Children’s chorus
The Salisbury Symphony will hold auditions for the children’s chorus that will perform in the Nutcracker ballet.
Auditions will be Oct. 19 from 3:30-5:30 p.m. in the Williams Music Building at Catawba College. Singers must be in grades 4-6.
The audition piece and audio file can be found on the symphony’s Web site at www.salisburysymphony.org under the “auditions” link.
Chorus rehearsals will be held on Sundays from 3:30-4:30 p.m. beginning Nov. 23. Additional rehearsals with the symphony and dancers will be on Tuesday, Dec. 9 at 6:30 p.m. and Saturday, Dec. 20 at 10 a.m. Performances of the Nutcracker will be held Sunday, Dec. 21 at 2:30 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. Chorus members must attend all rehearsals and both performances.
For more information, contact Education Director Susan Trivette at 704-637-4730 or strivett@catawba.edu.
Uwharrie Festival
TROY ó The Uwharrie Mountain Festival will be held this Saturday, 9 a.m.-6 p.m. at Eldorado Outpost and Kings Mountain Point. Activities will include a canoe adventure race, trail run, century bike rides, disc golf, horseback riding, nature walks and a kid’s zone. There will also be pottery demonstrations, music, local vendors, and more.
For information view the Web site at www.uwharriemountainfestival.com.
Art trip
Today is the deadline to sign up for a bus trip to Durham to view the exhibition “El Greco to Velazquez: Art During the Reign of Phillip III” at the Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University. The Center for Faith and the Arts, and ARTSY of St. John’s Lutheran Church are sponsoring the trip, taking place on Thursday, Oct. 23.
The bus will leave from the parking lot of Center for Faith and the Arts behind Haven Lutheran Church, 207 W. Harrison St., at 9 a.m. Lunch will be at the museum and the bus will depart from the museum at 3:30 p.m. to return to Salisbury. The cost is $49.
For more information or to sign up, contact Karen Puckett at 704-279-7428 or Center for Faith and the Arts at 704-647-0999.
Festival of Hymns
The second annual Festival of Hymns concert will be presented Sunday at Trinity Presbyterian Church, 300 S. Caldwell St., Salisbury.
The 4 p.m. concert will feature a chorus of musicians drawn from various churches reflecting the diversity of Salisbury and Rowan County. Inspired by the goal of uniting all peoples of faith through singing, the hour-long concert will be comprised of six sections, each reflecting an aspect of the Christian life. Each section will be introduced by a brief reflection given by the Rev. Dr. Grant Harrison of Soldiers’ Memorial AME Zion Church.
The concert will be directed and accompanied by Dr. Phillip E. Burgess, St. Luke’s Episcopal Church; The Rev. Dr. Grant Harrison, Soldiers’ Memorial AME Zion; Joanne Harrison, Livingstone College; and Kay Wright Norman, VA Medical Center.
The concert is free and open to the public. For more information, call 704-636-3654.
Poetry reading
Rail Walk Studios and Gallery is now sponsoring poetry readings as part of their “Jazzy Art” nights being held the third Wednesday of each month, 5-7 p.m. On Oct. 15, the featured poet will be Peggy Baxter Barnhardt, reading her original works. Barnhardt is chairperson of the Rowan Writers group, and is preparing to publish her second book. Jazz music for the event is provided by Rail Walk artist and guitarist Jimmy Alston and friends.
For more information, call 704-232-1467.
Nutcracker tickets
Tickets for this season’s production of “The Nutcracker” by the Salisbury Symphony Orchestra and Piedmont Dance Theatre are selling quickly. For the first time in the symphony’s history, reserved seating in Keppel Auditorium (at Catawba College) is offered. Performances are scheduled for Sunday, Dec. 21 at 2:30 and 6:30 p.m.
“Last year, both performances were sold out,” explained Executive Director Linda Jones. “We heard from many people that it was hard to find seats for those who arrived a little later. That’s when we began to look at the prospect of reserving seats for this year’s production. As of the middle of September this year, the center section of the orchestra seating for both performances were almost all reserved.”
Beginning Monday, Oct. 13, tickets may be purchased by check or cash from the Rowan County Convention & Visitors Bureau at 204 E. Innes St. Credit card sales are possible by calling the symphony office at 704-637-4314.
Tickets are $25 for adults (ages 19 and older) and $12 for children in the orchestra and mezzanine sections; $20 for adults and $10 for children in the balcony.
For more information visit www.salisburysymphony.org.
Rockwell Field Maze
Uncle Raymond’s Field Maze is up and running now in Rockwell. Located on Salisbury Street, just past Hunter’s Glen, the maze is sponsored by the Chuckwagon Gang, with all proceeds going to The American Cancer Society.
The maze is open weekends only through Nov. 8, Fridays from 7-11 p.m., Saturdays from 2-11 p.m. and Sundays from 2-6 p.m. Admission is $5 per person, with ages 5 and under free. For groups of 10 or more, the cost is $4 per person, calling ahead advised.
Participants are advised to bring a flashlight.
For more information call Joe Haynes at 704-239-3771, Tammy Hanes at 704-239-1867 or Jamie Ridenhour at 704-202-6010.