ROANOKE TIMES

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, November 26, 1993                   TAG: 9311250137
SECTION: CURRENT                    PAGE: NRV-3   EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY 
SOURCE: Donna Alvis-Banks
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Long


A LITTLE MUSICAL DIVERSION

Good news! Relief from the inevitably hectic days ahead is on the way.

Virginia Tech's Memorial Chapel is offering a series of noontime music programs for the holidays. The special "Bach's Lunch" series begins Wednesday and continues through Dec. 13. You're invited to bring your lunch and spend the midday hour listening to a variety of local groups perform seasonal music.

Wednesday's opener features the Virginia Tech Horn Ensemble,directed by Wallace Easter. Quantum Brass, the university's popular student quartet, performs Thursday.

Here's the rest of the schedule:

\ Dec. 3 Trillium, featuring Mary Ann Lentz, Kathy Stell and Kathy Adamo, will perform Christmas classics and folk music in three-part harmony.

\ Dec. 6 Catherine Breske & Friends will present "Christmas Is a Season," a program of contemporary songs for the holidays.

\ Dec. 7 The Virginia Tech Meistersingers and the Blacksburg High School Madrigals will present a joint concert of choral music.

\ Dec. 8 Craig Fields will direct Virginia Tech's Concert Choir in an hour of traditional Christmas music.

\ Dec. 9 Pianist Jay Stipes and singer Naomi Wilson-Nicely will lead an old-fashioned sing-along.

\ Dec. 10 The original young-at-heart group, Warm Hearth's Kitchen Kettle Band, will play old favorites on their household instruments.

\ Dec. 13 The Shawsville High School Hand Bell Choir, directed by Bonnie Sitz, will ring in the holiday season in this final series concert.

All of the concerts run from noon to 1 p.m. in the chapel. Admission is free. For more information, call 231-6240.

\ BE SQUARE: The New River Squares are putting on a dance Saturday from 8 to 11 p.m. in the T.J. Anderson Student Lounge at New River Community College. Dancers will whirl and twirl the night away.

Wayne McDonald and Dee Smith will lead the square and round dances.

Admission is $4 at the door, and singles are welcome. Refreshments are included in the admission price.

To get to New River Community College from Interstate 81, take Exit 98. The college is on Virginia 100 north of Dublin.

\ TEEN TALENT: Christiansburg High School's Future Business Leaders of America Club will sponsor its annual variety show Tuesday in the school auditorium. It starts at 7 p.m. sharp.

Musical entertainment by student bands and singing groups, as well as skits and specialty acts, will fill the evening. Also, Mr. and Miss CHS will be crowned.

Local merchants have donated door prizes for the show. Admission at the door is $3.50. Children 5 and younger get in free.

\ ALL THAT GLITTERS: The annual Montgomery County Christmas Store Dance is sure to put the sparkle in your eyes.

It's happening Dec. 4, 8 to 11 p.m., in Virginia Tech's Commonwealth Ballroom at Squires Student Center. The Ken Epperly Band will play for this festive affair.

Tickets are $40 for adult couples or $30 for student couples. The fee includes a dessert buffet. A cash bar will be available. All proceeds go to the Montgomery County Christmas Store to help families in need during the holidays.

Sponsors for this year's dance are the German Club, the New River Valley chapter of the American Culinary Federation and the Y Dance Club.

For information about reservations, call Joan Nelson at 951-3849 or 951-6240.

\ FEAST FOR THE EYES: You'll find it at Radford University's Flossie Martin Gallery. Works by three of the university's Master of Fine Arts students go on display Tuesday.

The exhibit, "It's About Time," will remain through Dec. 12. A reception for the artists is planned Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. in the gallery.

You'll see watercolors by Truman Capone, a Blacksburg artist and jeweler. Capone focuses on the human figure in his painting. The work is a combination of symmetrical, asymmetrical, ornamental and symbolic elements.

Roanoke artist Betsy McKenney will have acrylic paintings in this exhibit. Her works duplicate prehistoric pottery pieces found in the New River Valley.

Samantha Hand, a graphic designer and illustrator from Wytheville, focuses on visual images of endangered species and environmental issues in her work. Her pieces are intended to send powerful messages to the beholder.

The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursday, 6 to 9 p.m.; and Sunday, noon to 4 p.m. Admission is free. Thursday's reception is open to the public.

\ TIME'S RUNNING OUT: Saturday is your last chance to see recent works by Z.L. Feng and Mei Shu at Miller Off Main Street Galleries. The exhibit features beautiful watercolors by two of the area's best painters.

The gallery at 211 Wilson Ave. in Blacksburg will be open today, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, noon to 5 p.m. The exhibit closes after Saturday.



 by CNB