
DATE: Thursday, May 1, 1997                 TAG: 9705010053

SECTION: DAILY BREAK             PAGE: E6   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY IDA KAY JORDAN, STAFF WRITER 

                                            LENGTH:   84 lines

GARDEN CONCERTS HIGHLIGHT THIS YEAR'S MUSIC SERIES

ON THE FIRST Sunday of May every year since 1979, music lovers from across Hampton Roads roam about Portsmouth's Olde Towne for an unusual concert.

During the event, the audience moves from place to place to hear three performers.

Known as Music for an Olde Towne afternoon, the May concerts have been held in a variety of outdoor settings and have presented all sorts of music, from sea chanteys to string quartets.

This year, the music will start at 3 p.m. Sunday. Each of three musicians will give three 20-minute performances. About 10 minutes is allocated between concerts for members of the audience to walk from one garden to the next.

Members of the Portsmouth Music Study Club, the event's sponsor, borrowed the idea.

``I got the idea from reading about the Atlanta Symphony doing garden concerts as fund-raisers,'' said Patricia Price, organist at Churchland Baptist Church and former president of the Portsmouth Music Study Club. ``We borrowed the concept and adapted it to our situation.''

The profits from the first several years were donated to the then-fledgling Children's Museum, which now is the multimillion dollar Children's Museum of Virginia.

``I think it was several hundred dollars that first year, and we donated it for one of the first exhibits for the museum, which was in the basement of the (public) library,'' Price said. ``Back then, that was more money than it is today.''

Price said club members in the 1970s would not have believed the event could survive so long.

``This is unique to this region,'' she said. ``Still, it sort of amazes me that it has continued.''

The cooperation of Olde Towne homeowners who have opened their gardens to concerts has been a major factor in the success, Price said.

Mary Barnes was president of the music club during the early years of the outdoor programs. She performed in 1980 and will be featured again this year.

Barnes will present her ``Songs with Guitar,'' as she calls her segment of the program, at the Hill House, 221 North St., a museum owned by the Portsmouth Historical Association.

A Portsmouth native, Barnes is recognized as a soloist and ensemble singer as well as an accomplished guitarist. She has performed with the Fred Waring Show and the Virginia Symphony Chorus and in musical theater.

These are the other two musicians and the locations of their performances:

Timothy Seaman of Williamsburg in the garden of Mr. and Mrs. William Leitner, 215 Glasgow St. Seaman plays the hammered dulcimer, a large collection of fluted, bowed and plucked psalteries, penny whistles and melodica. Some of his instruments are crafted by James Jones of Bedford.

A native of West Virginia and resident of Williamsburg, Seaman currently is working on a book of American folk hymns and a series of recordings of original works depicting the nation's national parks. He has several recordings, including ``Wayfaring Stranger'' and ``Scratch the Sky,'' which have been featured on the public broadcasting program ``In the Folk Tradition.''

Helmut Speckheuer of Norfolk at Glasgow Street Park between Dinwiddie and Court streets. Speckheuer will provide entertainment with accordion and harmonica, playing waltzes by Strauss and other composers, as well as polkas and folk tunes of America and of his native Germany. A member of a local folk dance group, Speckheuer plays with the Nordeutche Band and recently appeared in a production of ``Fiddler on the Roof.''

The afternoon of music is sponsored by the Portsmouth Music Study Club in observation of National Music Week. Music club members will serve refreshments during the concerts. In case of rain, all activities will be moved to St. John's Episcopal Church, 424 Washington St.

Tickets are $5 for adults and $3 for children. They may be acquired in advance by calling 484-0790 or 393-2691 or at each location before the concerts begin. ILLUSTRATION: FILE PHOTOS

Performing at Music for an Olde Towne Afternoon are, from left,

Timothy Seaman, Helmut Speckheuer, Mary Barnes.

Graphic

WANT TO GO?

What: Music for an Olde Towne Afternoon, a series of 20-minute

performances by Mary Barnes of Portsmouth, Timothy Seaman of

Williamsburg and Helmut Speckheuer of Norfolk.

When: 3 p.m. Sunday

Where: Three garden settings in Olde Towne Portsmouth.

Tickets: $5 for adults, $3 for children; in advance, call

484-0790 or 393-2691; tickets also available at concert sites.