June 16, 2026: Emilys Juneteenth Band

June 16, 2026: Emilys Juneteenth Band

We are getting the bands together, because it’s the 25th anniversary for the Florence Community Band, which has grown from the idea of one woman seeking musical community, to having over 50 members or more finding their instruments, dusting them off, and joining in the sound. We speak with director Priscilla Ross and members Linda Davis-Delano and Yop Molenaar  about their upcoming concert on June 21st that will bring even more local bands into the mix And in a new novel by Heather Abel, bands of amateur investigators attempt to find the cause and cure of a mysterious ailment. The Emilys is a book that bears an indelible imprint of the asparagus valley, including an array of easter eggs for the locals, and we speak with the author about the issues of friendship, ecology, and place before you can meet her yourself at an event in South Hadley this evening.  Plus this Friday being Juneteenth means there’s lots of places celebrating the nation's truest freedom day, and we’ll hear from Theresa Cooper Gordon, Damany Gordon, and Megan Seiler about the festivities happening in Holyoke [https://wistariahurst.org/event/celebrate-juneteenth-2026/] at Wisteriahurst for the occasion.

June 15, 2026: Disclosing symphonic wizards

We love new books, and the first in a brand new series from Jedidiah Berry comes out tomorrow. Kill All Wizards is a blend of 19th century gentility and classic sword and sorcery fiction of the early 20th century with homage to Roy Thomas and Robert E Howard and we chat with the author about the new novella and the release party at Vision Video in Northampton on June 16th where he’ll be in conversation with Kelly Link  Juneteenth is this Friday and Springfield’s Symphony orchestra is celebrating by bringing the whole ensemble outside. Not only is this year’s program happening for free in Court Square in downtown Springfield, but it’s a family affair featuring both Avery Sharpe and Kevin Sharpe. We bring the two brothers to the studio to talk about their individual connections to the holiday and music itself along with SSO President Heather Caisse Roberts.  And Mr. Universe, Kainaat Studio’s Salman Hameed, puts on his cinefile hat to explore the science and spectacle of Stephen Spielberg’s latest foray into extraterrestrial speculation as we discuss Disclosure Day.

June 12, 2026: Golden football Revue

Today has a lotta music, and a little international flair Tanglewood [https://www.bso.org/tanglewood] is getting a visit from folx who play some of the smoothest music around. The Yacht Rock Revue [https://www.yachtrockrevue.com] started in Georgia on a whim, but now brings the sounds of the late 70s and early eighties to stages worldwide, even to their original tunes. We speak with Nicholas Niespodziani frontman and multi instrumentalist for the band about the inspirations of these tunes and the spectacle they’ll bring to the Berkshires on June 21st [https://www.bso.org/events/yacht-rock-revue-2026?performance=2026-06-21-14%3A30]. Live Music Friday brings a brand new band polycule into the studio. The Golden Hours [https://thegoldenhoursofficial.com/home] began as an immersive music experience, but has evolved beyond to be its own creative entity, a blend of the bands The Lowland Hum [https://www.lowlandhum.com/] and David Wax Museum [https://www.davidwaxmuseum.com/]. We’ll hear a sample of what this sonicly-united ensemble will perform on the Iron Horse stage in Northampton on Sunday, June 14th [https://theparlorroom.my.salesforce-sites.com/ticket/#/events/a0SV500000B42T7MAJ].  And the many games of the FIFA World Cup are underway, but perhaps you are as lost as I am on that front, lucky us, NEPM’s own Cara Foster is here to give us a bit of insight to the game and it’s global dominance everywhere, except the US it seems.

June 11, 2026: 413 Gives Ancestral bridges

It’s 413 Gives Day [https://nepm.org/413gives] So of course the fabulous 413 is going to double down on the goodwill of our neighbors coming together to support other organizations who also lost their federal funding just like we did by speaking with one more non-profit from the Berkshires who you may help.  So we speak with the executive director of the Elizabeth Freeman Center [https://elizabethfreemancenter.org/], Divya Chaturvedi. The organization have been helping those who have experienced domestic abuse and sexual assault in the Berkshires with their ongoing survival for 50 years. We learn about their incredibly extensive programming that spans the entirety of the county, the ways they’ve learned to adapt to the needs of the community, and the ripples of impact they see relating to this loss of federal infrastructure.  Then we head to Amherst to connect celebrations with history. Ancestral Bridges is hosting its 6th Juneteenth [https://www.ancestral-bridges.org/] celebration this Sunday, and has discovered direct ties between the town, the Massachusetts 54th, and that holiday’s origins in Galvaston Texas. We speak with Anika Lopes, Deborah Bridges, Christina Miles, and Pam Tillis about the festivities and their discoveries.

June 10, 2026: Get free

We celebrate freedom for all with a Juneteenth event that brings all of the community together. Arise for Social Justice has been honoring the holiday with a free celebration connecting folx of all walks of Springfield life with music food and services they may need and more. Executive Director Tanisha Arena joins us to talk about the party they’re throwing, and her journey to this work.  We’re also looking at the immigrant experience through fiction and firsthand accounts. Restless books has just published the award winning collection People who live alone talk too much which highlights the incredible intimate moments of immigrants interacting with American culture in New York, and we speak with author Sofi Stambo about the appeal of short fiction, and how it can connect these snapshots to something greater.  And as pride month continues, we look at the language surrounding the LGBTQIA2S+ community itself with word nerd Emily Brewster, because those words have come as long a way as we have, and the linguistic history of Gay and Queer are just as fascinating as the times and folx they have represented over the centuries.