My two young grandchildren joined me in July for the Britt Festival Orchestra’s presentations of “Peter and the Wolf” (retold with a delightful Southern Oregon twist) and the story of the “The Mountain that Loved a Bird” by composer Caroline Shaw. They were enthralled, including the […]
A few years ago, I learned a fancy word: ineffable. It is defined as “too great or extreme to be expressed or described in words,” as in the ineffable natural beauty of Crater Lake. Speechless is another way to say it. I have experienced this ineffability at the Britt Festival Orchestra concerts more than I can count. It […]
BFO August 4 Concert will be On the Hill at the Britt Pavilion
08/03/19 MEDFORD, OR — Based on weather/smoke forecasts and the improved AQI numbers in Jacksonville, the Britt Festival Orchestra performance scheduled for Sunday, August 4 will be held on the hill at the Britt Pavilion in Jacksonville. All regularly […]
Britt Music & Arts Festival has opened a Call to Artists for the 2020 Fine Arts Poster. Britt is also considering artists for the 2021 and 2022 seasons. The Call to Artists will be open until July 31st, 2019, and will be juried by […]
Back in early July, I spent a Saturday afternoon enjoying a wonderful reception and book signing at Art Presence Art Center. As I stood in line to purchase three of Debbie Earley’s creative little glass mushrooms, I flipped through Ken Gregg’s beautiful new book, A […]
MEDFORD, OR – The Britt Festival Orchestra performance scheduled for 8:00 PM this evening, July 26, 2019, will be presented as scheduled. The decision to perform outdoors at the Britt Pavilion was made this morning per Britt’s protocol by an ad-hoc committee consisting of the Britt President and CEO, Artistic Operations Director, Britt […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR – The Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO), led by Maestro Teddy Abrams, returns to southern Oregon for its 57th season with three weeks of exhilarating orchestral programs at the Britt Pavilion in Jacksonville. The annual BFO season begins with a new series for families and people of all musical interests entitled Teddy’s Discovery Tuesdays (TDT), which offer […]
What you might be missing…
Oh my, it’s July! The epicenter of summer and picnic weather. We kick-off July 1st and 2nd with blockbusters, Kris Kristofferson and Michael Franti. And who doesn’t know the masterful work of Dwight Yoakam, the iconic band […]
Using the recent words of our new Facilities Operation Manager, Andrew Mustain, “It was Rob Buerk’s generosity and leadership that we owe gratitude to for overseeing the removal of the old picnic tables and installation of the new picnic tables. The Britt Experience has always been […]
MEDFORD, OR — Britt’s 2019 full season line-up goes on sale to the general public starting at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, May 10. At this writing, tickets are still available for all concerts in the 2019 lineup, with Chicago reserved seating full and limited seating remaining on several other shows. In addition, the “Best of Britt” event […]
Whether you were a teenager in the 1960s, or born in 2001, Britt is the place to be this summer. Diverse, varied, and assorted, were all words used to describe the 2019 Britt Line-up at our April 11th Season Announcement Party, where our Britt family […]
MEDFORD, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival has been notified that due to unforeseen circumstances the Alanis Morissette concert scheduled for Sunday, June 23, 2019 has been canceled.
Due to this change, Britt Members and Business Partners who have submitted ticket orders for this concert will be contacted to inform them of […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival has announced the remaining concert schedule for 2019 at its annual Music & Comedy Season Announcement Party on Thursday, April 11, unveiling 16 more concerts for the summer festival, with wide variety and big names. Highlights of the announcement include 90’s pop icon Alanis Morissette […]
The Britt season goes on and on thanks to the 90 volunteers who show up on the Hill night after night. These volunteers are all members of the Britt Society, a separate non-profit organization with their own Board of Directors and 300 fantastic and active members. Recently two such […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR — With its second season announcement for 2019, Britt Music & Arts Festival is adding a variety of popular music artists to the summer Music & Comedy line-up with several returning artists and a couple of new bands for the Britt audiences. The first concert from this set of concerts features Jim James, […]
Think classical music is old, stale or boring? Been there done that? Or never wanted to? Well come and see how exhilarating, relevant and FUN orchestral music can be for adults and children alike. The entire season beginning July 23 will highlight music inspired by our natural environment and […]
Why did Britt change the announcement schedule and membership benefits? “For the times, they are a changin’.” ~Bob Dylan
As the year 2019 begins, it might help some people to be reminded about changes made in our announcement schedule last season—one that we plan to continue this year. In 2018, […]
MEDFORD, OR – Britt Music and Arts Festival is launching a new name and brand for its orchestra, the cornerstone of Britt’s summer seasons since 1963. The Britt Festival Orchestra (BFO) is now the official title of this unique ensemble, and with this new name comes an updated look and feel for the orchestra’s brand […]
With the holidays upon us, it seems appropriate to reflect back on the past year and share our list of many wonderful things that the Britt Music and Arts Festival board and staff are grateful for this season.
At a recent meeting with community members, a group that we […]
Ever since the smoke rolled in on July 16, 2018, your Britt team has been busy making plans on how we will deal with the new “norm” during the 2019 Orchestra Season and beyond.
Thanks to the strong partnership between Medford Public School District and […]
Unless you were there, you probably didn’t know about the Pub Crawl.
After the third rehearsal was smoked out, Teddy decided to hold meetings with musicians who wished to brainstorm alternative performance opportunities. It had become clear that we were unlikely to be able to rehearse anymore at the Hill, […]
MEDFORD, OR — The Britt Music & Arts Festival thanks everyone – our patrons, members, business partners, media partners, artists and fans – for an outstanding season. Despite another smoky wildfire season, the 2018 Britt Season was very popular with patrons, demonstrated by steady ticket sales and abundant support from the community. During the last […]
With the close of this year’s 56th Britt Orchestra season, we can now reflect on our successes and challenges. As we all know, our orchestra season evolved and ultimately ended with unprecedented conditions. However, our orchestra, board, and patrons made this season special in extraordinary ways. In spite of […]
MEDFORD, OR — The Britt Music & Arts Festival is happy to announce the return of Britt Orchestra performances to the Britt Pavilion in Jacksonville for its final weekend of concerts on Friday, August 10 and Saturday, August 11. Rehearsals scheduled for Tuesday through Saturday, August 7 – 11, will be held at the Britt […]
MEDFORD, OR — Due to continued rehearsals and performances located at North Medford High School, the Britt Orchestra has released a revised rehearsal schedule. Some rehearsal times have changed to accommodate transportation of musicians. Closed rehearsals require a pass for entry:
2018 BRITT ORCHESTRA Rehearsal Revised Schedule – Updates for weeks 2 & 3
(All times except […]
MEDFORD, OR — Britt Orchestra Music Director Teddy Abrams and management have announced changes in the remaining four concerts in the 2018 Britt Orchestra Season due to possible continued performances at the North Medford High School Auditorium. Logistical challenges prevent the orchestra from performing Mahler’s Symphony No. 6 at the temporary venue, which was originally […]
MEDFORD, OR — Due to continued unpredictable air quality, Britt Music & Art Festival plans to present the Friday, August 3 and Saturday, August 4 Britt Orchestra concerts at the North Medford High School Auditorium. All rehearsals are scheduled to continue to be held at North Medford High School, located at 1900 N. Keene Way […]
MEDFORD, OR — Due to the extreme smoky conditions prevailing in the region, the BrittKids Koncert series has been relocated until further notice. The free morning concerts for kids will now be held at the Oak Grove Elementary School gymnasium. Doors will open at 9:30 AM and the concerts will begin at 10:15 AM as […]
Everyone loves a love story and this one is so special that we have decided to reprint excerpts from a previously-published story. It began back in 1972 (not long after Britt began), when two Pan Am crew members staying in the same hotel on a stopover in London discovered […]
MEDFORD, OR — Due to the extreme smoky conditions prevailing in the region, the Britt Orchestra performances scheduled for Wednesday, July 25, Friday, July 27 and Saturday, July 28 will now be held indoors at the North Medford High School Auditorium. Doors will open at 6:30 PM and the concerts will begin at 7:30 PM […]
Teddy Abrams and the Britt Orchestra will perform a new orchestral work for soprano, vocal trio, and orchestra entitled emergency shelter intake form on July 27 at 7:30pm. Co-commissioned by Britt and the Oregon Symphony from composer Gabriel Kahane, the piece tackles issues related to the twin crises of housing insecurity and homelessness in our […]
Can you imagine a world without art and music? Who would want to? You probably have seen children dancing and bouncing to music or seen toddlers banging on pots and pans. Because children are natural musicians, this musical interest comes easily and can be cultivated. Who will be our […]
Anyone who has been to the Britt Music and Arts Festival knows that it offers an experience like no other. Throughout the region there are different outdoor music venues for both the young and old to attend, which seems to suggest something. Going to outdoor music venues gives us […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR – Britt unveiled its 2018 Fine Arts Poster on Tuesday, May 15 at Jacksonville Elementary School in Jacksonville. This year’s work is a beautiful quilt by Jacksonville textile artist Karen Hanken. The poster is the 34th in a series celebrating Britt through the visual arts. The piece, titled “Britt ScRhapsody”, features a mosaic […]
Britt Music & Arts Festival and the Rogue Gallery & Art Center present Britt Orchestra Music Director and Conductor Teddy Abrams in a free piano performance during the monthly Third Friday art walk in downtown Medford at 6:30 p.m. on May 18. Teddy will perform an hour-long recital of music from his repertoire. The general […]
In early 2016, we sent out a survey to 2,600 constituents asking for extensive input from our community. First, we determined how often the respondent attends concerts and for how many years they have been attending. By determining previous involvement, we were able to gauge their familiarity with our […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival has announced the remaining concert schedule for 2018, doubling the number of shows that have previously been announced while bringing big variety and big names. Britt is excited to announce concerts with 80’s sensation Boy George & Culture Club (Sept. 11), rising alt-pop stars Portugal. The Man, […]
Britt Music & Arts Festival announces that “Symphony for Nature,” the documentary film that tells the story about the Britt Orchestra’s performance at Crater Lake in 2016, has been selected to be screened as part of the 2018 Ashland Independent Film Festival. This will be the film festival premiere of the film, which is being […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR — With its second season announcement for 2018, Britt Music & Arts Festival is adding a variety of popular music artists to the summer line-up. Britt fan favorite Michael Franti & Spearhead returns Saturday, June 16 for the 13th year in a row with both an afternoon family matinee as well as their […]
One question has come up recently that I would like to address. Many patrons are asking, “Is Britt going to announce the 2018 season in thirds?” Logically, since Britt is now announcing the 2018 Season in February, March and April, patrons might assume that it makes sense to break […]
JACKSONVILLE, OR — Britt Music & Arts Festival announces its first group of concerts in 2018 season lineup, coming to the outdoor amphitheater on the Britt hill in scenic Jacksonville, Oregon this summer. The first of three scheduled season announcements presents a wide variety of musical artists, including the funk-rock of Primus, a capella choruses […]
The 3rd Annual Valentine Day Gala benefiting the Britt Orchestra is coming home to Jacksonville! We have moved this popular event to the Bigham Knoll Ballroom.
The 2018 Valentine Gala will offer an intimate dinner with jazzy entertainment by vocalist Britney Simpson, Teddy Abrams on piano, and members of the […]
The Britt Music & Arts Festival and Cantaloupe Music announce the digital release of Michael Gordon’s orchestral work “Natural History” for orchestra with 10 Klamath tribal drummers, a chorus, brass […]
MEDFORD, OR, Jan. 22, 2018 — Britt Music & Arts Festival’s Education & Engagement department has announced it is now accepting concert program submissions for its BrittKids Koncert series. Now in its 3rd year, this free family-friendly series has expanded to present additional […]
For the past 55 years, Britt Music and Arts Festival has been providing our community with world-class music in our beautiful outdoor venue. In 2014, we brought you the new Performance Garden and ADA accessible pathways. In 2017, we introduced new concessions featuring local eateries, providing you with […]
I think we can all agree that Britt is a part of Jacksonville and Jacksonville is a part of Britt. Moreover, because of Britt Music and Arts Festival, our Jacksonville community is bigger than we think! Meaning that support for this community reaches far beyond our city limits. Did […]
We’d like to share our excitement about critical improvements being made on the Britt hill. With the close of another fantastic season, Britt is transitioning into what is sure to be a busy “off” season. Beginning this month, our old grey Britt bench seats will become just a memory. […]
I had not planned on writing about a power outage for the September column. Mother Nature had different plans. When you think about it, we were due. Britt concerts have lucked out for 55 years. With that statistic, we had already beaten the law of averages. We should be […]
By the time you read this News from the Hill, the Britt Orchestra will have arrived here in beautiful southern Oregon. Thanks to over 90 host families, our orchestra members are already settled into their temporary homes for the Season. Teddy Abrams, Britt’s Music Director, and Mark Knippel, Director […]
News From Britt Hill – July 2017
If you haven’t heard yet, thanks to Southern Oregon Subaru, we are expanding our free children’s concert series and introducing our new mascot, Scout. Scout says ALL KIDS of ALL AGES are invited and no tickets are needed! All performances start at 10:00am in the Britt Performance Garden—just show […]