Katonah, New York — A joyous and life affirming musical celebration with a performance of Beethoven’s immortal Ninth were performed when the Caramoor International Music Festival launched its summer season with an evening in a garden of great music. Caramoor’s 60th annual summer festival opened Saturday, June 25th with the Caramoor Imperial Ball, a 60th anniversary celebration at Caramoor’s Venetian Theater.

Caramoor Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor Peter Oundjian conducted the Festival’s resident orchestra, the Orchestra of St. Luke's, with Janice Chandler-Eteme, Jane Dutton, Mary Phillips, Simon O’Neil, Philip Cutlip and The Collegiate Chorale.

Maureen Hanagan and Victor Marrow

Opening night started with a gala benefit celebration beginning at 5:30 p.m. with cocktails, and, following the concert at 7:00 p.m., guests attended a black-tie dinner dance at on the Caramoor grounds, with Gerard Carelli and his Orchestra in the dinner tent on Friends’ Field. An auction of items took place during dinner and the auctioneer was Jamie Bernstein. All proceeds from gala ticket sales will benefit the Caramoor International Music Festival.

Gala co-chairs were Diane Moss and Zita Rosenthal. Opening night was sponsored, in part, by The Citigroup Private Bank.

About Caramoor

Caramoor is the legacy of Walter and Lucie Rosen, who built the great house and filled it with their treasures. Walter Rosen was the master planner for the Caramoor estate, bringing to reality his dream of creating a place to entertain friends from around the world. Their musical evenings were the seeds of the International Music Festival today. Realizing the pleasure their friends took in the beauty of Caramoor – the house with its art collection; the gardens; and the musical programs on summer evenings – the Rosens established a Foundation to open Caramoor to the public in perpetuity. Lucie Rosen survived her husband by seventeen years. During those years, she expanded the Music Festival: The Spanish Courtyard was used as a setting for musical events, as it is today. Under her direction, the great stage of the Venetian Theater was built.

“We invite people to come early, explore our beautiful grounds, take a tour of the House Museum, visit our gift shops, enjoy a pre-concert picnic, and discover beautiful music in a relaxed setting,” advises Paul Rosenblum, Caramoor’s Managing Director. With its unique heritage, Caramoor remains a place where magical summer days and nights are shared and enjoyed by thousands. Caramoor is a Garden of Great Music. “Caramoor is the loveliest Festival of them all.” - The New York Times.

Caramoor easy to get to by car or mass transportation. From Manhattan, take the Caramoor Caravan and ride comfortably in a luxurious, air-conditioned coach. Round trip service is $20 and is available for all Saturday and some Sunday performances during the Festival. The Caravan departs from the Port Authority Bus Terminal and Upper West Side and East Side locations. Call the Box Office (914-232-1252) for further information and reservations.

By train: Take the Harlem Division of the Metro-North Railroad to Katonah, New York. Taxi service from the station to Caramoor (5 minutes away) is available.

By car: (West Side Manhattan, New Jersey) Take the Saw Mill River Parkway north to Katonah. Exit at Route 35/Cross River. Turn right, and at the first traffic light make a right turn onto Route 22 south. Travel 1.9 miles to junction of Girdle Ridge Road. Follow the signs to Caramoor. (Detailed directions: 914-232-5035, press 2, or online at www.caramoor.org).

The program, which included the first-ever Caramoor performance of Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9 in D minor, Op. 125, was conducted by Caramoor’s Artistic Advisor and Principal Conductor, Peter Oundjian. Following the concert the 500 gala guests enjoyed a dinner catered by chef Joseph Jenkins of Le Potager Catering and participated in a live auction led by auctioneer Jamie Bernstein, daughter of Leonard Bernstein.

Late last May, Wave Hill, the internationally acclaimed public garden and cultural center, hosted its 40th Anniversary Spring Garden Gala. Sponsored by House & Garden magazine, the festive party brought together 300 Wave Hill enthusiasts for a delightful evening of cocktails-at-sunset, dinner, music, and dancing in their glorious gardens at peak bloom.

Dominique Browning, Robert Stern, and Meredith Dolan

Wave Hill, if you didn’t know, is a 28 acre public garden and cultural center overlooking the Hudson and the Palisades. Originally a private residence, at different times it was occupied by the Perkins-Freeman family, Mare Twain, who lived there from 1901 through 1903; Theodore Roosevelt who summered there in 1870 and 1871, the great conductor Arturo Toscanini (between 1942 and 1945), as well as chief members of the British delegation to the United Nations.

For the past forty years Wave Hill has fostered connections between people and the natural world. Friends gathered together on this evening to toast the dynamic evolution of this New York City gem, then dance the night away to the sounds of Peter Duchin and his lively ensemble. Guests enjoyed dinner by Great Performances on the Lower Lawn, in a party tent decorated by Remco Van Vliet.

Proceeds from the Spring Gala provide support for Wave Hill's programs in horticulture, environmental education, woodland management, and the visual and performing arts. Wave Hill's 40th Anniversary Spring Garden Gala was sponsored by House & Garden magazine. Co-chairs were Elizabeth Beim; Charlotte M. Frieze, Garden Editor of House & Garden; and Janet Mavec, Wave Hill Board Member and founder of Designs by Janet Mavec, a jewelry design company.

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