New England and Beyond Summer Solstice Celebrations

Summer Solstice is one of the great turning points of the year, when the sun is at its peak and the days abound with the promise of life’s fullness. Traditionally, people have paused at this time to reflect upon the journey of life.
The word solstice comes from Latin sol (sun) and stitium (to stand still). The winter solstice is when the Sun reaches it southernmost point from the equator and seems to pause before reversing its course; at summer solstice the Sun attains its northernmost point and, once again, seems to stand still before turning back.

It was believed that at the moment of solstice, time, flowing in a circle, stopped, before ends of the year were joined. These two great celestial milestones of the year, are perhaps humanity’s most ancient ritual observances. 

~Paul Winter

From Wiki

The summer solstice occurs when the tilt of a planet's semi-axis, in either the northern or the southern hemisphere, is most inclined toward the star (sun) that it orbits. Earth's maximum axial tilt toward the sun is 23° 26'. This happens twice each year, at which times the sun reaches its highest position in the sky as seen from the north or the south pole.
The summer solstice occurs during a hemisphere's summer. This is northern solstice in the northern hemisphere and the southern solstice in the southern hemisphere. Depending on the shift of the calendar, the summer solstice occurs some time between December 20 and December 23 each year in the southern hemisphere^[2] and between June 20 and June 22 in the northern hemisphere^[3] in reference to UTC.^[4]
Though the summer solstice is an instant in time, the term is also colloquially used like midsummer to refer to the day on which it occurs. The summer solstice occurs on the day that has the longest period of daylight – except in the polar regions, where daylight is continuous, from a few days to six months around the summer solstice.
Worldwide, interpretation of the event has varied among cultures, but most have recognition of sign of the fertility, involving holidays, festivals, and rituals around that time.^[5]
Solstice is derived from Latin sol (sun) and sistere (to stand still).

Collected through Celtic Music in New England here are some suggestions, arranged in ascending distance from Boston, for places to celebrate the Summer Solstice.

In the Groves: A Summer Solstice Journey

Diane Edgecomb, Storyteller, and Margot Chamberlain, Celtic Harpist

2 Sessions (select one): Friday, June 21, or Saturday, June 22, 6:30–8:30pm
Location: Hunnewell Building, Arnold Arboretum, Jamaica Plain

Join us for an enchanting evening of tree lore and summer-solstice legends. Diane and Margot spin tales of the human connection with trees and the deep meaning we have assigned to them through the ages. This unique performance, designed specifically for the Arnold Arboretum, travels through the Arboretum with story and music. Each story is told under a different tree or among a unique collection of Arboretum plants. The program begins under a grand Cedar of Lebanon, moves into the rosaceous collection, to the oaks of Bussey Hill, then onward to Hemlock Hill, culminating with the haunting Czech legend “The Wild Woman of the Birch Grove” told amid the birches at sunset. Appropriate for adults and for children twelve years and above. Bring a cushion to sit on if you wish. Registrants will walk approximately two miles on and off trails on uneven terrain. The performance takes place rain or shine. In the event of rain, it will be held in the Hunnewell Building lecture hall. Register early for this popular event.
Fee $20 per person through June 10; $25 per person after June 10

Register

Summer Solstice: Night at the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture | Peabody Museum

Celebrate the longest day of the year with live music, food, hands-on activities, and free admission to the Harvard Museums of Science and Culture (Peabody Museum of Archaeology & Ethnology, Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard Museum of Natural History, Semitic Museum) on Friday, June 21, 2013 from 5:00-9:00 pm. Meet on the Plaza in front of the Harvard Science Center, One Oxford Street, Cambridge.
Friday, June 21, 2013
5:00-9:00 pm
Free
Public information: 617-496-1027
Free event parking in the 52 Oxford Street Garage.

(Collection of Historical Scientific Instruments, Harvard Museum of Natural History, Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, and the Semitic Museum).
https://www.peabody.harvard.edu/node/895

 Recommended by Alan Casso, who writes "This ALMOST qualifies: Midsummer Night Revels: A Summer Solstice Soiree"

TS CENTER FOR SPIRITUAL STUDIES    This Friday, June 21 Community Potluck Dinner and Summer Solstice Ritual with Janet Kessenich   This Saturday, June 22:  Buddhist Meditation Retreat

On Friday, join us for a Community Potluck Dinner and Solstice Ritual. This gathering only happens every few months so we do hope you can make it.
Then, on Saturday, attend a Buddhist Meditation Retreat from 9am to 9pm.
Welcome, Summer!
Friday, June 21
Community Potluck Dinner at 6pm
&
Summer Solstice Celebration
at 7:30pm
All are welcome!
Bring a dish to share! Join with others in spirit, for good conversation and tasty food.
As Summer begins, we'll meet for an evening of celebration and ritual honoring Solstice to enrich our conscious connection with our planet's seasonal changes. Led by Janet Kessenich of www.spiralenergies.com and CSS Acting Vice President.
Come for one or both events!
This event is free.
The Theosophical Society is a community of spiritually-minded people who share a vision to make spiritual knowledge available to all seekers.
All programming is done through our TS Center for Spiritual Studies.
The TS campus is located at 21 Maple Street in Arlington.  We are behind 19 Maple. See you there!

Directions are available on our website, www.tsboston.org

Join us for the 2nd annual

Midsummer Night Revels

A Summer Solstice Soirée benefitting Revels

Saturday, June 15, 2013, 8PM
145 Brattle Street, Cambridge MA | Holy Trinity Armenian Church
BUY TICKETS NOW
Building on the excitement of last year's sold-out Irish "Christmas Revels," our annual summer fundraiser features a bevy of Irish performers including WGBH's "Celtic Sojourn" host Brian O'Donovan and his lovely wife Lindsay, Ciaran Nagle (a founding member of the Three Irish Tenors), violinist/fiddler Tara Novak, the inimitable David Coffin, and show-stopping step dancers Harper Mills and Kevin McCormack who performed for us last Christmas and is now a member of Lord of the Dance! The Revels Singers, led by Revels music director George Emlen, and guitarist Owen Morrison will also be part of the celebration as will the spoken word, including poetry by W.B. Yeats and a wild, mini Strawboy Mummers Play modified for the occasion by Revels artistic director, Paddy Swanson. The night's festivities also include delicious desserts and a fabulous silent auction with all proceeds benefitting Revels' education and public programs.
Tickets
Advocate ticket at $35 includes:
Decadent dessert buffet, cash bar, a silent auction with fabulous prizes, and festive seasonal entertainment

Benefactor ticket at $100 includes:
All of the above plus a 6PM pre-soirée reception with hearty hors d’oeuvres and wine. Hosted by Revels supporters, receptions will take place in the Cambridge area. (Guests will receive location information and directions in advance.)
Buy tickets online or contact Katheen at 617-972-8300 ext. 29
Questions
(617) 972-8300, ext. 29 kmaresco@revels.org

Kick-off Riverfest, June 21-22, 2013 with OARS and Musketaquid Arts and Environment

Summer Solstice Friday, June 21, 2013
Celebrate the arrival of Summer along the Assabet, Sudbury and Concord Rivers! Activities Begin At the Old Manse 4:30pm

Wild Plants I have Eaten with Ross Cohen, 4:30-6pm
Ross is an expert forager and author, on a 90-minute ramble around the Old Manse
to discover at least a dozen species of edible wild plants. Keys to the
identification of each species will be provided, along with information on
edible portions, seasons of availability, and preparation methods, along with
general guidelines for responsible foraging.

Ross is an expert forager and author, on a 90-minute ramble around the Old Manse
to discover at least a dozen species of edible wild plants. Keys to the
identification of each species will be provided, along with information on
edible portions, seasons of availability, and preparation methods, along with
general guidelines for responsible foraging.
  Robbins House Open House, 5:30-7:30pm
The Robbins House was built by the son of slavery survivor and Revolutionary War
veteran Caesar Robbins in the early 1800s. It was originally located at the edge
of Concord?s Great Meadows, in an area where self-emancipated Africans
established their homes. In 2011 the Drinking Gourd Project moved the house to
land adjacent to North Bridge; come hear about Concord?s early African
history.

The Robbins House was built by the son of slavery survivor and Revolutionary War
veteran Caesar Robbins in the early 1800s. It was originally located at the edge
of Concord?s Great Meadows, in an area where self-emancipated Africans
established their homes. In 2011 the Drinking Gourd Project moved the house to
land adjacent to North Bridge; come hear about Concord?s early African
history.
  Old Manse Open House Tours, 6 & 7pm
Join the Trustees of Reservations and enjoy free admission for a tour of the
first floor of the Old Manse situated on the banks of the Concord River.

Join the Trustees of Reservations and enjoy free admission for a tour of the
first floor of the Old Manse situated on the banks of the Concord River.
  Musical Picnic with Snow Crow on the banks of the Concord River, 6:30 pm
   Illuminated Flotilla from the Old Manse to the Old Calf Pasture
with Voices for the Earth, 8:00 pm
Launch your canoe, rowboat, or kayak for a trip up the Concord River to the
confluence of the Assabet and Sudbury Rivers at Egg Rock. Bring along a candle
lantern that you can attach to your boat. Boat rentals available from the
South Bridge Boat House. Boat take-out at Lowell Road bridge. For those who
want to participate without getting wet, the best viewing spot is from the
Lowell Road Bridge just outside Concord Center.
 with Voices for the Earth, 8:00 pmLaunch your canoe, rowboat, or kayak for a trip up the Concord River to theconfluence of the Assabet and Sudbury Rivers at Egg Rock. Bring along a candlelantern that you can attach to your boat. Boat rentals available from theSouth Bridge Boat House. Boat take-out at Lowell Road bridge. For those whowant to participate without getting wet, the best viewing spot is from theLowell Road Bridge just outside Concord Center.  Drum and Dance Bonfire at the Old Calf Pasture
with Earth Drum Council, 8:00 pm
 with Earth Drum Council, 8:00 pm  For more information call OARS at 978-369-3956
or Musketaquid Arts and Environment at 978-371-0820.
For canoe rental, call South Bridge Boat House 978-371-2465,
and ask for Solstice group rate.or Musketaquid Arts and Environment at 978-371-0820.For canoe rental, call South Bridge Boat House 978-371-2465,and ask for Solstice group rate.


 Not really a solstice celebration, but a pretty darned good way to celebrate

Féile Cheoil Boston 2013

June 22nd, 2013 at First United Methodist Church, Melrose, MA.

All are welcome to join us for a fun day of competitions, sessions, workshops, dancing, entertainment, and more.

- Adjudicated solo and duet competitions for beginner, intermediate, and advanced students of all ages

- Instrument categories include:

• Fiddle
• Flute
• Whistle
• Button Accordion
• Uilleann Pipes
• Concertina
• Bodhrán
• Banjo
• Singing
• Accompaniment (guitar, piano, bouzouki, etc)
• Miscellaneous

Summer Solstice at the Garden in the Woods
Course Code: fam6503
Instructor: Roland "Boot" Boutwell, naturalist 
Fee: $10 (Member) / $12 (Nonmember)
Limit: 24   Credit: 
Online Registration: 

The summer solstice marks the longest day and shortest night of the year.  Celebrate the season with solstice history and lore, poetry, songs, stories, and a short ceremony to welcome in the solstice.  Enjoy a walk in the woods to enjoy the beauty of summer’s longest day, to watch the sunset, and see the lighting of Garden’s “Fireball” sculpture. Refreshments follow.

Thursday, June 20, 2013, 7-9 p.m.

Location: Garden in the Woods, Framingham, MA

Summer Solstice at Starseed!

Friday, June 21

672 Chapel Road, Savoy, MA.
http://www.starseedsanctuary.org/

Celebrate the Longest Day of the Year and World Peace and Prayer Day!
We will walk in the Peace Labyrinth, making one prayer for all nations and all faiths.
We will then journey to the Medicine Wheel to anchor our prayer through fire ceremony, drumming, toning, and connecting our feet to the Earth.
Bring your drums, rhythm instruments, and delicious food!
6:00pm Vegetarian Potluck Supper
8:00pm Fire ceremony in sacred circle
RSVP to starseed@bcn.net
Suggested donation: $10

Starseed is an interfaith healing sanctuary, holistic retreat center, and developing intentional community dedicated to personal and planetary transformation.  Located in the hills of the northern Berkshires on 130 acres of fields, forests and wetlands, Starseed serves as a spiritual center and energy anchor for personal and planetary transformation. People come here to connect with Spirit, the Land, their inner Self and other Kindred Spirits.

Paul Winter Consort Summer Solstice Concert at St. John the Divine, NYC

4am, June 21

In early morning there’s a sense of timelessness and possibility.

When I’m awake in the darkness before dawn – as the birds begin to sing, and the Earth prepares for the Sun – I feel as if life is beginning again. There’s something magical about that virgin time, when we’re free of our habitual patterns and obligations. My dream of evoking this feeling in music was the original inspiration for Summer Solstice.
We begin playing in total darkness at 4:30 a.m. within the awesome space and acoustics of the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. We embark on a continuous two-hour musical journey, with players stationed in distant corners or moving among the audience. Somewhere near the halfway point, listeners gradually realize that the Cathedral’s great stained-glass windows are beginning to illuminate. The light joins the sound to carry us into the first dawning of summer.
The musicians this year will comprise a new “summer consort,” with Eugene Friesen, cello; John Clark, French horn; Marcus Rojas, tuba; Tim Brumfield, organ; yours truly on soprano sax; along with four percussionists. We will be creating a new stage set and audience configuration this year. The audience will be seated in concentric circles under the great dome, surrounded by the musicians and instruments, including our nine huge Balinese Gamelan gongs, and other large percussion instruments.
For living music, Paul Winter

 

Summer Solstice Tradition

Summer Solstice is one of the great turning points of the year, when the sun is at its peak and the days abound with the promise of life’s fullness. Traditionally, people have paused at this time to reflect upon the journey of life.
The word solstice comes from Latin sol (sun) and stitium (to stand still). The winter solstice is when the Sun reaches it southernmost point from the equator and seems to pause before reversing its course; at summer solstice the Sun attains its northernmost point and, once again, seems to stand still before turning back.
It was believed that at the moment of solstice, time, flowing in a circle, stopped, before ends of the year were joined. These two great celestial milestones of the year, are perhaps humanity’s most ancient ritual observances.

 

A seven-time Grammy Award-winning saxophonist, Paul Winter was a college student in 1961, when his sextet won the Intercollegiate Jazz Festival and was signed by Columbia Records. The next year, the band toured Latin America as cultural ambassadors for the U.S. State Department, playing 160 concerts in 23 countries. At the invitation of First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy, the Paul Winter Sextet presented the first ever jazz concert at the White House in 1962.
Hearing the songs of humpback whales for the first time in 1968 further expanded Winter’s concept of a musical community. The Consort’s rich sound textures give Winter’s Earth Music its unique and alluring quality; sounds from the natural world are interwoven with classical and ethnic traditions, then infused with the spontaneous spirit of jazz.
In 1980, the Paul Winter Consort became artists-in-residence at the Cathedral of St. John the Divine. Each year’s Winter and Summer Solstice Celebrations and Earth Mass are among the most popular events in New York. “People get a sense of community – a sense of the whole wide community of life, which is one of the best things we could do with our music,” he says.
Paul Winter has performed in over 2,000 major concert halls, as well as Washington’s National Cathedral, Grace Cathedral in San Francisco, the Grand Canyon, the Negev Desert in Israel and the palace of the Crown Prince of Japan. He has received a Global 500 Award from the United Nations, and the Peace Abbey’s Courage of Conscience Award, among others.

The Paul Winter Consort

The story of the Paul Winter Consort and its predecessor, the Paul Winter Sextet, has evolved during a forty-year saga of adventure-through-music. Milestones include:

• the Sextet’s horizon-expanding tour through twenty-three Latin American countries in 1962
• the Sextet’s seven initial albums for Columbia Records under producer John Hammond
• Paul Winter’s meeting with Pete Seeger in 1966, who encouraged him towards more participatory music
• Paul Winter hearing for the first time the songs of humpback whales. Their haunting voices affected him in the same way as had those of the great jazz players and singers, and planted the seeds of creative ideas that blossomed on a number of his and the Consort’s later albums.

Infused with the rhythms and melodies of so many of the world’s cultures, Winter decided in 1968 to form the Consort as a forum for combining elements from various African, Asian, and South American cultures with jazz. “I borrowed the name ‘consort’ from the ensembles of Shakespeare’s time, the housebands of the Elizabethan Theater, which adventurously blended woodwinds, strings and percussion, the same families of instruments I wanted to combine in our ‘contemporary’ consort,” Paul Winter says.
Musicians such as David Darling, Paul McCandless, Ralph Towner, Glen Moore, Collin Wolcott, Nancy Rumbel, Jim Scott, Rhonda Larson, Russ Landau, Glen Velez, Paul Halley, Dorothy Papadakos, Eugene Friesen, Susan Osborn, Paul Sullivan, Mickey Hart, Oscar Castro-Neves, Nóirín Ní Riain, Jordan Rudess, Davy Spillane and many others have performed with the Consort.

 

The Cathedral of Saint John the Divine

“Ever since St. John’s Day, Dec. 27, 1892, when the cornerstone was thrice struck into the living rock of Manhattan’s Morningside Heights, St. John’s has aimed to be a ‘house of prayer for all people.’ To its great bronze doors have come all the faithful — Christian, Jew, Buddhist, existentialist, best-dressed, lesser-blessed, socially distressed — seeking joy and triumph over the universal demons.
“In the arboreal stillness of its towering columns and arches, they have listened to the Archbishop of Canterbury, Buckminster Fuller, the Mayor of Jerusalem, Duke Ellington, the Dalai Lama, Cesar Chavez, Rene Dubos, Thomas Berry, Jesse Jackson, Vaclav Havel, Gary Snyder, Brian Swimme, Secretaries General of the United Nations, Archbishop Desmond Tutu and the Paul Winter Consort.
“Under the jewel light of its 10,000 pane Great Rose window, they have prayed together for war’s end. Though its keynote is distinctly American, as is that of the Episcopal Church, the Cathedral — affectionately called “Big John” — peals a message around the globe: ‘Peace on earth, good will toward all.’ ”
– Wendy Insinger (from Town & Country magazine)
For news and updates, visit the Cathedral of St. John the Divine website.

Summer Solstice Recollections

It’s always been difficult to describe Summer Solstice to someone who’s never attended. So recently we asked audience members who experienced the concert over the last two years to share their “summer solstice recollections.”
They said it better than we ever could:
“I’ve attended both the winter and summer solstice celebrations. I love both, but the summer solstice seems to resonate at a deeper level. The quiet darkness and smaller audience allows you to be more in tune with the music. You feel it throughout your whole body.”
“As my daughter and I found our seats among the hushed listeners, we felt the special peacefulness of the moment and the restorative calm of the dark morning hour. … As dawn approached the music changed with it. My daughter touched my shoulder to turn and see the stained-glass images that began to softly gather the early morning light.”
“From the first single note emerging from the darkness, all my senses are engaged.”
“It was not about seeing. It was about pure sound, the dawn of a new day.”
“I felt myself transported back to our earliest ancestors and their awe as the sun lined up to their sacred solstice markers.”
Read more summer solstice recollections or share your own >