The search for Symphony New Hampshire’s next Music Director, reported in a March 6 Hippo cover story, has led to the selection of five finalists, each of whom will present their vision for the state’s premier orchestra over the course of next season.
Over the 2025-26 season, each finalist will curate and conduct a concert. In addition, finalists will engage with the public at meet-and-greet events across the state. Audience members will provide feedback through post-concert surveys.
The search was driven by a desire to select a Music Director who was already a New Englander, and all of the candidates live at least a reasonable drive from the New Hampshire border. One, Filippo Ciabatti, is a resident of the Upper Valley.
“We believe having an artistic leader embedded in New Hampshire’s cultural fabric will shape our programming and community engagement,” SNH Executive Director said in a recent press release announcing the candidates.
Here’s a look at the conductors vying for the job of Symphony New Hampshire’s Music Director.
Adam Kerry Boyles holds three current positions: Assistant Conductor of the Hartford Symphony, Director of Orchestras at MIT, and the Brookline Symphony Orchestra’s Music Director Emeritus. Last year, he stepped in for Keith Lockhart at the Boston Pops, after several years as cover conductor.
Boyles has worked with other artists across multiple genres, including James Taylor and Doc Severinsen, as well as groups like Cirque de la Symphonie and Aardvark Jazz Ensemble. He’s also a singer who’s performed in operas and had leading roles in musical theater productions like Little Shop of Horrors.
Taiwanese-American conductor Tiffany Chang’s credits include nine years as Music Director of Boston’s NEMPAC Opera Project. She’s been engaged as a conductor by the Washington National Opera, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Portland Opera, and Minnesota Opera.
Chang is the author of Conductor as CEO, a blog aimed at facilitating growth for conductors, arts leaders and musicians. “My mission,” she writes, “is to help musicians feel more valued, seen, and fulfilled.” Since 2013 she’s served as an Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music.
Filippo Ciabatti currently leads the Dartmouth Symphony Orchestra. The Florence, Italy, native was named Assistant Conductor of Boston Baroque in 2023, the first such appointment in their 50-year history. He also founded Upper Valley Baroque, a professional orchestral and choral ensemble.
The well-rounded Ciabatti is also the Music Director of the Opera Company of Middlebury, where he debuted in June 2023, leading a production of Fidelio. He’s also conducted productions with Opera North in Lebanon, and the Lyric Theatre at Illinois.
Jotaro Nakano conducts the Longwood Symphony Orchestra in Boston, which serves the city’s health care and medical communities. As part of his association with Longwood, he also leads the Healing Art of Music Program, which assists with fundraising for local nonprofit organizations.
Nakano, a Japanese-American, has shared the stage with musicians in Mexico — he’s Musical Director of the SA’Oaxaca Strings International Music Festival Orchestra, a tuition-free chamber string music festival. He’s also toured in the Czech Republic, in Romania and all across the United States.
Tianhui Ng has been called “one of the most sought-after interpreters of new music in the United States.” As Music Director of the Massachusetts International Festival of the Arts’ Victory Players, Ng has led performances on public radio and television and toured in Puerto Rico and Illinois.
Ng is Music Director of White Snake Projects, when’s he’s led more than 50 premieres, including Jacobs and Sosa’s Alice in the Pandemic, a production selected by the Library of Congress for their special collection of the most significant works of art during the pandemic.
SNH’s Executive Director Hoying expressed her approval of the selection committee, led by search professional (and former SNH Operations Director) Nick Adams. It began with 30 applications that were narrowed to 20 semi-finalists; 10 advanced to the interview stage.
“Each of these conductors brings remarkable expertise and vision,” Hoying said of the five in the March 19 press release. “Now, it’s about how they engage with our musicians, audience, and the broader community.”
On the first day of February, a packed gathering of the goth-clad, pierced and tattooed felt the rumblings of a revolution. To the untrained eye, it was a modest milieu, a back room of a Manchester American Legion Post lined with rows of booths, each offering everything from taxidermy to tarot card readings, art and apparel.
For Janelle Havens, however, the Queen City Black Market was a dream come to life.
The New Hampshire native had experienced similar events below the border in Massachusetts and at tattoo conventions. Along the way she was inspired to open a platform shoe store in Manchester, Lustshroom, Etc. She wondered why there weren’t similar efforts in her home state, and decided to launch one of her own.
Hoping for the best, Havens had scheduled an afterparty at the nearby Shaskeen Pub. The market’s success made the three-band show, organized by Aaron Shelton, that much more momentous. Shelton’s Kinetic City Events books regularly at the Shaskeen, helping to boost bands like Cytokine, who headlined the afterparty.
A slashing heavy metal band, Cytokine’s lineup includes guitarist Rob Kulingoski, another thread of the many moving this community forward. Along with Shelton, who spent a lot of time in punk and metal bands before focusing on being a promoter in the early 2010s, Kulingoski kept the fire burning after many venues closed mid-decade.
With nowhere else to go, Kulingoski repurposed the basement of his home in Litchfield for shows, and lived the metaphor for five years until the town shut him down.
“I’ve been a part of the underground hardcore and metal scene probably since I was 16, and I’m 39 now,” he said recently.
Kulingoski and many others are buoyant these days. The New Hampshire alternative scene is by all accounts thriving. Along with Kinetic City at the Shaskeen, BAD BRGR in Manchester has been open over a year and is, Kulingoski said, “a breath of fresh air for us” as it showcases original music. Over on Canal Street, Jewel Music Venue continues to host EDM, punk and other fringe events.
To illustrate the interwoven nature of the scene, Havens will be at Jewel’s Goth & Industrial Night in May, she and Shelton are at work on new projects, and Kulingoski’s Five/Nine Printcore makes T-shirts for bands and businesses like Fishtoes, a new vintage clothing store in Manchester where many scenesters shop.
Terminus Underground. Photo by Eleanor Luna.
“Underground” may not be the best word for this bustling community. “It’s almost misleading … it makes it sound secretive,” Aaron Shelton said by phone recently. “It’s just a broad term for things that aren’t quite in the mainstream. I mean, a band that claims to be underground could be mainstream the next day, if they get signed to a record label.”
Once upon a time, Metallica was underground. Now their logo is on premium whiskey bottles.
Shelton does allow, “it’s a term that people are comfortable with that adds a sense of belonging; this is ours, it’s not the mainstream. This doesn’t belong to Spotify, or MTV, or major record labels, this is our scene, we control it. It’s our community. We decide the successful bands, not the radio.”
It’s also not synonymous with an oath of poverty. This philosophy drives a Nashua-based organization that works with creative independents looking to make a career of their art. Clients include musicians, like Whole Loaf and 6 Minds Combined, along with graphic artist Keegan Fitzgerald’sMyArtbyKF and author Ellie Beach.
New Hampshire Underground is a micro entertainment complex that serves as a comprehensive resource for artists, musicians and writers. Founded by music business maven Eleanor Luna, it offers business guidance to creative professionals to assist with branding, marketing and financial management.
How to turn art into enterprise can get lost in the act of creation, Luna explained in a recent phone interview.
“When you’re really talented and focused on your particular passion, you might not know how to get yourself out there like a business would,” she said. “That’s what I do. I guide people.”
It’s modeled after a fitness center; Luna has also worked in that world. She acts as personal business trainer for her customers. Services are membership-based; VIP “Rockstar” level members have weekly meetings to go over topics like how to optimize an online presence and effectively reach out to industry insiders.
“These are the paths that you can go down,” she tells them. “This is the avenue that I recommend, these are the people that I would talk to. This is what I would do for your social media or your personal brand presence on the Internet.”
Like a lot of efforts to boost the independent creative scene, Luna’s started when the world started to emerge from the pandemic. Everyone was still unsure what that meant for the music business, and she saw a chance to finally use her Berklee MBA and multiple decades in marketing to make a difference.
“I sat on it for a number of years kind of wanting to do something like this, but not really knowing if there was a market,” she said. “But then I started to see lots of people asking questions. How do I copyright? How do I sign up for MusicPro? How do I navigate social media? How do I become a brand? I’m thinking, I know the answers … I literally could start a business.”
Luna picked a price point reasonable enough for the scrappy artists she hoped to mentor.
“I wanted to make it accessible to people but still be able to give them good value, and I knew a membership model would work better than an a la carte or hourly rate,” she said. “It’s more comfortable for people to say, ‘I’m going to have a commitment, and this person will provide what I can’t get on my own on the art side of it.’”
There’s also an entry-level Community Member tier that offers access to the Musician and Artist Lounge, a networking hub best described as Panera Bread for cooler people. It has a wi-fi-equipped co-working space, along with couches and other amenities. The lounge is open Tuesday through Thursday from 7 to 11 p.m. and access can also be booked for an hourly rate.
Other on-premise perks include a podcast studio, a backline-equipped community jam space, and an art gallery. Finally, there’s Terminus Underground, a performance space that serves as NHU’s public hub. It hosts regular events — the next is Night of the Fools, with Sunset Electric, Dog 8 Dog, and Questing Beast.
Queen City Black Market. Courtesy photo.
The NHU complex is on the second floor of a suburban warehouse in Nashua. For several years it has served as a rehearsal space for Dead Harrison, the doom rock band Luna manages that’s led by her partner Andre Dumont. It grew into its present configuration when more room opened up and Dumont, experienced in construction, built out an expansion.
Its efforts to foster the underground scene extend to the Nashua arts community. NHU collaborates closely with the city, including participating in last year’s Fourth of July River Fest. They provided live music at the event and helped raise enough funds to feed 40 veterans, while drawing a crowd of 150 attendees.
Luna also serves on the Nashua Arts Commission, which meets monthly to facilitate, advocate, coordinate and educate on behalf of the city’s arts and cultural assets.
“A voice for underground or alternative music wasn’t there previously,” she said. “Now we’re bringing it to light, which is really exciting.”
All this supports NHU’s role as a one-stop shop for music professionals, Luna continued.
“People get advice on how to run their band as a business, how to do their taxes, how to market themselves, strategies for selling their products and merch branding. Anything you can think of that you can use to create a regular business, the same strategies can be used to create your music business.”
When asked to define “underground,” Eleanor Luna’s answer was as much about what it wasn’t. “Unsigned bands, independent artists, indie music, writers, anything independently driven … any genre really,” align with the term, she said. Ultimately, though, “Underground to me means anything that’s not of the mainstream.”
For the live music scene, mainstream was exemplified by venues who primarily book “cover artists that could make your club money,” she said. “Not that we’re not trying to make money … but it’s not the priority now. The priority really is to support the musicians. It’s almost like a labor of love.”
To that end, the majority of NHU shows are held at Terminus Underground, although they do promote some events below the border. The next one happens April 11, a Beats & Bridges hip-hop concert starring 6 Minds Combined at Koto Underground in Lowell.
Film from the underground
Johna Jo Toomey is a videographer, and her youtube.com/@johnajomedia archive is a treasure trove of punk and metal music, including full sets from many local shows. Toomey’s story reflects the scene’s tight knit community and the support it provides to its own.
“I got into punk rock as a teenager. I was drawn to the subversive lyrics, chaotic energy, and working-class ethos. It was also this mystical thing that I never got to experience in person because I grew up in a small farm town with no shows nearby. After high school, I moved to NorCal and earned my B.A. in photojournalism and cultural anthropology, so documenting (sub)cultures for posterity is really ingrained in me. It’s so important to have these archives to look back on, on both individual and collective levels. While living in San Francisco, I covered shows for local print media, and got to shoot some of my early favorites such as Social Distortion and Dropkick Murphys. Eventually I moved back to New England, and in 2017 I started photographing metal and hardcore shows near Boston. As a woman in a male-dominated space, I felt proud to be an active contributor instead of a passive observer (not that there’s anything wrong with that). When I started to focus more on hardcore instead of metal, I made the switch to videography, because everybody wanted to see the mosh pit, but nobody wanted to stand near it. Then in 2019 while filming a basement show in Lowell, Mass., I got punched by a crowdkiller and broke my nose and eye socket. What happened next was eye-opening (no pun intended). New England hardcore friends showed me love and support, and took care of me when I needed four surgeries in 13 months. Meanwhile, my other friends and family victim-blamed me and said, “you shouldn’t have been there, you should find better friends.” So then I doubled down and started a YouTube channel … I’ve been filming hardcore shows around the country ever since. My style is always evolving, but I’ve always been heavily inspired by gonzo journalism.
For Aaron Shelton, his business is a way to support the community he loves, not the other way around. When he began doing the emo-centric Live Free or Cry nights at Shaskeen Pub, his primary objective was to provide a gathering place for people who missed a bygone time the same way he did.
“I grew up in that community, I was in metal bands and post-hardcore bands and emo bands, so that’s where it comes from,” he said. “It’s not a cash grab for me, it is a revitalization of one of my most informative eras…. I think that for so many people, it is that same thing.”
In Shelton’s case, his evening of bands playing Get Up Kids, Taking Back Sunday and My Chemical Romance songs would turn Luna’s mainstream analogy upside down.
“A lot of these bands that play cover sets are original bands,” he said. “I’ve had bands tell me, ‘This has given us the opportunity to make extra money to pay for our recordings or meet bands that we’re playing original gigs with now.’ It still gives to the underground scene, and I think that’s one of the best parts about it.”
It’s also created a ripple effect. Down the street, smashburger restaurant BAD BRGR is offering live original music on multiple nights. Rob Kulingoski called the venue “the new saving grace for extreme music in New Hampshire.”
BAD BRGR owner Ian Tufts moved to Manchester a few years after opening in Hampton Beach just as Covid-19 upended everyone’s life. A musician himself, he held an all-ages hip-hop show in mid-2020 that ran afoul of social distancing requirements and nearly shut down his business.
His vision for the new location always included live original music.
“From the onset, we’ve totally been about embracing artistry,” he said by phone recently. “There’s such an energy that comes from original music, art, creativity. Harnessing that and allowing that to thrive, it’s so powerful.”
Tufts found help from a few area musician/promoters with shows there. Joe Chubbuck, who plays in both Ratblood and Bleach Temple, has been instrumental with booking. “He’s the most significant metal and hardcore promoter,” Tufts said, noting that he has help from his partner, photographer Ashley Seiferheld.
“I love the direction the scene is going in and love everything that Ian and BAD BRGR is doing,” Seiferheld said in a recent text exchange. She also co-hosts a podcast with Death’s Hand guitarist Ed Hamaty called Angry Advocate. “It’s about local artists and musicians, anything to bring more awareness to our scene.”
Others helping to fill the BAD BRGR calendar are Irongate lead singer Jeff Higgins, who’s booked some metal shows. On the indie/alternative side, Cade Earick, a prolific recording artist who’s also a producer and audio engineer, is doing promotion.
For many if not most, the underground scene goes beyond music and art; it’s a tool for survival.
Videographer Johna Jo Toomey, who frequently films Shaskeen shows, said that after a mosh pit injury in 2019, “New England hardcore friends showed me love and support, and took care of me. Meanwhile, my other friends and family victim-blamed me.”
Kulingoski credits the scene for helping his mental health. During his days running basement shows, he organized awareness days to support others in need.
“We would all come together and just talk about our problems and how much the scene has helped us, how much of a positive impact it’s had,” he said. “It’s so much more than just music. It’s art, it’s friendship, it’s small businesses. It really is a welcoming community that I think some people don’t know about, but it’s not hard to find out about.”
Upcoming events from the up-and-coming
New Hampshire Underground Terminus Underground, 134 Haines St., Nashua. Tickets: newhampshireunderground.org/shows. All shows 21+, BYOB, $15 general admission, $20 VIPizza tickets
• Night of the Fools, Sunday, March 30, 6 p.m. – Sunset Electric (punk-flavored alt rock), Dog 8 Dog (dual female fronted indie/alt rock) and Questing Beast (concept-driven metal) • Punk Rock Masquerade Ball , Saturday, April 12, 8 p.m. – Ragz to Stitchez (NH), Vallory Falls (Vermont), Marianne Toilet and the Runs (Mass.) and Lobotomobile (NH) • Requiem for the Apocalypse: A Death/Doom Metal Explosion, Friday, April 25, 7 p.m. – Dead Harrison, Oxblood Forge, A World Worth Burning and Swarm of Eye • Lily Angelique Desrochers (LAD) art exhibit, Saturday, April 26, 6 p.m. free • Music Industry Networking Night, Wednesday, May 7, 7 p.m. free
Kinetic City at Shaskeen Pub 909 Elm St., Manchester, facebook.com/KineticCityEvents
• Saturday, April 12, 9 p.m. — Gina Fritz w/ Anaria, Proelium and Arcantica, $10 at the door • Thursday, April 17, 8 p.m. — Showcase 603 w/ Black Hatch, 2000s, Cellar Door and Dead Time, $5 at the door • Friday, April 18, 9 p.m. — Candy Striper Death Orgy, Psycho and Summoning Hate, $10 at the door • Saturday, April 19, 8 p.m. — The Doldrums, Still Sleeping, Regals and Birds, In Theory, $10 at the door • Saturday, April 26, 9 p.m. — Live Free or Cry Emo Night w/ Heely & the Moon Shoes and A Blockbuster Summer, $10 at the door
BAD BRGR 1015 Elm St., Manchester; schedule at instagram.com/bad_brgr
• Friday, March 28, 9 p.m. — Street Trash, Wrought Iron Hex, Joe Grizzly and Abel Blood, $15 at the door • Saturday, March 29, 9 p.m. — Donaher w/ Better Sense and New Norde, $10 at the door • Friday, April 11, 9 p.m. — Guns of Brighton (punk), Sotah and Glue, $10 at the door • Friday, May 16, 9 p.m. — The Whole Loaf w/ Alana Corvette and Vale’s End . $10/door
Jewel Music Venue Canal Street, Manchester; find them on Facebook
• Saturday, March 29, 7:30 p.m. — A Night of Black & Death Metal with Angel Morgue (NH), Shitangel (Vermont), Infernal Occult (RI), Commuted (Maine) and Respiratory Secretion (Mass./NH), 18+, $15 at dice.fm • Wednesday, April 23, 7 p.m. — The Planet Smashers, PWRUP, Threat Level Burgundy, $20.77 at dice.fm
The Dana Center (Saint Anselm College, 100 Saint Anselm Drive, Manchester, anselm.edu) will present a staging of Guys & Dolls by the Anselmian Abbey Players starting tonight. . Today and Saturday, March 29; Thursday, April 3; Friday, April 4, and Saturday, April 5, the curtain goes up at 7:30 p.m. On Sunday, March 30, there will be a matinee performance at 2 p.m. Tickets are $20 for adults, $12 for Saint Anselm students. Visit tickets.anselm.edu.
Friday, March 28
Ally the Piper takes the stage tonight at 8 p.m. at Tupelo Music Hall (10 A St., Derry, 437-5100, tupelomusichall.com) with an electrifying bagpipe show that blends classic rock and heavy metal covers with fresh, original music. Tickets are $35.
Saturday, March 29
Symphony NH (6 Church St., Nashua, 595-9156, symphonynh.org) will stage performances of Hollywood Hits this weekend. There’s a show tonight at 7:30 p.m. at the Stockbridge Theatre (22-98 Bypass 28, Derry, 437-5210, pinkertonacademy.org/stockbridge-theatre) and another tomorrow, Sunday, March 30, at 3 p.m. at the Chubb Theatre (Chubb Theatre at CCA, 44 S. Main St., Concord, 225-1111, ccanh.com). This show presents majestic and beautiful music from some of the world’s greatest films of all time. Tickets at the Stockbridge Theatre start at $40 through the Theatre’s website, and tickets at the Chubb start at $35.75 through the Capitol Centre’s website.
Tuesday, April 1
Celebrate the2nd Anniversary of the opening of Nashua Center for the Arts (201 Main St, Nashua, 800-657-8774, nashuacenterforthearts.com) tonight at 7 p.m., showcasing artists from across New Hampshire’s rich performing arts scene. Enjoy performances by Nashua Community Music School String Ensemble, Ukestra, the Symphony NH Brass Ensemble, Ruby Shabazz (pictured), Y Dance in Motion, Peacock Players, and Actorsingers. Presented by Nashua Community Arts. Tickets are $10.
Wednesday, April 2
Join New Hampshire Humanities (117 Pleasant St., Concord, 224-4071, nhhumanities.org) today for “The Beginner’s Guide to Cemetery Sleuthing” at 7:30 p.m. at the Florence H. Speare Memorial Museum (5 Abbott St, Nashua, 883-0015, nashuahistoricalsociety.org/florence-h-speare-memorial-museum). Historian and author Erin Moulton presents techniques and teaches the meaning behind cemetery iconography, abbreviations and epitaphs. Copies of her book The Beginner’s Guide to Cemetery Sleuthing: Scavenger Hunt and Workbook will be available for purchase at the close of the program.
Wednesday, April 2
Tonight at 7:30 p.m. the Walker Lecture series presents the NH Ukeladies at Concord City Auditorium (2 Prince St., Concord, 228-2793, theaudi.org). This event is free and open to the public. Visit walkerlecture.org.
Save the Date! Saturday, April 5
R&B singer-songwriter and rapper Jeremih will perform at the SNHU Arena on Saturday, April 5, beginning at 7:30 p.m. Tickets start at $30 through ticketmaster.com.
Missy’s Closet Thrift Shop (13 Hazel Lane, Manchester, 978-7872, facebook.com/MissysClosetBoutique) is in the midst of its biggest event of the year, Free Prom Dress For Teens. Throughout the year the Missy’s Closet staff collects prom dresses, suits, make-up, jewelry and anything else teens may need for prom. These are given away to teens entirely for free, according to a press release.
QOL score: +1
Comment:Teens can shop for prom necessities at 68 March Ave. in Manchester on Fridays (4 to 7 p.m.), Saturdays (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) and Sundays (10 a.m. to 3 p.m.) until April 6.
Nevertheless, they persisted
As reported by WMUR in a March 19 online article, an Exeter coffee bar owner has used a negative review as a way to promote business. The shop, Flamingos Coffee Bar, recently received a two-star review online, with the comment, “Place was disgustingly pro women and just walking inside I immediately felt unwelcome as a male … probably wouldn’t return.” “Logan says she initially thought, ‘Ouch’,” the WMUR article read, “but her mindset quickly shifted from offended to empowered. ‘It’s actually a really great motto,’ she said. ‘It’s a great slogan.’” Since then, Logan has used the phrase “Disgustingly Pro-Women” sell popular merchandise with the motto on it.
QOL score: +1
Comment: See the “Disgustingly Pro-Women” merch at flamingoscoffeebar.com/merch.
Tolls, now 20 percent more annoying
In a March 19 online article, New Hampshire Public Radio reported that “the open road tolls in Hooksett on Interstate 93 will be closed starting in April until about Memorial Day. In the meantime, all traffic will be directed through the traditional cash and EZ Pass Lanes.” According to a March 18 press release from the Department of Transportation (dot.nh.gov) the shutdown is “to replace the full ORT system equipment. The anticipated start date is Tuesday, April 1, 2025, weather dependent. The work is expected to take approximately two months with an anticipated reopening prior to Memorial Day 2025.”
QOL score: -2
Comment: As recommended by NHPR, “Travelers can check traffic conditions at NewEngland511.org before heading out.”
Trophy fish
In a March 20 press release, the New Hampshire Department of Fish and Game (nhfishgame.com) announced the winners of 2024’s Trophy Fish Program. Two new state records were set in 2024. Douglas Shanahan of Laconia bested the former pumpkinseed mark with a 10.75-inch long, 1-pound 3.92-ounce specimen from Winnisquam Lake last May. Stephen Whisler, age 13, of Portsmouth, set a new state record for the species with a 21.75-inch long, 6-pound 4-ounce sea raven taken in the Atlantic Ocean off Hampton in July.
QOL score: +1
Comment:For a list of New Hampshire trophy fish, and to learn more about the program, visit wildlife.nh.gov/fishing-new-hampshire/trophy-and-record-fish-program.
QOL score last week: 60
Net change: +1
QOL this week: 61
What’s affecting your Quality of Life here in New Hampshire? Let us know at [email protected].
The Big Story: Baseball Arrives: Tough call — opening of the baseball season or the NCAA Basketball Tournaments as the week’s top story.
I’m going with baseball because for the first time in five years there’s legit optimism regarding the Red Sox.
As for the basketball, it doesn’t hold my attention like it once did thanks to the advent of one and done, the transfer portal, consolidation of the Power 5 Conferences and NIL money. On the women’s side even with its amazing improvement/evolution it’ll likely never grab me the way the men’s tournament once did. But here’s the good news: It’s a “to each his/her own” world, so everyone can watch whatever they like most! So enjoy.
Sports 101: Who threw the only complete-game opening-day no-hitter?
News Item – NCAA Hockey Regional at SNHU Arena: It kicks off Friday when it’s Boston College vs. Bentley at 2 p.m. followed by Providence vs. Denver at 5:30 p.m. The winners meet at 4:30 p.m. or 7 p.m. to see who goes to the Frozen 4.
News Item – Celtics Sold: The two most notable elements are (1) the $6.1 billion is the highest ever paid for a North American sports team, and (2) thanks to tension between him and WycGrousbeck, original partner StevePagliuca was by passed over in favor of some guy I never heard of. Most likely because he agreed to let Wyc run the team through 2027 and Pags would not.
News Item – MLB Stories to Follow: Seeing the astonishingly versatile “why can’t we get guys like that?” MookieBetts moving over at 32 to play shortstop for the Dodgers. TerryFrancona taking over in Cincinnati after retiring because he was “too beat up” to manage. Question: How do you get beat up managing? Can anyone stop the free-agent-heavy L.A. Dodgers with their monstrous $375 million payroll? The encore for Shohei Ohtani’s 50-50 season. Can he do it again as he returns to pitching? How the Yanks fare with their retool after losing JuanSoto to the crosstown Mets and a mountain of spring injuries that includes losing ace GerritCole for the year to TommyJohn surgery.
News Item – NCAA Update: A few notables.Two-time defending champ UConn went down in a great game, a 77-75 loss to top seed Florida. In the battle of UMass, ex-Minuteman coach JohnCalipari beat ex-UMass player RickPitino, who recommended Cal for that job in the ’90s, when Arkansas knocked off 2-seed St. John’s.
Bryant University, who not too long ago was playing in the NE 10 with SNHU and Saint Anselm, got skunked by Michigan State 87-62.
The Numbers:
.333 –spring BA of Sox SS prospect MarceloMayer with one homer, two triples and 11 RBI in 36 at-bats.
17.2 –strikeouts per nine innings rate Crochet had with 30 in 15.1 innings this spring.
888 – career goals for AlexanderOvechkin leaving him six shy of WayneGretzky’s all-time NHL record 894.
Of the Week:
Ignoramuses of the Week – The 2 percent of 4,003 voters who said the Bruins trade for TuukkaRask was bigger than the Celtics getting BillRussell in the Boston Globe’s Greatest Boston Trade Ever contest. Which was so big, I don’t know who they traded to get Rask.
What a Stupid I Yam Award – Me: For incorrectly saying in Sports 101 JoeDiMaggio won 10 World Series. He was in 10 but the Yanks lost to St. Louis in 1942, leaving YogiBerra as the only 10-time winner. Thanks to GilRogers of Bow for pointing that out.
Sports 101 Answer: On April 16, 1940, the great BobFeller no-hit the White Sox with 8 k’s in Cleveland’s 1-0 win.
Final Thought – Red Sox 2025: Things to be excited about:The trade that cost them four prospects but brought back lefty Crochet, who struck out people this spring at a NolanRyan-like pace. Second, free agent AlexBregman gives them two things they badly need: better D at third base and the kind of leader this young team needs.
The young core. With Jarren Duran, Triston Casas, Brayan Bello, Ceddanne Rafaela, Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony either here or on the cusp, the Sox have their best group of promising young players since the 1970s when guys named Lynn, Rice, Fisk, Evans, Burleson, Ben Oglivie and CecilCooper arrived one after another.
There are two big questions, though. How many innings can the former reliever Crochet pitch now that he’s the ace? And the bullpen overall, and especially who is the closer? While they are clearly rising up, they likely still are a year away. But with the AL East appearing to be wide open you never know. So it should be a fun year. Prediction: Sox go 88-74 and make the playoffs.
The Greater Manchester Chamber is holding a Taco Tour Manchester proposal contest for someone willing to propose at the Thursday, May 8, Taco Tour, which runs from 4 to 8 p.m. in downtown Manchester. The winner will receive an engagement ring from Day’s Jewelers (valued at $7,000) and professional photography to document the moment at the tour, the release said. Enter the contest at tacotourmanchester.com/proposal by April 30.
Egg!
The peregrine falcons at Brady Sullivan Tower in downtown Manchester welcomed their first egg of the season on the morning of March 22, according to the daily log. You can watch the couple and their progress at the Peregrine cam at nhaudubon.org/education/birds-and-birding/peregrine-cam, where the New Hampshire Audubon offers three live views of the nest with support of Peregrine Networks and Brady Sullivan Properties, the website said. The log also has a link to a document with basic information about the nest and a look back at previous seasons of peregrine falcons who have occupied it and the chicks that hatched there.
RIP to a K-9
The New Hampshire State Police Canine Unit announced the death of K-9 Wyatt, a Plott Hound who worked with the state police since 2015, according to a press release. Wyatt and handler Trooper First Class Kevin Devlin specialized in search and rescue as well as detection of human remains, the release said. “Wyatt passed away … after being diagnosed with an aggressive form of cancer that had spread throughout his chest and lungs,” the release said. “K-9 Wyatt was a cherished member of the New Hampshire State Police family, an essential part of the Canine Unit,” said Colonel Mark B. Hall in the release. “Today we mourn his passing and remember his years of exemplary service. Trooper First Class Devlin and K-9 Wyatt were instrumental in bringing closure to families throughout New Hampshire and beyond.”
Gardening & climate
The Atkinson Garden Club will host a presentation by UNH Master Gardeners Betsy Coes and Mike Koutelis on “Gardening in a Changing Climate” on Wednesday, April 2, at 6 p.m. at Kimball Library, 5 Academy Ave. in Atkinson, according to a club email. The event is free.
Sustainability
The Boys & Girls Club of Souhegan Valley (56 Mont Vernon St. in Milford) will hold the 2025 Souhegan Sustainability Fair on Saturday, April 5, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Bring a non-perishable food item to donate to the local food pantry SHARE, according to a press release. The fair will feature live music, food, a guided hike, a story walk, kids crafts, 34 exhibits, presentations and more, according to the release. Admission is free.
The Bach’s Lunch on Thursday, April 3, 12:10 to 12:50, at the Concord Community Music School, 23 Wall St. in Concord, will feature a lecture on “Raga Music Composition.” “Hari Maya Adhikari and David Nugent will present a lecture on traditional Indian string instruments and their use in the creation and performance of Raga music,” according to a press release. The event is free; see ccmusicschool.org.
Keep those St. Patrick’s Day celebrations going: Manchester St. Patrick’s Parade steps off at noon on Sunday, March 30, running down Elm Street from Salmon to Central. Join in the fun by running in the Shamrock Shuffle at 11 a.m. (a kids’ fun run starts at 10:30 a.m.). See millenniumrunning.com/shamrock for details on the 2-mile run/walk and visit saintpatsnh.com for more on the parade.
The Southern NH Skating Club will hold its “All the Best” 60th annual ice revue on Saturday, March 29, at 1 and 7 p.m. at JFK Coliseum (303 Beech St. in Manchester). Tickets cost $10 for adults, $6 for children and seniors. See snhsc.com.
The Nashua Garden Club will hold a workshop on figs on Wednesday, April 2, at 7 p.m. at the First Baptist Church, 121 Manchester St. in Nashua, with Jay Guarneri, who will discuss growing figs in cold climates, the different flavor classes of figs and more, according to a club email. Admission is free; see nashuanhgardenclub.org.
