All the kids enjoyed delightful games and crafts presented throughout the day by the Life Lab Science Program including a “Plant Parts” skit, a “Manure to Meadow to Milkshake” skit, a “Bees and Honey” program, a paper pot seed planting station, and the making of flower necklaces. Delicious and healthy foods were provided by Café La Vie, Fat Cat Deli, Fruit Friz Smoothies, and La Brushetta. 

Fresh air, flowers, sunshine, great speakers, wholesome food, fascinating and informative demonstrations—the Smart Gardening Faire, with over 1000 attendees, was proclaimed a resounding success by all.

Maria Ezerova: St. Philip’s Accompanist and More!

The UCSC box office turned people away for two nights running the evenings Maria Ezerova played Rachmaninoff’s Second Piano Concerto. Intensity, excitement, and precision describe her musical expression. This St. Philip’s accompanist is not only an accomplished pianist, but a university teacher and seasoned performer who spends her summers and winter breaks performing, attending recitals, music festivals, and recording sessions of the great pianists of our time.

Maria first performed in the Small Hall of Moscow Conservatory at age eleven; she has performed widely through out the former Soviet Union, Europe, the United States, Canada, and Asia as a soloist, chamber pianist and harpsichordist. She has recorded for the Centaur and New Albion labels. Ms. Ezerova was raised among scientists and engineers who enjoy classical music. She credits her grandmother with inspiring her early years of study until she began Music College at age 15. Her aunt, a professional musician, musical critic, and author of music books and biographies, was also an inspiration to Maria.

After earning her master’s and doctoral degrees in piano performance from the Moscow Conservatory where she studied with Mikhail Pletnev, Lev Vlasenko, and Stanislav Neuhaus, curiosity led Ms. Ezerova to consider California for further post-graduate study. She completed a second master’s at UCSC in harpsichord under the direction of Linda Burman-Hall.

Perhaps it is not surprising that her favorite composers are countrymen Rachmaninoff and Tchaikovsky.  However, her interest does not stop there. Maria also enjoys keyboard repertoire from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, Classical and Romantic piano music, and compositions of the twentieth century. Bach, Schumann, Chopin, and Brahms are among the composers at the top of her list.

Smart Gardening Faire a Huge Success

On Saturday June 24th, the Monterey Bay Master Gardeners presented the first annual Smart Gardening Faire at Skypark which was co-chaired by St. Philip’s own Sheryl McEwan. 

The purpose of the faire was to present information to both individuals and businesses about safe, economical, successful, and satisfying gardening practices. All the gurus of gardening were there sharing their expertise on a variety of horticultural topics including water gardens, heirloom tomatoes, native plants, landscape design, plant propagation, water conservation, and even bats.

Adults milled through the marketplace tents perusing garden-related arts and crafts or stopping to chat with exhibitors from the the Dahlia, Iris, Rose, or Succulent societies.

There were plenty of fun, educational activities for the kids too. Some kids loved watching the enormous commercial compost grinder in action while others purchased gifts and played with the sheep in the 4H pen.