Taylor Concerts at Tanglewood Nearly Soldout

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LENOX, Mass. — James Taylor returns to Tanglewood this year for a series of concerts and workshops featuring guests including Sheryl Crow, Yo-Yo Ma and John Williams, as well as some of the legendary musicians from Taylor's band.

"James Taylor and Friends" events feature an intimate and informal evening with members of T his band on Aug. 27, two concerts by Taylor and his full band with  Crow and Ma on Aug. 28 and 29, and a collaboration between Taylor and the Boston Pops, featuring conductor Williams, on Aug. 30.

Other highlights include a percussion master class hosted by Vic Firth (Aug. 26), a roundtable discussion on popular music hosted by Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner (Aug. 29), and film screenings of  Taylor's 1971 feature film, "Two-Lane Blacktop," and his 2007 live-performance DVD "One Man Band." Taylor performed his first concert at Tanglewood 35 years ago on July 30, 1974, and has returned to the music festival 17 times over the years.

The Shed and Ozawa Hall are sold out for all three of the four scheduled concerts. There are only 1,000 tickets (both Shed and Lawn) still available for Taylor's performance with the Pops on Aug. 30.

Percussion Master Class, Aug. 26

Former BSO timpanist Firth will host a percussion master class in Ozawa Hall from 6 to 8 p.m. featuring Taylor band members and percussion greats Steve Gadd and Luis Conte. Admission is free to ticketholders to any "James Taylor and Friends" concert but class tickets must be reserved by calling 617-266-1200 and are subject to availability; they will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

The Band: Conversations Among Friends, Aug. 27

This event, which takes place at 8 p.m. in Ozawa Hall, will focus on the talents of individual members of Taylor's band. Taylor will be master of ceremonies for the occasion, offering insight and background information about the accomplishments of these legendary musicians. This event is sold out, with no remaining tickets available.

Taylor, Sheryl Crow & Yo-Yo Ma Concerts

Both concerts are sold out, with no remaining tickets available. Proceeds from both these performances will benefit Tanglewood and the Boston Symphony Orchestra. 


On Aug. 28, the screening of  "Two-Lane Blacktop" will take place following the performance. The film screening is free to that evening's ticketholders.

Roundtable Conversation With Special Guests, Aug. 29

Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner will host the discussion in Ozawa Hall from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Taylor, Crow and Williams will participate. Admission is free to ticketholders to any "James Taylor and Friends" concert. However, a roundtable ticket must be reserved by calling 617-266-1200 and are subject to availability and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.

Taylor, Williams & The Boston Pops, Aug. 30

Final concert of the Tanglewood season in the Shed; only 1,000 lawn and Shed tickets are available.

Taylor last collaborated with Williams and the Pops at Tanglewood in 2002. Members of the Tanglewood Festival Chorus will also participate. The 2:30 p.m. concert will be followed by two screenings of Taylor's "One Man Band, " at 5:15 and 7:15 p.m. Admission to the screenings is free to ticketholders to that afternoon's  concert; however, a ticket must be reserved by calling 617-266-1200 and are subject to availability and will be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis.


Lawn tickets for Aug. 30 are $21 and can be purchased at www.tanglewood.org; by calling SymphonyCharge at 617-266-1200 or 888-266-1200. There is a service charge for each ticket purchased online or by phone.


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A Boutique Hotel is Bringing Guests a Luxury Stay in Lenox

By Breanna SteeleiBerkshires Staff

LENOX, Mass. — A new Inn is bringing a boutique-style stay for visitors and locals to enjoy.

Owners, Sullivan Capital LLC, purchased the property, located on 135 Main Street, in 2024. After a year or renovations, Garden Gables Inn is open for business. 

"Garden Gables started off as one of the many Berkshire cottages, 1790 was the date on that, and it's always operated as an inn," said Hospitality Manager Yvonne Walton. "It's just a great gathering place and relaxation spot for people to come and get the feel of Lenox, and just slow down and enjoy the nature and the surrounding area...get culture and art and see some great concerts. I think it'll be a wonderful place, definitely does more of the upper-scale hospitality." 

Owners Niko Giallouis and Eric Sullivan bought the property from the former owner. Sullivan had his eye on Lenox since attending a wedding almost 10 years ago.

"I came to a wedding in Lenox, probably six or seven years ago. Personally, just kind of fell in love with the area, and I guess that's kind of how it got on my radar. So you know from that perspective, as we got into the hotel business out towards an area, it was a place I was kind of monitoring and waiting for the right property to show up."

After purchasing the two underwent a full renovation, a project that cost around $1.5 million. The building, first built in 1780, required some TLC. Sullivan's wife, Jessica, who owns Jessica Sullivan Design, designed the inn.

Sullivan said they installed a new roof, repainted everything, renovated the bathrooms, installed new floors, a new HVAC system, and new plumbing.

"We really touched everything from the outside...I mean, all the aesthetics and layouts changed a bit," he said. "As I said, put about a million and a half into it. All new furniture, fixtures, everything. The design's completely different. It wasn't a full gut, but it was a heavy, heavy renovation."

The two like to collaborate with local businesses, and they make a point to direct visitors to local restaurants, businesses, and attractions.

"If guests are asking for recommendations, our customer service team, our guest services team, will relay that kind of information. Even if we can call and make a reservation for somebody, happy to do it," he said. "We aren't doing breakfast, but what we do is we have partnerships with a lot of the breakfast places downtown. We actually purchase a gift certificates for each person each day, so that they can use that to go downtown."

Sullivan hopes that guests don't see their inn as just a place to sleep and dump their bags, but make it an experience for anyone who stays.

"We really focus on kind of the experience side of things, so again, we want to give you the best experience you can have here...and we want that not just to be the place you put your bag and go do things. It's important to think of everything," he said.

Sullivan said partnerships are important to their business and are a way to connect with locals.

"The local partnerships, I can't stress that enough, because no matter how much and how great the room is, people are still going to want to go do other things," he said. "So, I think it just benefits everybody if we're all working together and so forth, and supporting the community, being neighborly too, because we are surrounded by residential homes...But we really try to put a lot of blood, sweat, and tears, a lot of love into the building, all the details, really care about the senses," Sullivan said.

The Inn's check-in and reservations are completely online. When guests arrive, all they have to do is check in online and receive their code that they will use to enter their room. Sullivan hopes this helps create less stress for guests and gets them to their room as fast as possible, especially after a long trip.

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