A Night at Caramoor with Suzanne Vega

Last week we got in the car and headed north to Katonah to spend an evening with Suzanne Vega at Caramoor. We had long talked about attending a concert there and it basically took one of my favorite artists to get us there. I’m a long time fan of hers, having loved her for the last 25-30 years or so (gulp!).

Okay that just aged me a bit. The first time I saw her was in my birthplace, Atlanta, GA, and I have seen her perform several times since in NYC, Westchester and at the Lilith Festival several moons ago. I love her song writing, the sound of her dreamy voice and the way she performs telling the story behind each song as she goes. I can even feel myself as a young girl listening to her music right now as I write this post, being transported back in time. She has taken several important issues important to the human race and written songs about them to raise awareness, like child abuse (watch the video at the end of this post) and I have so much respect for her.

But seeing her at Caramoor was an experience like no other that I’ve had. The concert was literally in the most beautiful setting ever, with the moon and sun gazing over all of us. The Caramoor Center for Music and the Arts is a former estate owned by Walter and Lucie Rosen (no, we’re not related). They hold classical concerts there throughout the year, as well as educational programs. Built in the 1940s, the main house is an imitation Italian villa. The estate features a collection of Renaissance and Chinese artwork, some rare. The setting makes you feel like you are in a faraway place, certainly not in the middle of Westchester or even remotely close to NYC.

Suzanne Vega played a slew of old songs, as well as new ones, along with Irish guitarist Gerry Leonard. I was surprised to find how many songs I was able to sing along with her: Caramel, Marlene on the Wall, The Queen and the Solder, to name a few. The evening made me feel grateful for singers like her who still choose to hit the road to join their faithful fans and drum up new ones. My only complaint about the Caramoor is that it does draw a quiet crowd, probably one that’s used to hearing classical music, so it was hard to sing along with her. Fortunately, the couple next to us was probably the only other die-hard set of fans and the woman sang her heart out, also deeply impacted by seeing Suzanne Vega once again. I hope to see Suzanne Vega again and again in my lifetime. She just brings me back to the center.

I leave you with this piece of nostalgia.