Woods Hole Film Festival 2009

Whenever communities have gathered to mark the turning points of the year, song and dance have been central to the celebration. In Cambridge Massachusetts, the Charles River provides the focal point for a celebration of the autumnal equinox. Sponsored by The Charles River Conservancy with the musical organization Revels, RiverSing features five choruses and six soloists on the illuminated Weeks Footbridge linking Cambridge and Boston. Giant puppets on the bridge wave and sway to the music. On the riverbank parklands a multi-cultural, intergenerational throng of residents joins in the spirited singing of river songs. As lighted Sun and Moon boats appear in the gathering darkness, saxophone and vocal soloists with the massed choruses perform the stately River Hymn by Revels Music Director George Emlen. This fifteen minute documentary captures the essence of this remarkable community event.