Less must-do. More want-to. | Spring 2023
Spring Semester at Duncaster
Duncaster makes it easy for residents to expand their intellectual horizons and share their enthusiasm for lifelong learning. Our affiliation with the University of Hartford brings college-level lectures and mini courses right to our campus. By offering a wide array of intriguing topics, taught by University professors, the Presidents’ College keeps minds active and engaged.
SPRING 2023 SCHEDULE
Impressions of the Heart: Songs of Latin America and Spain
Dee Hanson, Professor Emerita of Music Education, and the Entwyned Ensemble
Tuesday, February 21, 3:30–5 p.m.
Enjoy the passionate expressions and rhythmic delights of the music of Latin America and Spain brought to you by the Entwyned Early Music trio. Playing historic parlor and Baroque guitars, lever harp, flutes, and viola da gamba, they’ll be performing an exciting array of music, including Diego Ortiz’s Spanish recercadas.
Exploring Space: The Webb Telescope, Space Tourism, New Missions to the Moon
Paul Slaboch, Associate Professor and Chair of the Mechanical, Aerospace, and Acoustical Engineering department
Tuesdays, March 7, 21, 28, 1:30–3 p.m.
From how the James Webb Space Telescope is able to look further into the past than ever before, to what we hope to learn from the Artemis Moon Missions that we haven’t already, to space tourism and space travel for the masses, we’ll be taking a deep dive into America’s renewed interest in space.
The Psychology of Speed Puzzling
Elizabeth (E.B.) Caron, Assistant Professor of Psychology
Tuesday, April 4, 3:30–5 p.m.
The COVID-19 pandemic reignited interest in jigsaw puzzles and brought speed puzzling competitions online, allowing people across the country to compete together for the first time. E.B. Caron, a psychologist and speed puzzler herself, will present on how speed puzzling engages the brain, the cognitive abilities involved in puzzling and how puzzles may benefit aging brains. Learn how speed puzzle competitions work, and some key speed puzzling strategies you could apply to your next puzzle.
Just When You Thought You Knew Hitchcock…
Michael Walsh has chaired Cinema Departments at Binghamton and University of Hartford, where he co-founded the Cinema major and has taught film studies for 25 years
Mondays, April 10, 17, 24, 3:30–5 p.m.
Hitchcock remains the most famous director from Hollywood’s classic cinema era. This course looks closely at three of his most perfectly-achieved films: Shadow of A Doubt, Rear Window & North by Northwest. Walsh will discuss both his characteristic thematics (i.e. the innocent man wrongly accused, the adult male over-involved with his mother) and his expressionist visual style.
Melody Lingers On: A Short History of Tunes, From Beethoven to the Beatles
Steve Metcalf, former Presidents’ College Director, administrator, critic, journalist, arts consultant and composer
Tuesday, May 2, 3:30–5 p.m.
What makes a great melody? Do composers always know when they have created a great tune? Is a gift for melody related to formal music training? Are we running out of tunes? With Steve Metcalf illustrating his examples at the piano, we look at the abiding mystery and attraction of tunes, from the early 19th century to the present day.
Keep your mind engaged and satisfy your curiosity at Duncaster! To learn more about our lifelong learning opportunities or to sign up for a spring course through the Presidents’ College, call Lisa Greene, Vice President of Sales & Marketing, at (860) 380-5006 today.
