For nearly 30 years, a community singalong of “Messiah” was held at the First Congregational Church of Great Barrington toward the beginning of the Christmas season. The Nov. 26 performance marked the first time in three years it had been performed in person at the church since the pandemic started.
PITTSFIELD â Paula Hatch is not a classical musician, and while growing up, her tastes in music leaned more toward Lennon and McCartney than Beethoven and Stravinsky.
Her background was in education and administration â Hatch was the former executive director of the South Berkshire Educational Collaborative. But, that expertise has been a considerable asset to the Berkshires oldest continuously operating member-based music organization.
The New Marlborough resident is executive director of the Berkshire Bach Society, founded by the late local musician, music critic and author Simon Wainrib and which marked its 30th anniversary in 2020. Hatch, who holds a master s degree in education linguistics from a university in Japan, has served in her current position since 2004.