Flames raced through Berkeley’s iconic First Congregational Church Friday afternoon. The inferno was so intense part of the roof collapsed and,at one point, a firefighter was trapped, but later safely rescued. Besides a place of worship for 91 years the church has been Philharmonia Baroque’s east bay venue for more than three decades. As Philharmonia approaches their season opener on October 16th a search is underway for new sites for their performances.
The orchestra hopes to one day perform again at “First Congo” as it is affectionately known, but at present they ask Berkeley area subscribers and concert goers to sign up for regular email updates for the latest news about future performance locations.
You’ll hear the wonderful acoustic of First Congregational Church the second Sunday of each new month at 8pm on Philharmonia Baroque Orchestra Live in Concert here on Classical KDFC. We wish the Church a speedy recovery of the facility.
