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Here and There…Now and Then |
Youth Band
The youth band played at X-Factor last night (and did a great job, by the way). Dorothy was the lead vocalist. In kindergarten and first grade she wouldn’t go up front with her class for anything. Admittedly, this is a very friendly audience. Still, we’re proud of our girl. And she sounded great!
Carousel Rogues
I enjoyed hearing our friends, Caitlin and Zach along with the rest of Carousel Rogues play this evening up in Frederick. They leave tomorrow on their first mini-tour. Have a great time, guys, we love you!
I Will Survive
The renovations going on at home are nearly complete. It would be a bit of exaggeration to say they have been the worst thing we’ve ever been through. Nevertheless, they have been somewhat stressful. Most of the rest of the house has a thick layer of dust and of course we still haven’t found new homes for everything that had to be moved out. It’s worth it, of course, but that doesn’t entirely eliminate the negative aspects. But, as Cathy said by picking this Gloria Gaynor song on the jukebox at the Silver Diner, I Will Survive.
Mike and His Baritone
I went with our good friend Mike to music practice at church today. They don’t have their ensemble play often but when they do, he likes to participate, playing the baritone horn. He played trumpet in high school and college but he’s moved down the scale to the baritone. I don’t really know a lot about the various horns but I’m a big fan of them in terms of music. I’m also a fan of the lower registers, so the tenor, baritone, and tuba are favorites, just as the cello and double bass are in the string sections and the bassoon in the woodwinds. The ensemble playing this Sunday includes, in addition to Mike’s baritone, a tuba, trumpet, saxophone, clarinet, two flutes, two violins, and a piano. Those instruments were not picked in any scientific manner but are basically what people willing to play have to play. They sounded pretty good, though.
Shady Grove Ensemble
The ensemble played at church this morning and we really enjoyed the music. A few instruments are nice but there’s nothing that really compares to the depth and richness of an orchestra. Of course this doesn’t qualify as an orchestra, but it’s as close as a church this size is likely to get. It’s worth it. In addition to the saxiphone, trumpets, flutes, oboe, baritone, euphonium, and viola seen here, there is a trombone on the far right and another sax, a few clarinets, and more flutes on the left. On stage is a piano and drums. All in all, a very nice sound.
Worship
Dorothy and Anna have been planning to host a regular, bi-weekly worship night and tonight was their inaugural event. Attendance was light but for those who came, I think it was a really nice time. Dorothy and Adam played guitar (and occasionally the piano or the cajón, as Dorothy is doing in this photo). Greg came a little later and added the bass to the mix. We all used our phones to find the lyrics to songs we didn’t know. Eventually we’ll have something a little more organized, but it worked pretty well. This photo is a little grainy, because I didn’t want to use the flash. The ISO was set to 10,000, taken with a shutter speed of 1/80 second at f/4.5.
Old Time Jam
One of the events we enjoy at Rocklands Winery is their Old Time Jam. It happens roughly once a month and you can check out their calendar for specific dates. Bring a picnic dinner and enjoy a bottle of wine as a group of musicians play. It’s a very friendly atmosphere, the music is lovely, and the wine goes down very well. One of Dorothy’s friends joined in for the first time this evening, so that was an additional draw for us. In the summer they are out on the lawn but now that it’s getting cooler, they’ve moved into the barn.
Live Nativity
I’ve posted photos a few times from the worship night’s that Dorothy organizes. This week we had a live nativity. No farm animals this time, but everyone was encouraged to come dressed as someone from the nativity story. Amanda read the story and when your character was introduced, you went up to the manger to play your role. Between the readings, we sang Christmas songs that celebrated the part of the story just read. This is the band, who lead the singing. From left to right, Andrew, Dorothy, Adam, Michael, and Greg. I think it was safe to say a good time was had by all.