Jazz & Poetry

what you need to hear

July 16, 2008 at 1:38 am Leave a comment

It’s 12:30ish on July 16, 2008 and I should either be sleeping or writing an article about what to do this weekend in the county where I live. Some of you live here, most of you do not, but if you’re reading this then this is for you.

You are an amazing person. Life is short and I hope you are enjoying every minute of it.

Over the next five days I will spend the majority of my energy giving eight performances in three different venues in hope that those people who share that time with me will feel refreshed and joyful from that experience.

Five of those performances will be playing the “soundtrack” for a group of children who have worked their butts off this summer to put together a production of C.S. Lewis’s “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe.” Behind these kids are an amazing team of “big kids” who have donated their time to this effort. Sam Lovelace has done an amazing job creating the visual world of Narnia. Marianne Carruth has wrangled these kids into intelligent three dimensional characters. More parents than I can name have spent countless hours painting sets, sewing costumes, painting faces, and whatever else needs to be done to help these kids shine like the stars they are on stage. I’m just the girl in the balcony surrounded by instruments adding the aural glue to fill in the remaining spaces. If you have time and are close by, stop by to see what a magical experience this community has created.

Tomorrow night after the matinee I’ll have the chance to sing my heart out and fiddle on the clarinet with Joanne Domka on her sweet smooth trumpet and Dan Petrella on his tender lovingly self-made plectrum banjo while folks enjoy the exquisite drinks, dinner, and desserts crafted by the talented chefs Steve & Ally Landon at Persimmons Bistro. (apologies to those poetic folks who find that sentence too dense for literature…but it is late and I am tired) Join us if you can. I plan to have fun and would love to see you having fun too.

The music will be turned up a notch on Friday when we add tuba, piano, and amplification to the mix at Rogers Park in Tryon. We’re opening for the dashing Russ Wilson and his exquisite Nouveau-Passe Orchestra who will continue with the joyful jazz after I head back to the kids at the theatre. I can’t even begin to explain how exciting this mix will be for me. Please feel free to heckle me since my favorite hecklers Ciro and Thomas are too far away add their spark to the evening.

As for you who are reading this and wondering what it all has to do with you….
Spread your joy where ever you can this week. I love you because there is something you do, that only you can do. Share that with others as much as you can. If you need some inspiration and are too far away to see me in person, check out what my other friends are doing.

I just had an wonderful visit with the current line-up of the Asylum Street Spankers. Find out when they are coming to you and catch their show. The lovely and dashing Henry (aka Dr. Crisp) stopped by to share his talent as well before heading off this week for a fresh line up of shows with the Squirrel Nut Zippers. Catch them if you can. I know I’m jonesing for some Firecracker maddness and Mad Tea Party rockabilliness or even some poetic juice from all of you amazing slam poets out there in this world. (I’ll start getting into trouble if I try to name too many names, but I’m talking about you in case you’re wondering.)

Get out there and do your thing…enjoy someone else doing their thing…and live life for all the joy there is this weekend. You deserve it.

Entry filed under: Poetry.