Confessions of a Ghetto Kitten

Here is a story about SACKBUTS just for Hardingfele: one of my teachers at Early Music Camp told us his friend went to Germany and was at a tiny old church where they had a sackbut choir. When he asked them afterwards how they afforded such lovely antique instruments, they were confused and said, "These are our church trombones." They did not realize the trombones had been sitting around at the church, being played by various musicians, since the Renaissance; they just knew the trombones played more softly than the "jazz" (i.e., modern) trombones they played with bands outside of church. How cool is that?

Early Music Camp is so much fun! I'm studying period tuning and period notation. And last night we all went to the observatory to see a binary star. This was part of the celebration of "500 Years of Galileo," so there was cake and coffee and, yes, a sackbut ensemble. Because really, what is a party without a good sackbut ensemble? Not just for church anymore!

On the way home I told the banjo player, her husband and kid, about the neighborhood restaurant of "Jerkns." The banjo player then noted the natural food store called "Hole Foods." You know the economy must be bad when businesses cannot fix their signs that burn out in such amusing and faintly off-color ways.

Proof that you can take the girl out of the 'hood but you can't take the 'hood out of the girl: after a long day of Italian Renaissance music, I was driving home in Erin Caitlyn O'Honda, who is really turning into a hooptie these days with her dented side and dying muffler. Then "The Humpty Dance" by the Digital Underground came on the radio and I cranked it. Good thing none of those Early Music types could see me in my beat-up, loud hooptie with the bass thumping! But I have to drive through kind of a hood to get home, so I fit right in.

Famous Hat