Evening of Fiddle Tunes

 

Today I worked on campus. I walked with Hardingfele at lunch and took some more photos.

Same tree.

I was feeling bad that I hadn't gone to see the tupelo at the Arboretum this autumn... and there's one at Allen Centennial Garden!

The Carillon through my office window.

Travalon went to Mendota County Park, which has been under construction but is finally open.

Then he went to Pheasant Branch.

There is a little ballerina bear at his job - so cute!

Tonight I went to Moldy Jam, and when it was my turn I was going to call "Rakes of Mallow," but the guy ahead of me requested something that someone said, "Let's follow that with 'Rakes of Mallow'!" So I fell back on my old favorite, "Butterfly," with "Kid on the Mountain" after it - boy, do I need to work on that one! People were very friendly and talkative tonight, and one woman asked for my contact info so we could get together and jam sometime. I am also planning to get together with Famie and the red-headed flute player to jam, probably on Friday night. (We are all so busy, it's hard to find a time that works.) They stick to the Irish tunes, but I'm going to all these other jams, the Quebecois one, and this one where they do a lot of old-time fiddle music. Tonight people said I should go to the really fast Irish session at Awildan, but I've been to it as a listener, and it's way too fast for me. Maybe not so much anymore... Tonight I brought the mandolin so she wouldn't feel left out, but it's so much easier to play fiddle tunes on the fiddle. Toward the end I got tired and gave up and tried to figure out the chords by ear. There's value in that too - I'm pretty good at picking out tunes by ear, but chords is another matter. Still, all this practicing is making a difference, I can feel it, and other people tell me so too. I will never be a professional musician, but it's a wonderful hobby.

Famous Hat