Archive for April, 2008
Be sure to set aside some time to swing by the Obama offices on Wednesdays or Thursdays through May 29 to volunteer some time. Wednesdays and Thursdays Obamathons Our goal is to identify as many potential Obama supporters as we can and ask them to vote early. We had a good turnout last night. Hope some of you can join us there tonight. You are welcome to stay for as many (or as few) hours as you can spare. Feel free to bring a friend, and make it a fun, social event. First Obama Volunteers Meeting/Get Together Meet fellow volunteers who are working in the campus area and help us strategize how best to get out the Obama vote in your neighborhood. This get together will also provide an opportunity to explore different ways you can volunteer for the Obama campaign. Again, feel free to bring a friend.
The 4th semi-annual Childbloom camp is an immersion into creative play and exploration of music, dance, visual art, and theatre for young people ages 7-11. Our week is a trip around the world, traveling through the traditional songs, rhythms, stories, and dance of the U.S., South America, India, Africa, and beyond. A week-long exploration of music, movement, and story telling for young people ages 7-12 Activities will include: There will be optional aftercare & recreation available in the afternoons until 5:30 p.m. (there will be an additional fee for this service). Please pack a brown bag lunch for your child. Campers are provided with a healthy mid-morning and afternoon snack. Heidi Junkersfeld grew up training in tap dance, musical theatre, jazz and madrigal choir, and piano. She graduated with a degree in Physics and a minor in Dance. She has produced various multi-media shows that include artistic mediums such as dance, theatre, spoken word, music and visual art. In 2002 Heidi moved to Ecuador, and proceeded to travel, work, and study in 8 different countries in South America. During her travels Heidi studied Ashtanga Yoga, Capoiera, dance, traditional South American music, contact improvisation, theatre, and contemporary clown. She taught theatre and dance in several schools and Universities, as well as creating travelling multi-media performances all over South America. She now lives in Missoula, teaches yoga, works as the music and movement specialist at the Missoula Community School and the Missoula Community Resource Coordinator for the Missoula County Public Schools. She is part of the art collective Open Field Artists, and is one of the cocreators of the music duo Sueno Lunar. Nathan Zavalney is a trained and licensed Childbloom guitar instructor. He has been director of the Childbloom Guitar Program of Missoula since September 2000, specializing in teaching guitar to young students. He has 15 years of experience with guitar in classical, jazz, and folk styles. He has performed as a guitarist, vocalist, and percussionist in solo and group settings, including the world music group Drum Brothers and the Mo-Trans modem dance company. During his musical studies at the University of MT. he focused on composition, jazz studies, and classical voice training. Nathan has taught music to students all over the northwest in educational assemblies and in-class instruction, including two years as the music instructor for the Missoula City International School. He has taught private lessons for the last 7 years in both percussion and classical guitar. Nathan also runs Burning the Midnight Oil Audio Productions, through which he has created a variety of music for film, television, dance, and commercial CD release.
2008-03-29 Springsteen Seattle 1091 Originally uploaded by albabe“Nils just played my pants off!” she said as the band launched into “She’s the One”. I could see why, as Nils’ scorching guitar work on “Because the Night” lived up to the hype its been getting during this tour. As a Springsteen fan since ‘84, and a longtime tour veteran, I was proud of my friend’s newfound love for the band. “I just fell in love with Nils,” she said, and I knew I had a new convert. Her first tour, Abby drove with me 8 hours to Seattle from Missoula for her Bruce baptism. She was not originally a fan, and I tried to prime her on the drive over with as many of my Bruce CDs as I could grab on the way out the door. She did me proud, rocking out, singingalong with some of the songs she recognized, and even calling out “Waiting on a Sunny Day” before I recognized it. When we arrived at the venue, ticketless and soaked from the rainy walk over from the hotel, I was skeptical she would have a good time, though. I had bought tickets in the parkinglot before,paying well below face value for them. (The last time I saw The Boss, in Jersey, back in 2002, I paid $15). She, however, had never arrived at a show without tickets before, and was getting nervous after we had turned down three different scalpers asking $100 a pop. On our second pass around the complex, she was nearing her last nerve, so when the scalper walked towards us I was ready to deal. “Got tickets? Need tickets?” he said. “What do they cost?” I asked. “Don’t waste my time. What’s your budget,” he said. “$60,” I said. He countered, I countered. We ended up paying $140 for a pair in section 211.Nosebleeds, I know, but factoring in the “convenience charge” Ticketmaster charges, we still paid below retail.We made it into the venue, and she waited for another friend from Missoula who had been to the Portland show while I went to check out the seats. When I returned to them, we eventually balked at the $7 beers that we couldn’t take to our seats, and headed up towards our seats around 8. The show, slated to begin at 7.30, was finally underway just a little after 8.30.And what a show.
I had been warned that it was different from any E Street show I had ever seen, and those reports were right. Absent was Dany Federici, recovering from melanoma treatment. In his stead was Charles Giordano, the Sessions Band keyboardist and accordionist. Patty was also thankfully absent as well, back in Jersey dealing with the teenagers who had “kegs of beer rolling up the driveway, and 100 pizzas were delivered. Pot cookies were coming out of the oven. Patty’ll take care of that. She’s got that shit down.” At least she’s got something down. Lord knows she hasn’t figured out how to be a part of the E Street Band. From the flubbed opening strains of Jimmy Cliff’s “Trapped”, of which Bruce said, “A little panic, good for the band,” Bruce Springsteen helped us celebrate “the final curtain on eight years of magic tricks” for a little over two hours. It was a politically charged show, with a heavy focus on the new stuff. The favorites, some coming from scrawled request signs in the crowd, (“Tenth Avenue Freeze Out”), some coming as audibles,others, as evidenced by the handwritten setlist posted on brucespringsteen.net, were planned out. But “Point Blank”? Amazing. Sandwiched between “Your Own Worst Enemy” and “Devil’s Arcade”, this gem hasn’t been played with the E Streeters since June 14, 2003 in Denmark. The re-working of”Reason to Believe”, for me, was the favorite. Bruce re-invented it as a driving, foot-stomping rollick, haunted by his opening imploration to “SSSSHHHHHHHHH” before the harmonica intro, and punctuated by the haunting treatment of his voice through some sort of effects pedal. Incredible. I talked to ‘ole Abby today, and she confessed that she couldn’t stop singing Bruce all day.”When are you going to let me borrow some CDs?” she wanted to know. Wait until I give her,thanks to the power of the Internet, the entire show at 203 kbps. Thanks Bruce, and thanks E Street Band. |
