The Elysian Fields

What the Musical Day Cookout is:

Music. Food. Friends. Family. Music.

You listed "music" twice, where you gettin' all that thar music-stuff from anywho?

You. Me. Them. Everybody.

Bring your acoustic instrument - that lectricity stuff is limited, and aequitaslevitas hogs most of it - and come and play those jazz, funk, and progressive metal standards - like "Partially Written Tune in Some Key or Another" and "We Don't Have a Title for this Song" - along with the Lefty Valdez Band. Having fun is mandatory, musical abilities are optional, and percussionists would be nifty and if enough of them show up I can set up a fenced-in area for them to run around in while they're not playing.

Further details:

When? That'd be the 'today' of this entry: Saturday, May 31st. As much as I try to get things started early so clean up and shut down happens before dark, that never happens. What time will the event be? If you show up before 9am, maybe 10am, you'll probably sit out on the porch for a bit. Other than that, I'll fire up the grill around 1pmish or so. Music will start as soon as we drag all the gear down to the front porch, unless we decide to play up in aequitaslevitas' room or unless someone starts playing something earlier than that.

We'll have all kinds of food, all the usual suspects (burgers, dogs, as well as sausages and/or chicken) and maybe some other stuff like ribs. Use the signup sheet (that'd be the comments for this 'ere post) to indicate whether you'll be coming, what instrument you'll be bringing, and what kind of salad-snack-drink-dessert-so-on you'll be contributing to the feasting. In that way, you'll be able to see what others have and can coordinate so everyone brings something chocolate or something. =)

If you need directions - or want to verify that I'm in the part of PA that isn't a day away from you - feel free to e-mail me (ellyssian at Google's e-mail service).

Busy weekend.

In short: Friday, hosted a couple of bikers. Saturday, invented music. Sunday, moved mountains. Monday, cookout!

My brother and one of his brothers stopped by on their way across the country. Talked a bit, ate some food from Trainers Inn, and looked at their route. They spent Saturday night with my grandmother, and were in the Smokey Mountains for Sunday night. I expect there somewhere between there and Phoenix at the moment.

The Lefty Valdez Funk University Band had a practice session on Saturday and new & existing tunes were worked on, and a brand-spanking new tune was created.

Sunday, Justin and I relocated some two thousand pounds (conservatively estimated) of books from the garage to the cellar. Lots of other stuff went downstairs or upstairs or moved horizontally to make it all happen. My guitar rack was de-spidered and set up and still sounds as great - and, unfortunately, as unreliable - as ever.

With some research, we discovered M-Audio keyboards. They have a couple of exceptional instruments, and, conveniently, they're reasonably priced. Justin's saving for them, and I've added them to his wish list. I was guiding him towards their simpler semi-weighted digital piano, but as soon as he heard the vibes and strings on the hammer-weighted model he made up his mind. The 61-key MIDI controller would be a later addition that, when paired with a computer (a laptop, most likely), would give him exceptional capabilities for a variety of sounds.

Monday, we enjoyed the company of noone234, kk1raven, thefrogger, my future sister-in-law-in-law 1jadedhart & my brother-in-law, my niece, my father-in-law, and one of our neighbors. Food was simple fare - burgers, hot dogs, sausage with built-in onions and peppers, grilled corn - along with some homemade salsa from noone234, lemon cake from kk1raven (we officially gave her permission to try some other kind of cake for next time, provided she also brings the lemon cake! =) thefrogger brought some truffles that went over very well, and our next-door neighbor made some spinach dip that was very good.

After the meal, the Lefty Valdez Band set up on the Front Porch Stage and played through the portions of tunes we know. We did a little bit of work, extending noone234's bass parts in The Kraken and Sorrow's End. We also worked a bit on getting Rachel a clarinet part for Breezy. Justin and I both caught our nicknames on our first session - indeed, I haven't played the right-handed-bass-strung-lefty since then, so Lefty doesn't directly apply. I suppose it's still funny, considering I'm the only Righty in the household (Mr. B. is still Undecided.) Valdez referred to the vast quantities of valve oil needed for the trumpet - which is now in the shop and will hopefully not apply in the future. Yesterday, we coined names for the other two band members. Rachel's nickname came up from her occasional blasts from the clarinet - usually when she's frustrated, but sometimes by accident as well. She is now Squeaky, a name which Mr. B delights in calling her over. And over. thefrogger actually suggested noone234's name when he mentioned a flub - thus, we now feature Flubber on alto sax, electric bass, and - someday soon - C sax.

On the last Saturday of May, we'll be hosting our Musical Day Cookout.

Here be the official signup sheet. =)

The menu will most likely be traditional cookout fare. Salads, deserts, chips, drinks, and so forth will be up to you! Post here with what you'll be bringing.

The musical portion of the day will involve all manner of acoustic instruments depending on who comes and what instruments they bring - pianists, harpsichordists, and organists, no need to worry about lugging out your portable baby grand or pipe organ console, bellows, and piiiiiiieeeeeeeeeeeepsssssss, Justin's keyboard will monopolize the electrical supply and will be available. The purpose is fun, so no worries if you don't have one or more songs on the Top 40 and have yet to be featured on the front cover of Modern Ocarinist magazine (or whatever the appropriate journal for your instrument might be).

Saturday, May 26 - grill ignited @ 1pm (earlier if crowds demand it!)

I'll be postdating an identical copy of this for May 26, so it should be easy to find - I'll edit that one with a list of who's coming and what they're bringing as I find out! =)