Monday, January 30, 2006

One week to go to the Big Event and band today was a marked improvement on last week, except maybe for my knowledge of a couple of tunes. TIP: refresh yourselves on "The Big Ship"...thanks for screwing that one up for me Alex. There are so many details to be sorted, and as any event organizer can tell you, things seems to snowball in the last week. Apart from the time spent watching Morgan and Bryde cut foam for the drums today, it was a good practice. And, well that wasn't so bad either. This week a CD arrived in the post all the way from South Africa with video and mid-section materials from Kenna. Kinda warms your heart to know that on the other side of the world, someone is working away in their grass hut, fighting off lions, spiders and water-born parasites for the good of the pipe band! Thanks Kenna. We'll miss you at the Ceilidh. It will be good to have Dave Hicks and Ryan Sullivan coming from Calgary. Ryan is a Ceilidh veteran, of course, and Dave will be making his first appearance since leaving "the front row of Nirvana." Welcome to the front row of hell, buddy! And the rest of you, keep working on the music, and get baking. Next summer, when you're standing at the Park Bar ordering a pint, it will all seem worth it.

Monday, January 23, 2006

Band today was kind of amusing. We are cramming to get concert material ready for the The Mid-Winter Celtic Festival and combining learning tunes & scores with figuring out breaks & intros, and making decisions on accompaniment, harmony....

In truth, I really like this time of year. You can feel the band machinery start to work. New music happens, new people step up, and this year of course, we have shiny new drums, and the prospect of another Scotland trip in the works. Band fees are being collected, and people are already surfing the net looking for fares. It's all good.

I think this is going to be fun.

Friday, January 20, 2006

Prairie Bagpipes

I often read a traditional Scottish music forum at "Foot Stompin Celtic Music." There are a lot of performers who log in to banter back and forth. It is sometimes rude, but usually pretty funny and informative. Many of the regulars posters are also regular performers or enthusiasts on the Scottish music scene, so the banter and chat can be good.

Today, I read a post about "Stage Fright," which has been a subject at band for years, and which was a major factor in our crappy play at the Worlds last year. I wanted to refer you to the post, because it covers lots of ground, and there is one particularly good post from Margaret Stewart [a well-known Gaelic singer]. http://www.footstompin.com/forum?threadid=47721

Of course, I am an expert on stage fright. Or in other terms, maybe you could say, "I'm in recovery." There was a time [pre-1978...you know, before most of you were born] when I couldn't compete without throwing up somewhere. I would routinely dry heave while tuning up. What happened? I simply decided to stop. When I went to Scotland, and got the chance to play with a really good band, I knew that I either had to do it, or not, and that there could be no middle ground.

Since then, I still get nerves, but I can channel that into play, and it has become an enjoyable experience. At the recent Kansas City contest, I was nervous as hell all day, but knew I was well prepared, and I really enjoyed playing.

So why am I telling you this? I think a few band members need to make a decision about how they want things to go on the field, and then make it real. But maybe start with the forum postings above, and see that you are not alone, and that there are lots of ways people try to handle it. In the end, of course, we can't be successful as a band until you sort it out.

Tuesday, January 17, 2006

Was at the Winter Storm weekend in Kansas City, and while there was pondering what a great thing we have going here in Regina (and area, I know....sometimes a wide area, eh Dave?). So many of people at that event would absolutely love to play in a band like CRPB, or even hear one regularly. Yeah, we're not likely to "take out the Worlds" [as Seumas Coyne used to say in his SFU days] but we sure as hell have some advantages. The one thing that struck me was how much money seems to be available for some very basic bands in the USA. While we have a band rich in people with skills and dedication, we could surely use that USA ability to conjure cash. All those sparkly new pipes, drums, band chanters, uniforms, and TRAVEL. Sponsors needed. Apply within.
[Here's post #1 on the CRPB blog. Thought this might be a fun way to trial this, create some interaction, and develop ideas for the band.]

Sunday band was cancelled because the roads were too icy for people to get to band from outside regina, and we even had people in regina not wanting to make the trip because of the weather. Does band in Scotland ever get cancelled because of weather? It gets cancelled due to lack of sponsorship, but weather?