Sidetracks And Detours present PASS IT ON weekend walkabout Sunday Supplement 17
Sidetracks And Detours
present
PASS IT ON
the weekend walkabout Sunday Supplement
Sunday 10th September 2023 volume 17
The thousandth edition of Sidetracks And Detours is currently being compiled and we will publish details in next week´pages of the John Stewart ambience the pages will then carry. Meanwhile, though, we are confident you will enjoy today´s edition of PASS IT ON, which is already at volume 17 and even though it is only a weekly a supplement I have high hope it, too, will see a thousandth. Of course it highly unlikely I will be here to see that because that won´t happen until 2043 and my posthumous statue will have been standing long before then ! Nothing dwarfs work that has been researched and sheds light, and Michael Higgins ensures his pieces are thoroughly researched and elucidate. This week´s PASS IT ON also carries all the new listings from jazz in Reading, thanks to Jim Wade and Trevor Bannister, and jazz sounds from the clouds can be read of, then listened to, thanks a preview and a link from Steve Bewick. Steve Cooke, whilst wandering all across the arts, has taken the time to write us a review of a special classical music concert and Peter Pearson delivers his assessment of the career of Jimmy Buffett before Ralph Dent then reports on the artist´s recent sad departure. Norman Warwick again brings several island insights this week, as he goes climbing the moon and hears words for all before taking a seat from which he can enjoy the forthcoming Lanzarote Visual Music Festival.
CONTENTS
Researching History
Snow White and S’no More Dwarfs (or is it Dwarves?)
THE RE-MAKING OF A DISNEY CLASSIC By Michael Higgins
Live Jazz
THE SONG SESSIONS 2023 – Bishop’s Court Farm
preview by Trevor Bannister
JAZZ IN READING
Nigel Price Trio at Crowmarsh Jazz preview by Jim Wade
JAZZ IN READING
Tcha Limbergerr, Monday 24th September
The Crooked Billet, Preview by Jim Wade
JAZZ ON AIR
HOT BISCUITS served by Steve Bewick
live classicval music live classical music
LIVE CLASSICAL MUSIC
SCOTT BROTHERS review by Steve Cooke
A Reader´s Perspective on Jimmy Buffett
ALL POINTS FORWARD by Peter Pearson
Obituary: JIMMY BUFFETT rest in peace
Ralph Dent echoes a tribute
ISLAND INSIGHTS : by Norman Warwick
CLIMBING THE MOON:
a new photo by Juan Méndez from Lanzarote
published by National Geographic
WORDS FOR ALL Poetry book launch
LANZAROTE VISUAL MUSIC FESTIVAL 2023
BITS AND PIECES
Rochdale Light Orchestra by Graham Marshall
Fine Press Poetry by Andrew Moorhouse
THANK YOU
to Maria Welsh
Researching History
Snow White and S’no More Dwarfs
(or is it Dwarves?)
THE RE-MAKING OF A DISNEY CLASSIC
By Michael Higgins
The Childrens and Household Tales or Kinder und Hausemaerchen published in 1812 by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, contained 86 tales collected largely from women friends of the two brothers.
They were intended to show the folkloric storytelling art of the German speaking inhabitants of what we now call Germany. Enlarged by another 70 tales in 1815 and reaching over 200 by the final edition of 1857, the tales, collected by The Brothers Grimm (left) and others unleashed the hidden nursery and childhood world of Little Red Riding Hood (Rottkapchen), The Frog King or, in English, Frog Prince, (Frosch Koenig), Hansel and Gretel, Rapunzel, Rumpelstiltskin (Rumpelstilzchen) and, among so many others, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (Sneewittchen)
I often read the tales today to help me improve my German. The language is deliberately simple and straightforward though its style may be archaic. For instance Sneewittchen (little snow drop) is often written in modern German as Schneeweisse (Snow White). It is the latter tale that is the subject today, and will be more so next year when the Walt Disney Studios remake of its earlier 1937 adaptation of the Grimm story comes to our cinema screens. The current film is set as a musical fantasy while the original was filmed as an animated cartoon strip full of kindly dwarves who foster the abandoned snow white as a child. The wicked stepmother- queen is wicked, possessing a beauty -seeking mirror, and there is a handsome prince and a bevy of benevolent woodland animals.
photo 2 Snow White has the necessary white- as- snow face with rosy cheeks, and she does sing a plaintive plea that ‘One day my prince will come’. At the end of the film the kiss from the prince awakens Snow White from her coma induced by the poisoned apple, the murderous wicked step mother falls of a cliff and Snow White , the ‘fairest of them all’ marries her prince and presumably lives happily ever after.
Well that was the studio success version of 1937 and it made Walt Disney (right) and Studios a lot of money and presaged future cartoon films such as Cinderella and Bambi. And it gave a rather saccharine version of the original children’s tale, which was rather dark and menacing. It would seem that the saccharine version is not what Disney is all about today however, with ’live’ actors and a musical setting replacing the animation in the soon to be released remake. The son of the original director, David hands (also called David) says the new Disney remake not only misconstrues the original story but need not be done. Why try to re-do the already classically perfect? He recalls talking to the actress who voiced the original Snow White in the first film who bristled at anyone claiming her character wasn’t feminist. The new production team disagree.
Hence a ‘woke’ version starring Latina actress, Rachel Zegler, whose cheeks are not so white, playing Snow White, The Israeli actress Gal Gadot as the evil queen step mother, and Adam Burnap as a new character called Jonathan (replacing the traditional Prince). Martin Klebba plays the only dwarf, the other six being replaced by ‘magic animals.’ Rachel Zegler says her character of Snow White will be a woman who grows into the leader she really is with no need of any dwarfs to look after her or a Prince to give her a ‘non-consensual kiss’ to bring her back to life from a coma- induced poison apple. She damns the traditional prince lover of Snow White in the first film version as ‘a guy who literally stalks her’ and claims that the new film is ‘not about a love story after all’. Sigh…. another bout of male bashing from chip-on the shoulder femmes? Possibly, but possibly not. We will have to see when the film comes out in Spring next year.
5 I think Brother Grimm readers would disagree with Zegler – well certainly this reader would. Surprisingly this original orally transmitted fairy tale and its companion tales were passed down to the Grimms mainly from servants and acquaintances of friends of the Grimm family. And those friends were women. Only two of the tales came from the Grimm brothers’ own childhood, and all the tales contributed by men were dredged up from archives and not told to them by storytellers.
One aristocratic family had seven of these story- telling and collecting daughters and the whole feminine saga of the origin of the tales is aptly described in Valerie Paradiz’s book Clever Maids: The Secret History of the Grimm’s Fairy Tales. As she reveals, the background of nearly all the tales is domestic anxiety, servitude, and plucky resilience. Plotting, scheming, and yes, waiting for that prince to come. Indeed Wilhelm Grimm married one of these clever maids, Dorothea Wild, known as Dortchen (little Dort). The Wild family were close neighbours and friend of the rather overworked Lotte Grimm, the only sister among five boys. These tales of feminine resilience and sometimes overly good or overly bad ladies and girls were at first criticised by scholars as being too dark for children and the Grimms felt obliged to soften them.
For instance in the first edition Rapunzel has to ask the wicked witch why her clothes were getting tight some months after the Prince’s visit to her tower via her hair. And the sexual tension of Little Red Riding Hood (a male wolf on the prowl) was long seen as a warning to guileless maids.
As for Snow White, the 1812 story has her mother accidentally pricking her finger and dropping blood onto a snowy windowsill whilst sewing. Seeing the blood bright against white, she wishes for a child with ‘skin as white as snow, lips as read as blood, and hair as black as ebony’. Her wish comes true and the girl becomes Snow White. Alas the mother turns jealous when the girl becomes prettier than her. In future editions her mother dies and a Wicked Step Queen marries the widowed but rather invisible king after the mother dies. She possesses the beauty-seeking mirror. Jealous of the child’s beauty she orders her huntsman to take the child out and kill her, bringing her heart back for her to eat as proof. But it is the males in the story who come to her rescue. The huntsman is too taken by the child’s innocence to kill her and instead leaves her to the kind animals in the woods. She strays into the male seven dwarfs’ house and messes it up. But the Dwarfs, who return from their gold and silver prospecting in the mountains, are struck by her beauty and her innocence, and become her guardians.
The wicked queen finds out where she lives, and despite several warnings by the Dwarves, innocent Snow White, now a grown beauty, lets the Queen fool her into dangerous transactions which threaten her life. Eventually she is fooled into eating a poisoned apple and falls into a death like sleep. Thinking her dead, the dwarfs seal her in a glass coffin. A passing prince and his hunting retinue see the beauty within and the prince arranges for the coffin to be borne home to his castle. His servants stumble with it and the tilt dislodges the poisoned bit of apple in Snow White’s mouth. There is no kiss. She stirs; the prince tells her what has befallen her and proposes marriage. She thanks him and accepts. Later the wicked Queen hears via her mirror that a new queen is now ‘the fairest of them all’ and goes to the wedding out of curiosity. She finds out to her horror that the new queen and beauty is Snow White and shakes with terror and rage. She is made to dance in red hot slippers left for her on the burning fire-grate and she dances herself to death. As I said, ‘tis a dark tale indeed.
How Rachel Zeglar would portray a truly ‘woke ‘role in this new film anyone’s guess. If she is true to the original story she needn’t worry about a kiss awakening anyone either. For the original tale would appear not to be about merely Snow White’s physical beauty, but her inner innocent beauty that is ‘white as snow’. Whether or not Grimm’s Snow White and her prince did live happily ever after is also anyone’s guess. The Grimm story does not tell us. But the Disney Studio re-make seems to be more about scoring points off their original 1937 viewpoint than enhancing the ethos of fairy tale, which as everyone knows is set in the magical world of ‘Once Upon A Time’ where love and romance coexist alongside jealousy and greed. Grimm’s time was the Napoleonic Wars and the Freiheitskampf (Freedom Struggle or War of Liberation) against the French Occupation, and the subsequent re-constituting of German society and its folklore. Zegler’s time is one of seemingly endless debate of the nature of womanhood in a ‘patriarchal society’ where any concept of feminine beauty is a male construct and not a true feminine ideal. I think the Grimm family’s female informants would have more to say on this point if we could ask them.
On their behalf I might just buy a cinema ticket to watch the new Snow White in the spring, seven dwarfs, or dwarves, notwithstanding.
Live Jazz
THE SONG SESSIONS 2023 – Bishop’s Court Farm
opening 17th September with ELAINE DELMAR
preview by Trevor Bannister
Legendary vocalist Elaine Delmar (below) , voted Jazz Artist of the Year in the Parliamentary Jazz Awards for 2023, will be heading-up a keenly anticipated autumn season of star-studded Snug Sessions at Bishop’s Court Farm, Dorchester-on-Thames, when she appears at this unique venue on Sunday 17 September.
In just a year the Snug Sessions have grown from a kernel of an idea in the minds of three kindred spirits with a passion for jazz – Keith Ives owner of Bishop’s Court Farm, Mayank Patel, founder of Hampstead Jazz Club and the Lateralize record label and Jonathan Wingate, erstwhile spokesman for no less a giant of music than David Bowie. – to an established place in the live music scene of South Oxfordshire.
“Keith has transformed Bishop’s Court Farm since he became the owner of the beautifully located 300-acre estate in 2019,” explains Jonathan Wingate, co-curator with Mayank Patel of the exciting programme scheduled for the new season of Snug Sessions. “A ‘state-of-art’ barn conversion has created a marvellous performance area for live jazz as an essential feature of his broader vision to open-up the estate to the community,”
“I can’t believe how lucky I am to be working in this environment and with these people,” Wingate continues. “Other members of the rural community have sought to diversify by promoting rock, folk gigs and festivals on their farms, just think of Glastonbury. We’re unique in presenting jazz; in our case the best on the contemporary scene from Hampstead Jazz Club.
“Jazz music might be rooted In an urban setting, but its organic nature lends itself perfectly to the countryside. Besides, our audience, a mix of hard-core jazz fans and those who simply love live music, enjoy the space here. It’s a lovely place to meet friends in a relaxing atmosphere and to enjoy the locally sourced food and drink, not to mention the chance to hear world class music at a fraction of West End prices.”
It’s no wonder that the Snug Sessions have built up a strong and loyal following in such a short time. “We have a fantastic graphic designer to produce our posters and flyers, but apart from that we don’t advertise our events,” Wingate admits. “Word-of-mouth is the key to our success … and the ‘proof of the pudding’ as they say, is in our sell-out audiences.”
The consummate artistry of Elaine Delmar, honed on the international stage over the decades in the company of the world’s greatest musicians and arrangers, epitomises the quality of music on offer in the new season of Snug Sessions at Bishop’s Court Farm. Her incomparable interpretations of the Great American Songbook hold the promise of an evening to treasure on Sunday 17th September.
The season will continue at fortnightly intervals until 19th November with a stellar roster of artists . . .
On 1st October the incredibly talented young trumpeter/vocalist Freddie Bennedict returns to the Snug by popular demand after a sensational debut last year with an invitation to join him and his fabulous band for an evening of timeless jazz standards, Brazilian sambas and contemporary pop songs.
Another Snug favourite, Jo Harrop, arguably the greatest jazz singer in the world and recipient of the 2023 Parliamentary Jazz Award for Best Album of the Year – When Winter Turns to Spring with Paul Edis, will be guesting with guitarist/vocalist Marcus Bonfanti for a barnstorming ‘Blues Explosion’ that should lift the roof of Bishop’s Court on 15th October.
Zoe Francis has been described as the ‘link’ between the classic vocal styles Peggy Lee and Blossom Dearie as she seamlessly switches from sultry swing to heartbreaking ballads. Zoe will be joined by legendary guitarist Jim Mullen and an all-star rhythm section to present ‘Midnight Sun – The Great American Songbook’ on 5th November.
Jordan Jackson will bring the season to a storming close on 19th November when the ‘American Soul Train’ rolls into Bishop’s Court, a funky tribute to the famous American TV series which ran for more than 1000 episodes from 1971 featuring such giants of R & B and Soul as Aretha Franklin, James Brown, Prince and Stevie Wonder. Jordan’s mellifluous vocal tones will leave you spellbound!
Full details of the Snug Sessions 2023 are available on https://www.bishopscourtfarm.com/snug-sessions/.
The family-friendly Bishop’s Court Farm welcomes visitors at all times. Why not check out its café, 60-strong alpaca herd, host of horses, pigs, sheep and goats as well as a range of other facilities and activities on
https://www.bishopscourtfarm.com/
Live Jazz Listings
JAZZ IN READING
Nigel Price Trio at Crowmarsh Jazz
preview by Jim Wade
Saturday 23 September
Doors 6.45pm | Show 7.30pm.
Tickets – £15 (£5 concession, details below)
| Nigel Price (above) is one of the most highly regarded and in demand guitarists on the UK jazz scene today. He spent three years with UK funk legends – the James Taylor Quartet, was voted No.1 in the 2016 British Jazz Awards for “best guitarist” and is also a regular performer at Ronnie Scott’s, where he’s played around 600 times His blend of flowing bebop lines and deep blues feeling has made him popular with jazz, blues and funk audiences across the world. In addition to his live performances, Price has released several critically acclaimed albums as a bandleader, including ‘Heads and Tales’ and ‘Wes Reimagined.’ He is known for his ability to seamlessly blend various jazz styles, including bebop, blues, and Latin, into his playing.He is considered one of the top jazz guitarists in the UK and continues to be a major force in the genre. Nigel will be joined on stage by bassist Raph Mizraki (Jamie Cullum, John Etheridge, Luis D’Agostino) and drummer Winston Clifford (Courtney Pine, Bheki Mseleku, Carleen Anderson). There will be a bar and stoned baked pizza on offer. Doors open at 6.45pm and the show starts at 7.30pm. Venue: Crowmarsh Village Hall, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, OX10 8ED BOOK HERE: https://crowmarshjazz.co.uk/buy-tickets £15 standard ticket price. Tickets are reduced to £5 for anyone living or working in adult social care and anyone in receipt of benefits from DWP – please get in touch for details: Email – fleur@fleurstevensonjazz.co.uk Phone – 07795974223. Crowmarsh Jazz pays all musicians properly and supports the campaign for fair pay for musicians. Crowmarsh Jazz: www.crowmarshjazz.co.uk Together helping to KEEP MUSIC aLIVE! JAZZ IN READING Tcha Limbergerjç Monday 25 September, The Crooked Billet, Preview preview by Jim Wade Arrive between 6.30 – 7.00 pm (pre show dinner) on stage 8.30pm Full regular menu, £25 music cover charge Tcha Limberger (below) was born into a renowned Belgian family of manouche gypsy musicians. He grew up in the world of gypsy swing style of Django Reinhardt & over the years collaborated with many of its leading performers. Extremely talented multi-instrumentalist – possibly best known for gypsy swing fiddle. The Crooked Billet has been lucky enough to know Tcha for 25 years – he first performed with the entire Limberger family – an astonishing breath taking evening. Blind from birth – Tcha counted the band’s cash after their gig. He occasionally plays in the trio Three Blind Mice. The Sunday Times heralded Tcha with the accolade ‘The Polymath Virtuoso Tcha Limberger is the King of gypsy music’. Dave Kelbie, prolific rhythm king hot club swing guitarist, has accompanied every celebrated Gypsy jazz guitarist in the world and has released numerous hugely acclaimed gypsy jazz albums. Parisian double bassist Sebastian Giradot is in wide demand across Europe playing with all the jazz & gypsy greatest and enjoys an international reputation by recording with all the iconic jazz labels. Expect an evening of mind blowing gypsy swing influenced with rhythms reflecting the trio’s love of Louis Armstrong, Artie Shaw & Jimmy Noone. Naturally with Tcha’s background, there’s plenty manouche gypsy jazz & Django tunes. Spectacular. Top of their game. As good as it gets. World class.For further information, tickets & table reservations contact the Crooked Billet on 01491 681048 / 682304 or paulclerehugh@thecrookedbillet.co.uk Best regards The Jazz in Reading Team |
Jazz On Air
HOT BISCUITS by Steve Bewick
Hot Biscuits will this week by co-hosted by my good self, Jazz Broadcaster Steve Bewick (right) and my researcher Gary Heywood Everett. Together we will take a listen to the recently released Unfurl CD from Olivia Moore.
Olivia is dedicated to fusing jazz and classical Indian music and she composes for and leads her own groups.
Olivia is an encouraging tutor in Western Classical and in Indian music (Hindustani Violin).
Her ongoing band Unfurl, From which her new album takes its title, is an innovative quintet who collaborate, drawing particularly from their influences of Jazz and Indian. They have appeared at Manchester, Marsden, London and Brecon Jazz Festivals as well as at venues such as the Bridgewater Hall Foyer and the Birmingham Symphony Hall Foyer, Sage Gateshead
Combining jazz, Indian and Arabic Rhythms the music of the new album, UNFURL is informed by a desire to create meaningful work. Inspired by nature and Buddhist ideals, the music has been described as ‘transcendental’, ‘organic’ and ‘divine’ by critics.
Olivia Moore (left) met percussionist Adam Warne in 2003 while he was performing Leeds. Seeing his passionate enthusiasm he instantly became first choice for the band. His sensitive approach to music and his ability to play just the right thing at just the right time made him a perfect fit with Unfurl. On guitars Jim Faulkner is an extremely accomplished musician and adds harmonic depth and beauty to the band alongside Gavin Barras, who is currently one of the most in demand bass players in the North West, regularly touring internationally with his own groups. Gavin’s infectious enthusiasm has been another welcome new addition to the band since he joined earlier this year. Finally John ball is a specialist in Indian music and is the mastermind behind many of the more complex percussion solos and breaks that have recently found their way into Unfurl material. In partnership with Olivia’s vibrant violin playing, John brings colour into the band with his Tabla and Santoor.
Unfurl have performed at the Manchester Jazz Festival (2006), Marlborough Jazz Festival (2008), Marsden Jazz Festival (2008), Square Chapel Arts centre (2008), Otley Courthouse theatre (2008) and Seven Arts Centre (2009).
In the summer of 2009, Unfurl produced ‘Mask’, an exciting collaboration with the visual artist Mark Cameron-Minard and two sound-artists, Antti Saario and Philip Reeder. Commissioned by Manchester Jazz Festival and performed at the Contact Theatre, this project was the realisation of a long-held dream for Olivia. Please see the ‘review’ section for a write-up on ‘Mask’.
As Gary and I are are riding in tandem in you can expect an even greater than usual fusion of different genres and musical styles, that is well worth catching. Also featured in the broadcast is will music from Tasos Gkoumas with a Peruvian dance. Tasos by the way has crearted a playlist for Spotify that is well worth checking out.
There will also be a track from the famous Benny Carter. Harry’s Bar from the Keith Singleton Trio. and we will finish with Sue Rynhart, if we are running to time!
If this looks interesting see the link below and PASS IT ON and then catch the broadcast anytime at www.mixcloud.com/stevebewick 24/07
logo live classical music
SCOTT BROTHERS at Rochdale Parish Church
review by Steve Cooke
Music lovers recently enjoyed a wonderful opportunity to experience high class music in an iconic setting right in the heart of Rochdale. Jonathan and Tom Scott have released a YouTube video of Handel’s “Arrival of the Queen of Sheba” recorded in Rochdale Parish Church.
Acclaimed keyboard duo Scott Brothers Duo presented a piano duet concert, at Rochdale Parish Church, St Chad’s, which covered the entire keyboard spectrum with thrilling music for four hands at one piano.
The programme included original works as well as thrilling transcriptions of well-known classics, including Handel’s Arrival of the Queen of Sheba and the Adagio from Rachmaninoff’s Piano Concerto No. 2.
PROGRAMME
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) arr. Scott
Arrival of the Queen of Sheba (Sinfonia from Solomon HWV 67)
George Frideric Handel (1685-1759) arr. Scott
Ode for the Birthday of Queen Anne HWV 74 – Duet “Let rolling streams their gladness show”.
Franz Schubert (1797-1828)
Fantasie in f minor D 940 Op. 103
Sergei Rachmaninoff (1873-1943) arr. Scott
Adagio Sostenuto (from Piano Concerto No. 2 Op. 18)
Francisco Tárrega (1852-1909) arr. Scott
Recuerdos de la Alhambra
Isaac Albéniz (1860-1909) arr. Scott
Asturias (Leyenda)
Alexander Borodin (1833-1887) arr. Scott
Polovtsian Dances (from Prince Igor)
Rochdale Parish Church, Sparrow Hill, Rochdale OL16 1QT
Visit: rochdaleparishchurches.org.uk
Brothers Jonathan and Tom (left) perform internationally in instrumental combinations which cover the entire keyboard spectrum, including Piano Duet, Piano & Organ, and Harmonium & Piano. Their online performance videos have totalled over 65 million views.
Recent and forthcoming performances include concerts across the UK, as well as Spain, France, Germany, Sweden, Belgium, Norway, Latvia, Romania, Poland, Switzerland, Taiwan, and Singapore.
In 2019 Scott Brothers Duo won the ECHO (European Cities of Historical Organs) competition to create a performance which introduces the pipe organ to a young audience. Their project combines animation and organ music and will be performed at major festivals across Europe. In 2023, they were invited by the Royal Canadian College of Organists (Launchpad Series) to film a special online presentation in Montreal, Canada about their career.
Born in Manchester, Jonathan and Tom both studied at Chetham’s School of Music and at the Royal Northern College of Music (RNCM).
Tom Scott read Music on the joint course at The University of Manchester, gained the Sir Thomas Beecham Medal for Excellence in his degree, and achieved a distinction in his Masters degree. He made his concerto debut with the Hallé Orchestra, aged 17, with Prokofiev’s Piano Concerto No.1 at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. Tom is also a keen artist and animator and creates animations to accompany live classical concerts. This has led to many exciting projects (including commissions by the BBC) and concert performances with orchestras and ensembles worldwide (Canada, USA, Taiwan and Australia). As a composer, Tom’s work ranges from instrumental to acousmatic compositions and audio/visual works, and his music has been performed across Europe and USA. He completed his PhD in electroacoustic composition at The University Of Manchester (supported by AHRC funding).
Jonathan Scott continued his studies in USA and Holland, won the coveted Worshipful Company of Musicians WT Best Scholarship and gold medal, and is a Freeman of The City of London. Jonathan has been a member of the keyboard staff at RNCM since 2001 and is Associate Artist of The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester. Recent performance highlights have included solo and concerto appearances in Denmark, Hungary, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Switzerland, Poland, Singapore, Spain, and Taiwan as well as the the world premiere of the new organ concerto ‘6000 Pipes!’ by Sir Karl Jenkins. Jonathan also recently gave a series of Concerto performances and tours with the National Chinese Orchestra of Taiwan and the Hong Kong Chinese Orchestra, as well as a solo evening organ recital broadcast live from the Royal Albert Hall, London for the BBC Proms.
Visit www.scottbrothersduo.com
A Reader´s Perspective on Jimmy Buffett
ALL POINTS FORWARD
by Peter Pearson
I have been interested to note outpouring of obvious love and affection for sing songwriter Jimmy Buffett following his recent passing.
Whilst bought a couple of his early L P’s, because I liked Come Monday and Margaritaville, I never really became a great fan. I also liked his later song, Volcano. but not the album of that same name. In general, I felt his music was really all about his Florida lifestyle and his parrot-head followers, which didn´t carry such resonance on the rainy outskirts of Manchester. I don’t think Buffet’s music travels well over here and the rest of Europe. Not only is it about the Florida topography and lifestyle but also the cuisine.
However, a few years back I was rooting through the CD shelves in Longsight Library and came across a Don Henley CD called -One of these Nights. Being a big Eagles fan I was surprised I had never heard of it before. Turns out the Library had bought a bootleg. It was a bootleg of a Concert for Walden Woods organised by Don Henley and with support from Jimmy Buffet who was also managed by Eagles manager Irving Azoff.
The Walden Woods Project (WWP) is a non-profit organization located in Lincoln, Massachusetts, devoted to the legacy of Henry David Thoreau and the preservation of Walden Woods, the forest around Walden Pond that spans Lincoln and Concord, Massachusetts. It was founded in 1990 by musician Don Henley to prevent two development projects in Walden Woods. Its mission has since expanded from conservation to research and education on the works of Henry David Thoreau. In 1998, the Thoreau Institute at Walden Woods was founded as part of the Project; today its library houses a collection of Thoreau-related resources.
The album consists of Don Henley singing live his own and Eagles hits and there are spoken interventions from Buffet and two glorious versions of Volcano and Margaritaville.
So yes I like some of his songs, none of his albums and none of his live concert vids. I don’t think he is considered an Americana artist in the broad sense. Yes a singer songwriter
So I never saw seen Jimmy Buffett play live, though there is evidence´ on social media that he has twice performed in the UK, and apparently one of those appearances was at The London Palladium.
MN Media reported a few years ago that Jimmy Buffett, best known as the composer of such classic songs as “Margaritaville,” “A Pirate Looks At Forty”, “Come Monday” and “Cheeseburger In Paradise”, was to return to the UK for the only the second time in 20 years.
I know he has done book visits at Waterstones in Manchester.
In 1984 Tootal sent me to Canada on 3 months secondment and the plant manager at the factory there used to invite me to his house for week-end cross country snow ski ing (I was hopeless) followed by home-cooked supper. After the meal he would play all his Jimmy Buffet LP’s for me. He could not believe that I was familiar with his music. My main memory of that period in Toronto is of how, in early January of each year, it was the practice of many Canadians to escape their harsh winter and take a couple of weeks holidays and motor down from Toronto to Florida; with a 4 day drive to get there that they treated as part of the holiday. Of course, in 1984 Buffett seemed to have become King of all her surveyed in that part of the world, and was adored by the State and its people, for aiding and abetting the aeroplanes and weather in bringing crowds froom Europe simply by extolling the virtues of the life stule. in 1984 they had massive satellite dishes in their back gardens beaming in USA product. It should also be said that the many live concerts he played were hitting the satellite dishes sprouting up on every roof top in Canada at that time..
Apparently all that Florida sunshine caught up with Buffett and he contracted skin cancer, although remarkably he was delivering concerts as late as last March with his Coral Reefer Band.
It was perhaps what attracted his enormous niche fan base, but Buffett allowed his lyrics to reflect the perceived (from afar) life style of Florida. This led to a title and a lyric that I know didn´t please my otherwise pretty broad-minded dad. Why Don´t We Get Drunk And Screw might have sounded enticing in a Florida hedonistic community, but it wasn´t a line you could comfortably sing along woith in the car, unless you were alone.
I know you are of the belief that there is an incredible Heavenly Choir taking shape somewhere ácross the great divide, where Townes Van Zandt is turning Heaven into a Hell of a place, and Kate Wolf is dancing down those muddy roads, alongside John Stewart, stilll running through those Elysian Fields, still with the heart of a kid
Meanwhile, though, a pretty damned good choir has just paid tribute to the late Nanci Griffith by recording a collection of her songs.
Artists include
Sarah Jarosz You Can´t Go Home Again
Billy Strings/Molly Tuttle Listen To The Radio
Mary Gauthier More Than A Whisper
The album itself is also entitled More Than A Whisper and is due to be released on Rounder on 22nd September.
Now that is an album i am really looking forward to hearing
Obituary
JIMMY BUFFETT rest in peace
Ralph Dent echoes a tribute
Accomplished singer/songwriter, beach-loving businessman, and best-selling author Jimmy Buffett has died. He was 76 years old.
News of Buffett’s death broke in the early morning hours of September 2 with an announcement shared on his social media pages and official website.
“Jimmy passed away peacefully on the night of September 1st surrounded by his family, friends, music, and dogs,” the statement reads. “He lived his life like a song till the very last breath and will be missed beyond measure by so many.”
Through his tropically-inspired blend of folk, country, rock, and pop, Buffett cultivated a trademark sound that lured in generations of dedicated fans, lovingly known as “Parrotheads.” Although best known for light-hearted and wildly infectious hits like “Margaritaville” and “Cheeseburger In Paradise,” Buffet was an immensely gifted, versatile, and profoundly influential artist.
Born in the sleepy coastal town of Pascagoula, Mississippi, Buffett spent much of his childhood in Southern Alabama before spending short stints at multiple Gulf Coast colleges. Following his graduation from the University of Southern Mississippi, he made his way to Nashville in hopes of launching a career in country music. He forged a friendship with fellow singer/songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker, who invited him on a life-changing excursion to Key West.
It was during that first visit that Buffett fell in love with coastal living and island-influenced instrumentation. That passion would sustain throughout his remarkable life and career, embedded in everything from his music to his popular “Margaritaville” chain of restaurants and resorts.
Over the decades, Buffett released 29 studio albums, published three No. 1 best-selling books, raised millions for charitable causes, and performed for sold-out audiences worldwide.
Last fall, Buffett halted his remaining 2023 The Life on the Flip Side – Redux Tour dates “due to health issues and a brief hospitalization,” according to a press release.
In May, Buffett was again hospitalized with an unspecified health issue, forcing him to postpone a concert in Charleston, South Carolina. A few days later, he shared a message to fans confirming he was recovering at home with full intentions of rescheduling the concert date.
“Once I am in shape, we will look at the when’s and where’s of shows. I think playing is as therapeutic for me as it is for fans to listen and sing along,” Buffett shared in a post to his Instagram account. “You all make my life more meaningful and fulfilled than I would have ever imagined as a toe-headed little boy sitting on the edge of the Gulf of Mexico.”
Buffett had been teasing an upcoming album release in recent weeks through social media posts and special segments on his Sirius XM station, Radio Margaritaville.
Funeral arrangements and memorial service details are expected to be announced in the coming days. Buffett is survived by his wife, Jane Slagsvol, daughters Savannah and Sarah, and son Cameron
Thank you Peter and Ralph for the above contribution-
Look out for two more pieces about Jimmy Buffett in next week´s daily editions of Sidetracks And Detours.
logo Island Insights:
CLIMBING THE MOON:
a new photo by Juan Méndez from Lanzarote
published by National Geographic
leaves Norman Warwick is star-struck
This photograph is now the seventh that the globally-known and prestigious National Geographic magazine has publishes about the charms of Lanzarote, but none beforfe, surely, can have been quite as spectacular.
The prestigious National Geographic magazine republishes one of the wonderful photographs of the photographer from Lanzarote, Juan Méndez Quesada . After its recent publication and recognition in the magazine of the snapshot ‘Jameito. The blind crab of the Volcanoes’ last June, a night image in which you can see the iron figure of the crab located in Los Jameos del Agua, accompanied by the sparkle of stars as a background to increase its beauty.
On this occasion, the photograph ‘Climbing the Moon’, published by the magazine this Thursday, has once again been recognized for its originality and for the splendor with which the artist has captured the moon. A photo taken from the Mirador de Guinate , located in the north of the island, which is already the seventh snapshot published by the magazine about the charms of Lanzarote
.According to what Méndez told National Geographic, “it was not an easy task” to capture the moment: “I spent several months visiting different places on the island of Lanzarote looking for the ideal place to take the shot. We could not find flat stones with the appropriate height and measurements proportioned with the size of the climber. In addition, we had to coordinate that, during its transit, the Moon would be perfectly framed behind it”.
In his Instagram account, he adds that it was possible to capture the moment thanks to a friend who posed for the photo: “I feel grateful for the patience of my friend Jesús, who posed at that moment to help me capture the idea I had in mind.” .
Island Insights
Poetry
WORDS FOR ALL book launch
review by Norman Warwick
Because car parking spaces In Puerto Del Carmen are in notoriously short supply around the harbour, and because the surrounding streets are narrow and busy and somewhat steep for walking up and down among the crowds, especially for a not so sprightly anymore guy of seventy one (the previous day) we decided to only take our micra half the , from Play Blanca, and park about mid-route at the harbour of Puerto Callero. On our frequent holidays before coming to live on Lanzarote eight years ago, we used to refer to this, lovingly, as Millionaire´s Boatyard. Now that we are citizens of this island we walk around as if any one of these boats could be ours, and as if one of the spaces in any of the several good size car parks is reserved for us.
Nevertheless, we walked past the yachts in the marina and strolled instead through the rows of shops selling clothes and accessories for the sailors of those vessels. One mannequin was modelling an outfit of shoes, trousers, button-shirt, jumper, scarf and cap that I really liked,… until I realised the price tag I had thought was not too expensive for the whole caboodle was actually just the cost of the scarf. I hurried Dee along so that she wouldn´t make a similar mistake.
We rounded the corner form the shops out on to the harbour´s most far-flung seaward perimeter, to where the Water Bus, was waiting to offer us a ´taxi ride´ that would take us a bit further north to Puerto Del Carman. We had about a ten minute wait whilst other passengers came aboard. Like about ninety of the previous hundred days the temperature was in the early thirties, the blue sky was endless and the views from the open deck out to sea and across to Fuerteventura were fanstastic
However, as the boat vessel chugged into reverse and then spun round on a sixpence we were offered a view right up the coastline to our destination in Peurto Del Carmen. Some of the cliff top buildings of hotels, and houses nearly as big as hotels, were all gleaming white in the lovely sunshine, that also added an aged grandeur to the imperious and impervious edifices that could not be conquered. A gentle, cooling breeze saw what we English call white horses trotting across the ocean and there was enough swell and dip on the water to make the ride feel like we were on a children´s roundabout at one of the island´s annual funfairs.
There were single sail yachts around us, jet skiers, motor boats, para-glider riders and even small fishing boatscompleting a perfect Degas scene.
It was a lovely trip and certainly beat half an hour of driving round looking for car parking spaces,, although of course had it not been height of the tourist season we might not have opted for what was quite a little adventure.
As our Water Bus turned into its destination of the harbour of Peurto Del Carmen, we fell into a conversation with a couple of holiday makers we overheard oohing and ahhing at the quaintness of a busy harbour full of working boats of all kinds, and marvelling at the colourful bustle of it all. Dee explained to them about how an annual festival, Nuestra Del Carmen, celebrates Our Lady Of Carmen, the Patron Saint of sailors and fishermen. This event attracts thousands lining the harbour walls and nearby beaches to watch hundreds of bunting-festooned boats of all kinds, from one man fishing skips to Boaty McBoatfacve type tourist trip boats, head out to sea. There is a lead boat, selected each year and carrying a statue of Our Lady to lead this flotilla out to sea to a suitable boat park visible to all those spectators on the shore lines. A priest on the lead boat delivers a Mass and blesses all boats at sea, and the boat then carries him back to the harbour with all the other vessels following closely behind. We invariably hear a good natured cheer for the priest, when he ´jumps off the boat and ´wades in the water´ (to quote the old spiritual song) back to terra firma.
Our story told, we disembarked the Water Bus with our forty or so fellow passengers. It was now around 4-15 pm but the event we were here to see wasn´t due to start until 7.00 pm, and the venue was only fifty or so yards away from our dis-embarkation point.
Fortunately in that fifty yard gap was a restaurant that looked perfect and which had obviously been hugely re-furbished since our previous visit. Where once had been a couple of rickety chairs, and an ice cream stall, there was now La Veleta Restaurant, sitting proudly on the harbour side, boasting a 360 degree panorama of the whole harbour and hinterland. So, then, time for a not so quick pint.
We were absolutely dead in between peak meal times of 1.00 pm and 7.00 pm, and this being a restaurant not a bar, our only fellow diners were four members of staff, having a snack and no doubt a well-earned rest after what surely would have been a busy lunch tme period.
I ordered a pint of beer, ´served deliciously cold, please´ and boy, it was, in a frosted glass. Dee asked for a dry white wine and the charming waiter offered her a tasting of a Lanzarote wine from Yaiza,….. she ordered it ! After about forty five minutes of watching a harbour at work and play we were ready to order food. The same waiter explained there was also ´fresh fish of the day including Sea Bass and, did he really say this, parrot fish?. Something may have got lost in translation. there, though Dee tells me there is such a thing !
So, I settled for safety and ordered the ´broken egg´ which is not the scrambled egg you might think it is, but rather is a fried egg, or two, served on thinly sliced fried potatoes, with slices of sausage and red peppers all chopped up into a fry-up that might sound ´brunch-like´ but actually when done as perfectly as this, is dining at its Michelin Star finest. It was wonderful
My wife had the same, with the added tastes of octopus and prawns and caramelised onions. (no wonder she needed another glass of wine to what that down with !)
I wasn´t sure I had room for a dessert, but I wasn´t going to break the habit of a well-rounded life-time , so I ordered a creamy, ice-creamy dish recommended by our friendly waiter who seemed almost to be serenading us as he sang along to Spanish songs on the venue´s playlist. I also ordered a ´non-alcoholic´.
When I had finished my dessert, our waiter offered us a free ´shot´ but impressively remembered I was drinking non-alcoholic. He offered Dee a long list of powerful stuff for her to choose from (vodka caramello being her final decision) and then apologised he could only provide me with a blackberry as a non-alcolic. I was slightly disappointed until I tasted,………it was so good, with titanic blocks of ice and fantastically refreshing.
We´ll be cack we told him, after we had settled a bill for only fiufty euros !
For now, though, it was time for our poetry reading event, serving as a book launch of Palabras Para Todos, to give it the correct Spanish title (the language in which the book is written) and which we English might call Words For All.
As we stepped into the hall there were already thirty or so island residents milling around in the usual smart-casual style for such events, but we could see no sign of our friend Mercedes Mingeula, who we knew to be one of the organisers of this event. She made an elegant, but bustling entrance with several people obviously following her, and suddenly the audience had doubled. She obviously knew just about everyone in the auditorium as she moved around the room to them all to say hello. She came over to us, too, as Dee has been for several years a member of a weekly yoga group instructed by Mercedes. I know her too, and last year in November I interviewed her for these pages to preview the first Lanzarote Poetry Festival. I also recited at that festival a version of my own poem Doing The Spacewalk, the only English performer at the event.
We were thrilled when Mercedes called over Berbel, the co-ordinator and compiler of this great new anthology. When she noticed we had already bought a couple of copies of this new publication at the merchandise table she asked if she could take them to sign for us. She returned several minutes later, with the ornate ´signatures´ shown in our photograph.
When giving us back our signed copies she described the book to us as a collection of eulogies to women; both to individual women and to women as a species.
Of course it is common practice for poets to use women or a woman as their muse.
The “muse” in literature is a source of inspiration for the writer. This could be someone they know or a direct reference to the traditional Greek muses. E.g. The poet turned to his muse for inspiration.
The on-line Literary Hub reminds us that it is more than 125 years since the birth of Vita Sackville-West—poet, novelist, and noted muse and sometime lover of Virginia Woolf. Muses, in general, are a tricky proposal—there’s something inherently sexist about the trope of women being objectified and artified by men (see Ruby Sparks, etc.), but there’s no denying that a forceful enough emotion (or a forceful enough person) can change the course of an artist’s work. Artists and writers are often romantics, you know.
Plus, as a culture, we are bizarrely obsessed with the “truth” behind our favourite fictions, ever desperate to unpick inspirations, infiltrations, author’s disguises, and yes, muses—though whether this is a particularly useful way to evaluate art or not is up for debate.
This new compilation features only men writing in a tribute to women. and over 150 writers from all over The Canary islands have contributed original work to the book. Berbel is herself, a well known and much respected poet (and a great friend of Mercedes, (who would be the only female reader here tonight, standing-, in due to unforeseen circumstances).
It was interesting for me as an English poet, unable to understand a word of Spanish, to listen instead to the emotion and the cadence, and how the readers conveyed mood and emotion. Competetive poetry slams have become a big thing in England, but don´t always fit comfortably on the traditional poety recital scene., to which tonight´s event adhered.
Tonight´s readers avoided such dramatics and delivered in a way that allowed the words to speak for themselves. The dignitaries at the table would occasionally either preview or review a reading to make a literary point or social comment perhaps, and at least one reading was also hand-signed (are you reading this Katie Haigh?)
It was a good idea to have a question and answer session at the end from audience to readers. I have seen and heard so many of such sessions as these tumble over into squabble and argument but the top table trio that also included Jorge Liria, the editor of the book had no need to intervene in a polite debate.
This closing session of the evening reflected the overall professionalism of the whole event, and so I should also offer compliments to the ´sound man´ who not only controlled volume etc from his mixing desk at the side of the stage but also had to occasionally skip over to the microphone to adjust its height for the different readers: He did all this rapidly and unobtrusively. Even at the end when he was having to dart in and out of the audience to facilitate the q & a session, he did so in the same calm and professional manner.
All of the top table dignitaries of compiler, editor and a lady with a name or title I couldn´t catch made obviously informative interventions throughout the evening, and we left reflecting on how the event had had been delivered with just the right amount of gravitas and reverence.
We were amazed when we saw the scramble at the taxi rank, but we managed to tumble into a taxi (an automobile this time), and to leave the madding crowd far behind as we were driven to where we had left our car on the harbour at Peurto Callero. A ten euro fare including tip seemed fair enough, and as it was still only around nine o´clock there was just time for another beer and a glass of wine before we set off on what should have been a twenty minute journey back home.
However there was a festival on inYaiza, (we could see the laser lights from miles away) and so the town centre, (a half mile stretch of road) was closed and were directed instead along the five mile outer ring road that goes behind the football ground.
Just what you need going home from a poetry-reading,……a five mile di-VERSE-ion
Island Insights
Lanzarote Visual Music Festival 2023
preview by Norman Warwick
El Lanzarote Visual Music Festival celebrates a new edition in 2023. This extraordinary artistic event, created in 1989 at the proposal of the artist Ildefonso Aguilar, bases its approach on the integration of avant-garde musical proposals with different artistic languages, all in perfect harmony with the special characteristics and singularities of the captivating natural scenic spaces of the island of Lanzarote.
The perfect integration of new music and the island’s volcanic landscape aroused, from the beginning of the festival, the interest of contemporary musicians such as Brian Eno or Michael Brook. 34 years later, the Lanzarote Visual Music Festival 2023 knocks on the door.
The photograph right shows Pura Marquez, who will be participating in Night Time Birds
Lanzarote Visual Music Festival Program 2023
The 18th Lanzarote Visual Music Festival will concentrate its programming between October 10 and 21 with a musical section and another dedicated to cinema.
Island Songs, by Baldvin Zophoníasson
Island Songs is an audiovisual portrait of Iceland, the native country of Ólafur Arnalds. At its heart, this project explores the people, places and music of that island and that influence Ólafur as an artist. Over the course of seven weeks, Ólafur Arnalds will travel to seven very different locations in Iceland, one per week, to record a series of new compositions. At each location, Arnalds will collaborate with local artists to create and perform a new song.
WHEN AND WHERE
Buñuel Hall of El Almacén. Tuesday, October 10 and 17 at 20:00 p.m
Tickets:Free and free, but with mandatory reservation
Uma Elmo in Jameos del Agua
Uma Elmo is the new trio by Danish guitarist Jakob Bro, a project that exudes poetry, expressiveness and subtlety and which, against the usual speed of contemporary oblivion, defends the craft of the storyteller.
For this purpose, Bro is accompanied by one of the most original trumpets in jazz, whose zen expression and flute timbre make it unmistakable: that of the Norwegian Arve Henriksen.
WHEN AND WHERE;
Jameos del Agua Auditorium. Wednesday, October 11, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 15 euros. Online shopping
Diego Barber & Graig Taborn: Tales
Although some years have passed since the publication of Such, this work continues to be one of the main endorsements in the career of guitarist Diego Barber. Its publication, in 2014, marked the consolidation of the rabbit guitarist as a recognized jazz musician, receiving praise from the specialized press and the most prominent critics of the jazz scene, naming the album as one of the best of that year..
Now, with Diego as host and Graig as a special guest, this surprisingly imaginative duo revisits this work to stage it in the impressive Jameos del Agua auditorium to let us be seduced by the measured nature of improvisation, precision, restraint and Sometimes stoicism.
WHERE AND WHEN: Jameos del Agua Auditorium. Saturday, October 14, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 15 euros. Online shopping.
Akane & Pura Márquez: Night-Time Birds
Solo project by Carolina Machado from Tenerife, best known for her role as drummer and singer in the psychedelic space rock group Gaf y La Estrella de la Muerte. in herdebut Night-Time Birds Released in 2023 by Keroxen, Akane reimagines a fictional soundtrack from an unrealized road movie, creating a highly personal musical language comprised of vintage pop songs, lush ambient landscapes, and lo-fi West Coast electronica with a nod to the imaginary. dream by David Lynch.
In addition to her debut album, in 2023 Akane also participates in the annual compilation Radar Keroxen Vol.4 focused on the work of experimental artists from the outermost European regions and in which she represents the Canary Islands. Since the release of her debut, Akane has already appeared on several programs on RNE3, Italian Radio3 and the British BBC Radio 6.
WHERE AND WHEN: CIC The Arrecife Warehouse. Wednesday, October 18, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 5 euros. Online shopping.
Christina Vantzou, Michael Harrison & John Bennett
The self-titled double album by Christina Vantzou, Michael Harrison and John Also Bennett, released in September 2022, will be presented live for the first time at our Festival. This work presents a set of compositions and improvisations inspired by the Hindu raga arising from a fertile collaboration centered on deep listening and resonant spaces.
Live, the pieces and improvisations are amplified, using structures developed during their collaborations to turn them into living compositions, turning the performance auditorium into a space for deep listening and contemplation.
WHERE AND WHEN: Jameos del Agua Auditorium. Thursday, October 19, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 15 euros. Online shopping.
Moisés P. Sánchez: Tractatus
Music meets philosophy in a fascinating sonic exploration, Tractatus, presented by the virtuoso Moisés P. Sánchez. Based on Wittgenstein’s Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus, a fundamental work of XNUMXth century thought, Sánchez creates a musical dissertation that approaches this complex work through the language of musical composition.
Imagine experiencing the solitary process of the philosopher: his creation of both logical and intuitive thought, all translated into music through a piano. With styles that span classical, jazz, electronic, twelve-tone, and free improvisation, each piece is a musical representation of the concepts enunciated by Wittgenstein. Sánchez is a recognized artist on the Spanish and European music scene, famous for his compositions that transcend genre boundaries and surprise with their vitality and originality.
WHERE AND WHEN: Jameos del Agua Auditorium. Friday, October 20, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 15 euros. Online shopping.
vmf 4 Dobrawa Czocher, Dreamscapes
DREAMSCAPES opens up wide, spacious sounds that allude to the act of falling asleep and the process of entering the world of dreams with all its limitless wonder and mystery. The music gently draws listeners into this alternate universe, with repetitive motifs, improvised arpeggios, eerie basslines, and glissandos that paint increasingly fantastical landscapes to go beyond the visual to touch and reflect on deep feelings.
In addition to creating rich atmospheres, colors and textures, DREAMSCAPES is also a complex and multi-layered work, offering a kaleidoscopic vision of dynamic musical motifs, sometimes producing dramatic and disconcerting effect, sometimes relief and lyricism. . Dobrawa’s cello has a clear voice that, though ephemeral and fleeting, points to the veracity that dreams can provide, plunging listeners into a deep trance.
WHERE AND WHEN: Cueva de los Verdes Auditorium. Saturday, October 21, 2023, 20:00 p.m.
TICKETS: 15 euros. Online shopping.
for further details check on line at
LANZAROTE3.COM
If you have come this far, let us tell you that since 2013 we have been traveling through Lanzarote in search of its essence so that you can enjoy it like a local. Plan your trip to Lanzarote with us.
Information and all kinds of suggestions for your tourist trip to Lanzarote, such as those in this post, can be found at our guide, but also in its extensions on social networks, to which we invite you to follow or subscribe.
ROCHDALE LIGHT ORCHESTRA seek players
a request from Grham Marshall
We’re looking for two or three amateur violinists to complete the small ensemble of Rochdale amateur Light Orchestra, an amateur ensemble, for a concert on Wednesday, November 8th 2023 in St. Michael’s church, Bamford OL10 4BB (left). The programme will include Warlock’s ‘Capriol Suite’, Geoffrey Toye’s ‘The Haunted Ballroom’, songs sung by Freda Farnworth (Soprano) and several other pieces of ‘easy listening’ music.
Of course, we don´t expect musicians from your home island of Lanzarote to start packing their suitcases and booking their flights. We do know that you are always willing to help in any way you can, and we know that you a strong readership in this area too.
So, we´d be grateful if you could include this request in either Sidetracks And Detours or PASS IT ON IN to anyone there any violinists living in the Greater Manchester, South Lancashire or West Yorkshire areas who could come and join us for a couple of Wednesday evening rehearsals in St. Michael’s?
Anyone interested, please contact me at info@rochdalelightorchestra. Thanks!
TEN YEARS AGO
ANDREW MOORHOUSE LAUNCHED FINE PRESS POETRY
´It’s 10 years ago today that I received my first publication from the bindery. It was WH Auden who said that ‘poetry makes nothing happen’ but, just maybe, if combined with bibliophilia, a desire to make some small but beautiful impression on the world, a wish to take a road not previously taken, the encouragement of an author willing to give you a chance, the need to say ‘yes, I am here’ and the benevolent breath of Aelous, then poetry can´!
Andrew Moorhouse, who posted the above message, was heavily involved in the art scene when I was living and working in Rochdale. He not only attended a creative writing group courseI was facilitating at the time but also took part in the monthly poetry readings as one of The Bards From The Baum.
It was a couple of years before I retired here that Andrew his launched. Now, on his bright and uncluttered Fine Press Poetryweb site there is a video on which Andrew shgows and talks about the now well stocked shelf of Fine Press Poetry titles he has delivered over the decade. They must be a great sourceof pride not only to himself but also to the leading poets he has worked with to produce them.
They have so obviously been crafted with pride by the wordsmiths, the illustrators, the cover designers and the printers, surely in the exact image that Andrew imagined as he launched Fine Press Poetry,…. ten years ago.
THANKS to Maria Welsh
SMOKEY BLUES IS HOME AGAIN !!
With little hope attached, I included a request in a recent post for a piece of music I never actually owned on cd, cassette or any other media.
Before ever hearing this folksy,catchy, (if ocerly sentimetal lyric ( about a lost dog) I had become a huge lover of Dvorak´s music, and i suppose the song appealed to me because it was based on one of Dvoraks loveliest and best loved melodies. I heard the song a couple of times on the radio caught its title of Smokey Blues Away and made a mental note to slef to amke enquiries the next time I was in the record shop. I never got round to it though and the I never heard the record played again, except when reminded of it by listening to Dvorak´s Largo and the Going Home Suite.homage to America. So although i have never owned the song it has hardly ever been out of my mind.
And then today I received the following e mail from a reader I don´t know.
Good Afternoon Norman Apologies if you’ve already been inundated with information about this song already, but I’ve just read your blog in Sidetracks and Detours. The song is available on the UK You Tube, the group was called A New Generation. Like you, memories of this song stuck in my head since the 70s and for some reason I thought the Monkees performed it. I finally found it a few days ago on You Tube. One thing I did remember was that the music was related to Largo and Going Home. Hope this helps Maria Welsh
Maria, I am over the moon. Not only because I will now access to that track but also because I have found another reader of Sidetracks And Detours. And i hope you might send us details of the music you like, what´s on your playlists, what gig you have seen. Just send it as an attachment to my e mail address, and we will do our very best to publish and attribute it !
what´s next logo So, that´s the weekend been and gone, but we´ll be back tomorrow, wandering the Happy Trails to deliver next week´s editions of Sidetracks And Detours, our Monday to Friday daily not-for-profit blog. We will look back on music that still matters to Rod Stewart, and we will look ahead to the Oxford Chamber Music Festival 2023, and whilst we´re in the area we will Check Out Chichester, itself a buzzing festival area. We will pay our respects to Jimmy Biffett, who sadly recently steered his last boat home. And, of course we´ll remind you to keep building that bigger bookshelf, to make room for a selection of titles by or about Jimmy. So, it will be a long week for our feeds and contributors Michael Higgins, Jazz In Reading (Jim Wade and Trevor Bannister), Hot Biscuits (Steve Bewick), all across the arts (Steve Cooke), All Points Froward (Peter Pearson), Music Remembered (Ralph Dent) and Island Insights (Norman Warwick). We thank them all and we thank you all, too.
See you round the COrnER.
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