Hi Everybody!
When all is said and done, the moments of our lives are wrapped in “relationship” whether that momentary connection is with another person, a thing, a thought, a whatever. Something about the ukulele builds and maintains relationships, communities, even. This extraordinary “coming together” was abundantly and joyfully evident at the Reno Ukulele Festival. So please relive these memories with me as we revisit the people!
Now here’s the scoop. My hubby Craig and I just recycled our old flippy-phones and joined the iPhone revolution. Apparently this thing can do everything except change the oil in your car (and there is probably an app for that too). I get overwhelmed with the “learning curve” that accompanies these new-fangled “time-savers.” So I’m tip-toeing around the bells and whistles. It’s enough that I can use the thing as a phone!
But my new friend Carrie shows me how to use the iPhone camera in reverse, to take a picture of US, by us. So this photo is the first time I get to do that. Believe me, by the end of the trip I am like an old pro snapping these “Thelma and Louise” images. But it starts with Carrie and I shall always remember that.
Picture this: The second floor of the Nugget Hotel is a whirl of activities–workshops, more workshops, on-going shows on the stage, venders promoting their ukulele wares. All the performers get their spots on the Festival Stage. In this photo Craig and I are sassing and strumming together. Considering that our uke styles are as different as Venus and Mars, it’s a real gender/personality mash-up that is fun for all us. We are well-rehearsed, but the truth is you never know what will come out of our mouths. We do “ukulele trapeze” without a net!
Tonya lives in Paradise. I’m not kidding. It’s in Northern California where she started a sweet ukulele group for beginners. Tonya and I discuss our philosophy about the iconic song “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.” There is Judy Garland’s version and then there is Iz’s version. The Hawaiian version. Iz mashes up the song. He changes the melody and he, well shall we say, “re-arranges” the words. Some uke players want to do the song just like Iz and get a little hot under the strings when that doesn’t happen. It’s been a dilemma for both Tonya and me.
I’m old school and loyal to lyricist “Yip” Harburg and his magical words, as is, but I’m also just enough of a hypocrite to sing Iz’s melody instead of Harold Arlen’s. So there you go. I’m living life in the gray zone, as usual, never quite snagging the rainbow.
Lil’ Rev is a monster musician, master storyteller and teacher. He’s also a road warrior. He and his wife and little girl (whose entrance into the world inspired Lil’ Rev to write “Drop Baby Drop”) have been “on the road” since January. Since January! Finally, after the Reno Uke Festival, they are heading home to Wisconsin. You know, those of us who make music for a living, we just want to keep on doing what we love to do. And each gig and each CD we sell gives us the funds, the confidence, the caffeine-buzz to stay with it and play another day.
Here’s Paul Hemmings (who performed with his trio the Uketet) and his wife Rachel taking in the “casino scene” at the Nugget. He is a hugely talented and immensely joyful jazzer. This is their first trip to Reno, visiting from their home in New York City. In California, as in New York, smokers are sent outside to do their puffing, but not in Nevada and breathing this stuff is a bummer. My father died of emphysema and I used to sing in smoky piano bars, so this environment is creepy-crawly for me. But when in Rome…
Music Guy Mike (MGM) is beloved by just about everyone in the ukulele world. Here he is giving the international sign for “ukulele.” I think…
Speaking of ukuleles, three people ask me to sign theirs. I just about fall over. What an honor and I get all nervous, which means I forget how to spell my name. I’m thinking “oh-oh, what if I goof and have to cross it out and start again and write ‘oops’ over the boo-boo and this is someone’s ukulele and I have to pee…”
One of our CC Strummers, Tom K., flies to Reno from Los Angeles and we get to hang out. Tom and his wife Delcene treat us to dinner at Rosie’s Cafe. Now here is a marriage that works. Delcene plays the slot machines. All day. Tom does the ukulele thing at the festival. All day. They catch up at dinner. Everybody’s happy. It’s a win-win!
I give two workshops. Every teacher has his or her point of view and mine is as a performer and working musician. That said, the so-called line between “teacher” and “student” is fuzzy at best. We are all teachers AND students. And we are all beginners too because there is always something new to learn and something challenging enough to humble and bring us back to square one. Again and again and again.
This is what happens when you play the ukulele. Spontaneous groups of players appear, form a circle and make music together. This picture is taken hours after the close of the festival and there is nothing left but empty space. And still, there is music!
Check out the Reno Ukulele Festival Website to see more pictures and video clips.
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