The winter is rolling right along, and the gigs seem to be coming as fast and furious as the bitter cold and blowing snow. This is the time of year when musicians must be extra studious about keeping their instruments in a controlled climate. Even just an hour out in the cold can cause all kinds of problems. On top of the difficulty with playing a cold instrument, there is always the fear of tuning, cracking, tearing, snapping, and.....well....let's just keep them warm shall we!
So the first show was on Saturday Feb. 2nd with the Nick Strange group. We were at a place called Fishbones in St. Clair Shores. It was a big resteraunt/bar that has a built in crowd that seemed used to having live music, but not too attached to the idea of it. The weird vibe I got was probably due in part to the fact that it was the day before the super bowl. I did have a good time and it was fun to play in a new place. There were a few people who really liked the music, which made it worth the drive out.
The next day I had a fun little daytime event at the Ann Arbor Public Library put on by my friend Rohit Setty and his family. It was an Indian cultural celebration for young families. We had Meeta Banerjee on the sitar, Dan Piccolo and myself on tabla, with Rohit, his wife Amanda, and their young daughter Shalani telling stories and doing dances, and making crafts. It was a nice event. The Ann Arbor News sent out a photographer, and we got a great spread in the Saturday paper.
The following Saturday Meeta and I drove to a middle school in Saline, MI. to play at a Saraswati Puja put on by the Bengali group Mitali. A Puja is a type of religious ceremony that, as far as I can tell, is meant to honor a god and share music, dance, and fellowship with your community. It is the second year we have done it, and it is always a fun show to play. We did just a 15 minute show and within the first minute, Meeta broke a string.....Ouch! Luckily, it was not her main string, but it did throw our balance off a bit. Like a true pro, Meeta played on as if nothing was wrong, and the crowd was very appreciative. I felt lucky to be a part of it.
Thanks for reading, and I will write again soon!
John
