Busking Away COVID-19

To busk: Dancing, singing, or reciting on the street or in a public place (dictionary.com)

Summer 2020 sure seems off without the lovely abundance of live music. COVID-19 continues to cloud over rehearsal and live performance. However, small rays of light keep shining through. A band mate did some busking last weekend and asked me to join a set, the perfect opportunity to introduce one of this year’s music goals, faster Irish fiddle pieces.

I started playing the violin around age 5 or 6 when our neighbor, Laura Mae Hames, told the folks that it was high time their daughters learned to play. Mom promised that she would encourage daily practice, to which Laura Mae replied, “You most certainly will not! They’ll just practice and learn their mistakes.” So began our journey, three days per week, my sister, Muriel and I headed over to work with Laura Mae. Muriel’s natural talent quickly emerged, tackling more difficult pieces and even joining the college/community orchestra when she was around ten. I switched instruments, preferring the mischief and laid back nature found in the viola section of middle and high school orchestra but stopped altogether to focus on vocal performance around 1990.

After more than a decade hiatus, I started tinkering for fun, playing with the Blue Lake Parent Orchestra, Christmas carols at church, etc., and later, the viola found its way into a few vocal projects, background music in Reflections from the Journey and now with Kilkenny Corkers . Here’s a new bit of fun in the works:

Thanks for reading!