How I learned

 I dislike relating how I learned to play the organ or how I learned to tat. I do tell folks. I just don’t see it as important. What I do now is more important to me. Incidentally, now I play the organ for the enjoyment of people, to enhance a worship service, and to share music I think everyone should know about. Now I tat to express what I see in life in thread. I also teach. And that is why I have begun to tell people how I learned to play the organ and to tat.

I began playing the organ as a preteen. My peers hardly understood it. Adults thought it was cute. I just like playing the organ.

I began to tat as a teen. I like working with fiber. I fail at knitting and crochet. I can’t sit still. A relative, who didn’t tat, had a shuttle and a book. I figured it out.

There! That’s how I learned.

Earlier this week I recorded another 30 minutes of organ music at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church. Here’s the Youtube channel link: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCK9Xvh2eadS0KrPu8bAOsBQ/videos .  The church is always empty except for the gentleman who films me. We both wear masks. That doesn’t mean that nothing is happening. The church is still very involved in the community. They support food banks for seniors, they provide assistance for Spanish speakers, and maintain several Zoom based discussion groups. They are not closed, just not meeting in person. They deserve to be supported.

Thank you for reading my rant/plea. Now on to practicing and tatting!

Challenge progress

 October is shaping up to be quite busy. I’ve taped two playlists for St. Paul’s for the Friday concert. I’ll be teaching a series of tatting classes/workshops for the Lace Museum. And it’s the time of year to put new plants into the ground so they can benefit from the rains and get a great start. That means lots of time spent trying to figure out the landscaping we wish to maintain and enjoy. So, I don’t have a lot to show for tatting. Just a trial for my Day 14 of Threads That Bind:

My inspiration is doilies from Jan Stawasz’s book TattingTheory and Patterns. I thought the motif looked like a house. Considering all the time we’re spending working from home, I wanted to try it out. The blue version will be the “house” with a roof added and the black version will be expanded in green to represent a tree. It may not work at all, but I gotta try!

My pipe organ adventures

 

I’ve had fun recording a short 30 minute concert this week. St. Paul’s Episcopal Church has hosted a Friday Noon concert for many years. It is a way for them to share with the greater community. A local junior college encourages students to attend, so we often have people popping in for a few minutes. Some bring their lunches and (respectfully and neatly) munch as they listen. I have been invited several times to play and enjoy it greatly!

Since we’re all recording and posting online, that’s what I’ve done for this Friday. This is the page where the link is posted: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCK9Xvh2eadS0KrPu8bAOsBQ/videos

I try to pick music for each concert to showcase a portion of the organ. This week, I also challenged myself to play pieces written in the key of G. It was fun looking through the repertoire. I hope you enjoy!

Please consider supporting St. Paul’s or a local church with such an outreach. They are not “closed” and still offer many opportunities for community. Many are struggling to see a way to fill the many needs. To donate to St. Paul’s, click here: https://www.stpauls-salinas.org/donationsdonaciones

St. Paul's Salinas

The tough get tatting

The cancellation of the Noon concert took the wind out of my sails yesterday afternoon. I had to sit myself down and remind myself that the Lace Museum workshop is a month away. A lot can happen in 5 weeks. While the news from Sunnyvale and Santa Clara County is grim, so far, I have hope that all will be well in 5 weeks. I also have hope that all will go as planned 2 weeks later at the Shuttlebirds Tat Days. I have not finalized my travel plans, but need to soon.

As I was contemplating the next few days, watching a squirrel under the oak trees, my biggest fan commented, “Well, when the going gets tough, the tough get tatting.”

I’ll be tatting today!

I invite you

To St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas. I will be playing for about 30 minutes beginning at Noon on Friday, March 6, 2020. (That's tomorrow! Yipes!)

The church is at the corner of Pajaro and San Miguel. Parking is available across the street in the lot or on the street. I will be playing 10 pieces all composed in the key of C Major. Each lasts just a few minutes. I drew from repertoire from the 16^th century to the 20^th century. I really tried to find something I liked written in the 21^st century that would be short and easy to listen to, didn’t find anything. I’ll keep looking. Bring your lunch and join us as we explore organ music in the key of C.

It's better already

I haven’t even started the vacation and my perspective has changed already. Maybe that’s because I’ve finished playing 2 of 5 services/concerts. I’m looking forward to a few days away. But, before I take off, here’s the info on the Noon concerts:

Friday, March 6, 2020 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas, CA at Noon: Oh, I C

I’ll be playing a short concert. I challenged myself to put together a collection of pieces in C Major from different centuries. Pack a lunch, come on down, and find out what music spanning hundreds of years has in common.

Friday, March 13, 2020 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas, CA at Noon: It’s all relative

I’ll be on the bench for a 20-30 minute program of pieces in a minor. I haven’t decided yet if there will be a Bach Prelude and Fugue in the exploration of keys. It would be obvious to include an example of the form.

Friday, March 20, 2020 at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas, CA at Noon:  It’s about 4 foot or 8 foot.

The music this week will highlight the 4 and 8 foot stops on the organ. We’ll have fun listening to how a piece can sound different on the same instrument.

I hope this tempts you to take a break and join us. Bring a lunch if you wish, or just come to sit a spell and listen. See you there!

Substitutions

Since my injury, I’ve been on a journey of last minute gigs for organ jobs. I’m the substitute in the wings colleagues call when life happens. Almost each time it is for a happy event: babies coming early, winning a trip to a wonderful location (Paris!), and receiving a gift of time with a treasured friend. Sometimes the events are not so cheerful. Last week I received one of those breathless "I have good news and a request" calls. I filled in Sunday, will fill in Wednesday and a few Fridays. More information on those Noon concerts in a later post. Right now I must gather my music and shoes and get busy!

Good thing I finished all the samples for the workshops last week!! Pictures have already been shared as much as I’m allowed. You’ll just have to sign up for Sunnyvale Lace Museum or Shuttlebirds Tat Days to join in more fun with those patterns. Classes are filling, so get your application in (scholarships are available for new tatters).

Palmetto Tat Days is done....

I’ve arrived back home. Begun to unpack and settle back in to my schedule. After a walk by the Bay of course! Let me take this opportunity to publicly thank all those who welcomed me, listened to me, laughed with me, and tatted with me! I had a marvelous time! As I packed, I felt a pit like I’d been Trick or Treating! All those goodies!! I’ll be using them and enjoying them and thinking of all my new friends!

Now, it’s on to practicing for another Lunch Concert at St.Paul’s. I’m looking to focus on a compositional technique: Passacaglia. There are quite a few spellings of the word, but the concept is to take a phrase and repeat it over and over again for the length of the piece. I doubt I’ll be using the greatest of the organ pieces using this technique: Passacaglia in cminor. Why? Because I’ve had to re-finger and I just may not have time to unlearn what I committed to memory and learn what I must do to bring Bach to life!

As for tatting a pattern based on the wonderful Bach Passacaglia, I’ve got sketches!

It’s almost the end of August and it’s time to reflect.

I had in mind to be looking towards the concert (which I need to print the programs for) and the Fair (which I won’t have time to really attend this year) and Tat Days (which starts in a week), but I find I must take a moment to breath. I’ve allowed myself to be committed to several big projects at once. That’s usually what happens when you’re a musician. I know how to prepare for everything. I can set my schedule to accomplish all I need to do and even some things I want to do. All that said, it means my schedule never becomes mundane, just a bit crazy. I like crazy.

Tomorrow I’ll pause long enough to share some of my favorite organ pieces at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Salinas. Just a half hour or so of music. They’ll be the regulars. And a few eating their lunch. Maybe the PGE construction guys will listen for a few minutes. It’s great fun!

I miss helping out at the Fair. I’ve heard the atmosphere is quite different this year. I hope the gang is taking lots of pictures. I hope the judges liked the entries. I hope people discover new interests and celebrate hard work.

OK. Breathing done, time to dive in!!

You're invited!

Each Friday, there is a short (25-45 minute) concert at St. Paul’sEpiscopal Church in Salinas. This Noon time concert is a more informal event. I will be playing this week. Bring your lunch and join the fun as I play pieces showcasing this wonderful example of Early American organ building.

Invitation to an organ concert

Nothing new to show. I did start the next round of the Sonata piece. Since it’s dark thread, I only work on it when it’s sunny so the room is bright. The pattern is simple enough I could do it watching tv, but that room never gets sun, so tatting in dark thread is an exercise in braille. Not good!

I’ll have more time after tomorrow. If you’re in Salinas tomorrow around Noon, drop by St. Paul on Pajaro. I’ll be playing for about 45 minutes.

Next up: Little G Major

I had such great fun playing last Friday! My hands are still a bit sore from the normal chores and playing. I’ll be taking a break for a few days from the keyboards. That will give me enough time to source the proper replacement strings for the top keys on the harpsichord. I cheated and used the wire left from a lower broken string. It didn’t last long! I also need to see about replacing the plectra. Oh, and I’ve decided the Little G Major Bach is my next brush up.

So, are you coming whale watching?
Or are you just going to watch those squishy things?

On the tatting front, I’m making progress. Not much for pictures, so I’ll share a picture of a gull that was watching us watch the jellies and otters:

Jelly and Spring

It’s raining today. I’m not complaining!! We need the rain. We’ve only measured half the “normal” rainfall for the season so far. We don’t get snow here in Monterey, so we depend on rain to replenish the ground water supply and fill the reservoirs. I doubt 6 inches will fall in the next 2 days, but it would be nice to get a couple inches.

Last weekend, I walked down to the bay to watch these: 

This one broke the surface of the water as though it needed to breathe!

Such a graceful swimmer

My phone doesn’t do justice to the spectacle. These Jelly fishs were just spectacular. So easy to watch, and an otter swam right in between them and the dock! I wasn't fast enough to catch a picture of that, but this picture shows a bit the size difference between an otter and a  boat. I would like to find time this weekend to tour the new displays at the Aquarium. Perhaps I’ll find answers to questions from last weekend’s walk.

Boaters on their way to breakfast passing an otter groaming after eating.

In the meantime, I’ve loaded beads for a trial through of Dazzling Debut by Marilee Rockley. It’s in Tatting with Beads Jewelry. I’ve wanted to try curled rings forever. Since I had most of the tatting projects well in hand, I dove right in.

One of those projects is the next round of Renulek’s Wiosna 2017 doily. I know, I know. It took me long enough to make a decision! I think I’ll like it. With all the other demands on my time, It’ll take me a month or so to make enough headway to show a picture.

One of those demands is on the organ bench. I’ll be playing at St. Paul’s Friday at Noon for those local to me. Bach, Franck, Walther and Saint-Saens. Not in that order. Or maybe. Come and find out!

Just before the otter swam through

Just after as the otter dissappeared under the dock

Organ concerts and earrings

First off, an update on the organ side of my day. I had the pleasure of hearing James Welch play the organ at St. Dunstan’s recently. It was inspiring. Mostly for the music he played. He chose wonderful music that really showed off the instrument. Also for the people who came. The concert sold out. Standing room only. The Fire Marshall would have probably had a fit. And everyone enjoyed themselves. It’s so much fun to hear good organ. It’s even more fun to see people who may not be familiar with organs to walk in and experience the King of Instruments.

Now on to tatting:

These are what I came up with from Renee Campbell’s pattern Rainbow Bright Earrings. I enjoyed tatting them, even though I used size 80 thread and no beads. The star shaped spacers I used were a find in a bead shop where I used to live. I’m not sure if they’re still available. I plan to wear these to celebrate anything having to do with being American.

Oh, and yes, I will be playing again for the St. Paul's Noon concerts soon. I'll try to remember to post about it here as soon as I have the next date. I just get distracted at the organ and forget to do tasks on the 'puter. My bad. I promise to keep the organ first, but fit this in also.