The Big Chill
Hello readers,
For those of you who haven't noticed- it has been snowing. Personally it feels like I have taken a trip through the Wardrobe to the land of Narnia. Traffic lights are adorned with 6 inches of snow, there are meter long icicles forming on the houses on my street and the media are telling everyone that Christmas will have to be cancelled. For me it has been a welcome opportunity to go into hibernation in an attempt to rejuvenate for next year and to enjoy the irony that when we actually get a white Christmas, nobody wants it anyway.
Since last writing I have enjoyed playing on some dates on the Frizz Records Tour with David Garside and wrapped myself up for a couple of gigs with my quartet outside in the cold. Two perhaps more momentous events were the first two of my Primary classes to put on performances. The first was a Djembe class in Hertforshire, we performed a drumming piece and a song in Youruba, and I even got them to walk on and off and take bows together- a proud moment. The second was a general percussion class in Staffordshire that I take with a colleague which was also a success. The class performed several songs, demonstrated their new found technical prowess at snare drum and glockenspiel and finished with a rendition of 'Jingle Bells' at two different tempos simultaneously.
I realise in a few of my blogs I have mentioned an exciting new project that I have been involved in and promised to elaborate. Well here I am elaborating. We are an eight piece contemporary folk group called the 'Bonfire Radicals' we play original material inspired by folk traditions from across the globe- fused with influences from popular culture and jazz- with some wacky arrangements of traditional folk songs and tunes thrown in for good measure. HIRE US! We have our first gig on the 4th February in the stylish Hare and Hounds in Kings Heath thanks to everybody at The Lunar Society/Moseley Folk Festival.
I will leave you with this Frizz records thank you video.
Lydia
