Musical Fare from the Connors Camp
Coming up…Brigham City Music in the City Holiday Concert & Cori Connors Holiday Concerts in Farmington (details follow this post)
Seriously. From the time I was very small it was not so much the thrill of the day that made it exciting…whether it was Christmas or Thanksgiving or my birthday or even a vacation…it was the anticipation. Thanks to my environment and my Maker, I have always had a dandy imagination, and I sure used it over and over again when something wonderful was in the offing!
Half the fun of a concert is the “before” stuff: deciding the tone of your event; choosing musicians; creating a set list; designing advertising; and…my favorite part…rehearsing! It’s one thing to sit in the comfort of your easy chair all alone and run through songs, and it’s another thing to sit in that very same space and have the air around you filled with harmonies and instrumentation and the spirit of those who make music with you. Heaven!
Last week we had our first rehearsal for the Christmas and Brigham concerts. We usually start with a bowl of soup or something because the Eskelsens have come straight from feeding their horses. Then Dave E. will pick up his lovely Stika guitar and start playing some wonderful James Taylor tune. It’s like a musical warm-up, the pace turning from easy conversation to the rhythmic flow found only in music and fishing streams. Mark Robinette will pick up his bass and warm up his fingers. Carla will plant herself and her dulcimer and harp in the corner of the couch, a blanket tucked around her chilled legs and her little Bug dog curled around her feet. I’ll tune up my Collings and Taylor guitars and soon we are all in the same river, floating along on the music. There really is nothing else like it, at least that I know of, it is so divine. I did tell Dave once (my husband, Dave) that the moment you deliver a baby, that moment when you touch the underside of heaven when that little spirit takes the first breath, THAT is a similar feeling to creating music that feels complete.
My musician friends make my music feel complete. In the studio, with my good friends and engineers Mark Stephenson and Mike Green; and on the stage with my other good friends; they take these little songs and dress them up so nicely. I understand the great and rare blessing in this and I am grateful.
So while the ultimate is to have a receptive audience who “gets” what we are trying to say in our music; the next best is the anticipation, the rush of emotion that rises in the middle of rehearsal when all the parts come together and we are one in the song.
So it begins: the heavy rehearsal rotation, the joy and the anticipation of our holiday performances. We can hardly wait to share it with you, whether it is one of our concerts or smaller private events – corporate dinners; ward parties; family gatherings. We love making music, and we love sharing it with you. It really is the most wonderful time of the year!
Brigham City MUSIC IN THE CITY Holiday Concert
Friday, November 18, 2011 – 7:30 pm
Brigham City Arts Center – Brigham City Utah
Tickets $8 (Students are $5 with id)
Dave and Carla Eskelsen open (they are amazing!)
Click HERE for details.
CORI CONNORS HOLIDAY CONCERT
Songs & Stories
3 Shows:
Saturday Dec 3rd 3 pm matinee performance
Saturday Dec 3rd 8 pm evening performance
Monday Dec 5 7:30 pm evening performance
Farmington Arts Center – 120 S Main St. Farmington Utah
Tickets $10 available online HERE or order by phone at 801-451-0953 during normal business hours.
(The sasiest way to get tickets is by calling, by the way. These concerts have sold out the last three years, so it is recommended that you purchase your tickets early. It’s an intimate venue…only seats 300. I love singing in my home town, and I love having home town type people around me!)
Hope to see you there!
