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Simple Gifts: String Music from
Appalachia
with Autoharp and
Mountain Dulcimer Master
Karen Mueller February 24, 2008 |
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One of the things I loved about our
church sanctuary venue for this concert was how close the audience
could be to the musicians, coming all the way up to the stage on 3
of its 4 sides. The
space filled to capacity, so by the time our concert began the only
seats left were on the stairs up to the choir loft.
There were families with toddlers and babes-in-arms as well
as many senior citizens who had come from nearby seniors housing
complexes. As it came
close to concert time I even observed people in wheelchairs coming
up the elevator to the lobby!
One of the challenges in church sanctuaries is for everybody
to be able to see the artists as they perform, since the stage is
not elevated as in a concert hall, nor is the seating raked so
people in the back can see over the heads of folks in front of them.
So after our first set of pieces I invited children to come
up close and sit on the floor right in front of the stage, and sure
enough a nice group of brave young souls (some younger ones
accompanied by a hand-holding parent) complied.
During the music that Karen performed by herself or leading
the orchestra as a fiddling ensemble, it was a true joy for me to
sit in the front pew, surrounded by children.
I even had a young friend hold by baton while I wasnt using
it, and was able to share this experience up close with some very
engaged, young people.
The feeling of this audience overall was that of a folk festival,
with people cheering and clapping and nodding in recognition of
songs and showing bright eyes as they learned about others.
It was not the most tranquil audience, with the occasional
baby crawling loose and mentally disabled patron commenting aloud to
us, but it was one of the happiest concert occasions Ive ever
experienced. |