Monthly Archives: May 2012

More Joy

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I get sentimental at the end of the school year. It’s just habit now, since my younger daughter finished high school in 2009. But the parental rhythms are well established and I have so many friends who are still experiencing the proms and the graduations and the getting-ready-to-go excitement of their seniors.

A highlight for Albany High musicians and their families is the last concert of the year at the Ashkenaz in Berkeley. The funkiness of the old dance hall venue is just right for the Jazz Band and the R&B group Rhythm Bound. The bands have worked hard together all year, so the music is tight. But it’s more than that. This concert is a celebration, and you feel it.

There is joy.

The Jazz Band impresses with their accomplished interpretations of many styles.

Then, when Rhythm Bound takes the stage, the party is well and truly started.

The final number had everyone dancing, including most of the singers. Can you feel the joy?

I think this next one might be my favorite shot of the evening. During the encore, Musical Director Craig Bryant took off his jacket and found a spot in the back corner by the stage where he could pick up the tambourine and feel what the band was feeling as they let fly with Aretha’s RESPECT. I love this moment. He might just be the hardest working man in show business.

I know the kids enjoyed the evening. I saw them. And I know the parents did because we are still talking about it. Next year the seniors will be invited to the stage to join in the last number as alums. And if they possibly can, they will.

Rock on!

You can see (much) more of the night here.

London: A Walk In The Park

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Todd and I just returned from a week in London. Though we’ve been to other parts of England more recently, I haven’t spent any significant time in London since 1979. It’s a wonderful place.

This was not a photography trip. Rather, it was an incentive trip that Todd earned through lots of hard work and I was happy to be his date. :-) In between planned excursions and visits to museums, we spent a lot of time walking, especially through the beautiful parks. One day we walked from Hyde Park, through Green Park and St. James’s Park all the way to Whitehall. A lovely way to cross town.

Thirty-three years ago, I took this photograph. I still remember how excited I was to see these riders on Rotten Row in Hyde Park. Moments like these are good for an English major’s soul.

This time around I hoped more than anything for a similar sight. We were rewarded the first time we stepped into Hyde Park.

I still have no idea who these people were or where they were heading, but this was my Lost in Austen moment. I was a little bit beside myself. After that, Todd was on the lookout and from time to time he’d shout “Horses!” He’s a good man. He’s the one who saw this approaching and pointed me in the right direction:

Yes, it was cold and drizzly in London for most of the time we were there. But it was perfect weather for this scene. Makes me want to go watch Masterpiece Theater right now.

I remembered St. James’s Park as my favorite, but this time around Hyde Park won my heart. And not just for the time-traveling. It seems like a park that real Londoners use. It wasn’t yet tourist season, and though we did hear different languages from folks passing by, we saw a lot of locals taking the air too. A lot of them brought their dogs. Dogs really know how to enjoy a park.

Here are a few more images from our wanderings:

There are still a lot of London parks we didn’t get to. Not to mention museums, and plays, and landmarks, and pubs. A week is not nearly enough time, even when you wear comfortable shoes.

I hope we’ll be back some day, London!