Martin Luther King Tribute at the Kennedy Center

So I left my house early and made my way to Foggy Bottom Metro Station where I’d be picked up by the shuttle bus to the Kennedy Center. The shuttle runs every 15 minutes. After waiting for 30, I reread the sign. The shuttle runs all day everyday except for federal holidays. Slap myself on the forehead, today is a federal holiday. I, who am often late to my destinations had been proud of myself this morning for leaving early, and now was going to be late anyway. Grr! By the time I took an alternate route, I arrived one hour late. Grr!! Thankfully, I hadn’t missed anything.

I’d wondered why we had to be there at eleven in the morning when the program wouldn’t be until six. What were we going to do for six hours? Well, we had breakfast, rehearsed in the practice room, then rehearsed with the soloists and orchestra out on stage, then rehearsed just with the orchestra, had lunch, received instructions, got our robes and got ready to go on stage.

I’ve been in that building many times before, so I know that it’s large. I wasn’t aware of how large until we had to walk from the practice room to the stage and back. It was the most labyrinthine route of hallways and staircases ever. If we didn’t have a guide leading us around, we would have taken days to make it out of there. I was dying to take photos of everything, but I wasn’t sure if I was allowed, so all I have is a couple shots of us getting on this enormous freight elevator (40 at a time, moo!) which was clearly marked NO PASSENGERS, ha-ha.

The program itself was a success. I could have done without the 35 minutes of speeches, but what can one do? We sang:

All Good Things Will Be Added Unto You (with soloist)
The Battle Him of the Republic (with soloists)
Done Made My Vow [my personal favorite]
We Shall Overcome

Mezzo-soprano Denyce Graves sang four Negro spirituals of her own (she wore a gorgeous gown I can't even begin to describe) and violin duo Nuttin’ but Stringz played a couple pieces.

When we sang We Shall Overcome I was looking out into the audience and saw a man whose white hair reminded me of my father. The thought of him being there listening to me live, along with the emotion of the words we were singing and the very lush orchestral accompaniment made my eyes well up with tears. Most of the pieces were arranged and orchestrated by Nolan Williams, Jr, our director. He is talented, professional, witty and handsome, to boot. I was very impressed by him. If he has all this going on and he only in his 30s, watch out world!

We had a wonderful time and the audience loved every minute of it. Hopefully I can participate again next year.

As soon as the program is available for viewing I will add a link so you can watch the video.

Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

It snowed all morning. Only three inches fell, but it was enough to transform the drab winter landscape beautifully. It’s slightly amusing (and irritating) how the people in this area react whenever there is snow in the weather forecast. Yesterday, when the meteorologists predicted yesterday that 2-4 inches of snow were expected to fall, half the people ran out, mobbed the supermarkets and bought up all the bread, milk, bottled water, et cetera. One would think that the blizzard of the century had been predicted. They act as if 2-4 inches is going to keep them housebound for days. And even if we had a substantial storm coming, does this mean that nobody had basic staples in their refrigerators and cupboards to hold them of a couple days? Man.

Some time during tonight’s rehearsal with the Let Freedom Ring Choir at Metropolitan Baptist Church, I saw a fur coat walk in. When it unwrapped its owner I realized that it was our soloist, opera singer Denyce Graves. To his credit, our choir director did not act like a fluttery sycophant the way some of the others did. We (the choir and Denyce, that is) practiced together and sounded great. Since there was a lot of down time in certain parts of the rehearsal, I had my knitting. I was a bit nervous that the director would tell me to put it away, but he didn’t. Maybe he didn’t say anything ‘cause he didn’t know my name or maybe because I never took my eyes off his face while we were singing (it was plain stockinette). Whatever the reason, I got half a sleeve done!

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Today is Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, however there won’t be any celebrations until Monday because the Powers That Be took it upon themselves to move that day’s observance so that they could conveniently have a three-day weekend. They also do that with a couple other holidays. The result of this practice, which began sometime in the mid-90s, is that many people can’t tell you the date of these holidays because they are now celebrated on the nearest Monday that will produce a longer weekend, thus the date changes every year. Although I enjoy three-day weekends as much as the next person, I also enjoy a day off in the middle of the week. If King Day were celebrated on the original day, we’d still get two three-day weekends in every seven-year cycle. Why not do that with Independence Day or Christmas? Things are probably not going to change, so should I even waste my time talking about it?

Anyway, every year the Kennedy Center, in conjunction with a local university, organizes a program in tribute to the civil rights leader. This year I was among those invited to sing in the choir. It’s very exciting because when I was a kid I used to listen to classical concerts on the radio in which the announcer would often say, “Live, from the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC…” And next week I will be singing there! Tonight I went to the first rehearsal. We must learn four pieces well (and by heart) in less than a week. We will be singing two of the pieces with mezzo soprano Denyce Graves. How cool is that?

On the bus home from choir rehearsal I was working on my black cardigan. An older gentleman sitting across from me asked what I was working on. Then he asked, “Why not red?” The truth is that I already have a red cardigan and what I really need is an everyday black cardigan that goes with everything. I didn’t want to get into all that, so I told him that black yarn is what I had, so that’s the color the sweater will be. Then I asked him if red was his favorite color. He said, “No, but I like red on women.” At that point I thought to myself, “Well, I’m not dressing for you. Am I, Gramps?” Then he asked my name and what I had studied at university. Just as I was about to pull the cord to notify the bus driver of my stop, he told me his name and that he wanted to invite me to a French restaurant in Georgetown. When he saw me get up he said, “We’ll talk another time.” This little exchange illustrates the story of my life (or the story of my last ten years or so). The only men interested me tend to be under the age of 22 or quickly approaching retirement age. Those in their thirties and early forties seem completely oblivious to my existence.

On the upshot, if I were to take him up on his offer, I’d know what color to wear! ;o)

Música de Fin de Año (Year-end Music)

Same Auld Lang Syne - Dan Fogelberg (1951-2007)

Read the lyrics.

****************************

Un Año Más - Mecano

Lea la letra.

Do They Know It’s Christmas? - Band Aid

This song also has an interesting history. Read the lyrics. Watch the ‘Making of’ video.
Christmas—a good time to raise awareness about world hunger. In Ethiopia, Appalachia or anywhere else.

Happy Xmas (War is Over) - John Lennon & Yoko Ono

This song has a very interesting history. Read the lyrics.

Christmas—a good time to protest war. In Vietnam, in Iraq or anywhere else.

Christmas Season Faves and Rants

My favorite things I like Christmas lights. They put me in a good mood. I’m talking about a few strings of lights tastefully placed on a house or shrubbery. I do not mean those gaudy monstrosities (complete with plastic light-up Santa Claus & reindeer suspended on the roof) that quadruple the electricity bill and cause traffic jams from all the gawkers.

I like Christmas music. It makes me happy. I listen to it all year. ‘Joy to the World’ sounds good to me whether it’s in a classical setting, a jazz arrangement, gospel rendition, instrumental interpretation, et cetera.

One of my earliest memories is being about five years old and singing ‘Venid Pastorcillos’ (Away in a Manger) for the children at an orphanage.

Rants I hate the crowds at stores. I hate the stressed-out state people whip themselves into trying to have a perfect Christmas. They are the same ones who get frustrated because happiness cannot be purchased with a credit card. Christmas should be about spending time with family and counting your blessings, not trying to impress people with expensive gifts they do not need and you cannot afford. Fewer people would dread the holiday if it were approached differently.

The Carol of the Drum has got to be one of the most unrealistic songs ever. What woman in her right mind would allow some dirty street urchin to come and bang a drum in the presence of her newborn baby? I can’t possibly be the only person to have ever thought of that. Were I Mary I’d be like, “You want to do what?? No, I’m trying to get Jesus to fall asleep. Thanks anyway. You’re making the animals nervous. Don’t be startin’ no stampede. Run along.” And if he insisted I would be forced to throw a dried goat turd at him or let loose some colorful language. Must have been a childless hermit (male, of course) who wrote that gem.

While we’re on the subject of music, Jingle Bells, Let it Snow, Frosty the Snowman, Sleigh Ride and Winter Wonderland should be sung from December until March because they are winter songs. Not one of them mentions Christmas sacred (Christ’s birth) or secular (Santa Claus). Don’t believe me? Check out the lyrics. They should not be restricted to just the first 25 days of December.

Ooo, two rants in one day! For whatever it’s worth, these Christmas rants have been rolling around in my head for quite some time. They didn’t just pop up today because I’m cold and crampy.

Oh, and for Papi, Toad, SnowBaby84 and all those weirdos--I mean, people who prefer cold weather, winter officially begins tomorrow at 1:08 in the morning. Happy winter!

Whirlwind Weekend

The weekend was super-busy. Papi (my father) flew in from Connecticut to hear me sing in Handel’s The Messiah. Let me tell you that that was a major coup, because in the five years I’ve lived in this area, this is the first time he has come. It’s not that he doesn’t love me or want to see me. It’s that he’s a workaholic and thinks that the world will stop turning if he takes a couple of days off. Anyway, I was thrilled to have him here. We talked and laughed and surfed the web(!) together. I hope he comes again soon.

Also, Novio (my boyfriend) flew* in from the Midwest to hear me sing. This has been the busiest Christmas season I have ever had in terms of singing. I’ve had three performances of The Messiah in three different churches (Capitol Hill Seventh-day Adventist Church in DC, Sligo Seventh-day Adventist Church in Maryland and Northeastern Presbyterian Church in DC). The second and third performances took place this weekend. I’m relieved that I don’t have to attend any more extra rehearsals! Although I sing all year, I like Christmas time because it is one of the few times we sing with a full orchestra (instead of just organ or piano), which is quite thrilling.

Lest you begin to think that I have this fabulous coloratura voice, let me set you straight. I have an average voice and I did not sing any of the oratorio’s solos. With that out of the way, I must say that Georg Friedrich Händel was some kind of genius. So talented, so inspired. His music is both fun and challenging. It would be difficult to tire of his music. I look forward to singing some more of his work.

*On long distance affairs: they’re not my preference. In fact, my two previous relationships were long distance. And no, I did not meet any of them via the internet. The last one lasted three years off and on. It dragged out that long because of the distance. Had we been in the same state or, say, time zone, it would have been easier to see what was what and it would have ended much sooner. Because of that, I’d decided not to get involved in any more of those. Fast forward five years. The only serious contender worthy of my time turns out to be someone who is over 1000 kilometers away. And that’s how I’m back in a situation I had tried to avoid.

Speaking of Novio, he proudly wore the scarf I had made for him last month. I already dislike it and want to replace it. The grey yarn is already pilling. And when his stubble rubs on it it comes off on his chin. He doesn’t mind, but I do. Didn’t get a photo of him wearing it, but here's one I took before I sent it to him.

ribbed scarf in green & grey stripes
yarn: 100% worsted weight acrylic
needles: 4 mm/US 6
pattern: 3x3 rib
comments: This scarf (and its colors) was requested by Novio. He reiterated several times that it must not be wool—he’s allergic. Nice stash-reducing project.

navy & celeste diagonal rib scarf
yarn: 100% worsted weight acrylic
needles: 4 mm/US 6
pattern: mine
comments: This scarf is for Novio’s roommate, who’s Cape Verdian and spending his very first winter in midwestern US. Brr! Wasn’t sure if he too had a wool allergy, so I erred on the safe side.