THE SECOND ANNIVERSARY OF THE REBIRTH OF FULL MOON RABBIT!

Spring is the time to wander. Programming is always a bit interesting for me. I can’t tell you how many times people ask me ” so how many people are in your band?’ I never quite know what to say. This music is not like a rock band that does intricate, loud replications of popular music, in the earnest desire of becoming famous, rich, with all the perks. This music is about something else.

This music is all about musical friendships. So why not ask ” How many friends do you have ( musically)?” Each combination of people I like connects in a unique way. I dream about who has played with whom, and who has not yet played together. And you know what? Most of the folks get a long. it’s been a great few years at the dog… so if you ask how many people I have in”my band”, I can say ” about 27-35- And it keeps growing!” Now, want to bet that no one else asks me again?

About 13 years, I was camping at Wild river state Park, and had a vision of “the folkloric Avante-garde”. I also saw a rabbit frollicking in the light of the Full Moon. It was very frisky. I heard in my mind’s ear a solidly rehearsed group playing adventuresome original music- more wooden than metallic. I wrote a few things, assembled friends to rehearse, and we played about once every year or two, depending or not on whether I could raise funds. Thank you David Edminster, Laura Harada, Tim and Pat O’Keefe, Douglas Ewart, Brian Roessler, and Carei Thomas, and Gary Schulte, violin, for these early beginnings.

So two years ago ( In April 2010) Nathan asked me if I wanted to program a night at the Black Dog. I jumped at the chance, and tried a new thing entirely: no charts, no rehearsals. That fateful gig had me on electric keyboard and small instruments, ( voice), Donald Washington ( tenor sax, clarinet) Sean Eagan, clarinet, Steve Sandberg, trombone ( and made instruments) , Will Kemperman ( drums, marimba). It was so much fun. We were able to cover ground- there weren’t too many of us, and we could play or lay out. I read, sung many poems, and some Rootabaga stories by Carl Sandburg. Sometimes we were joined by Faye Washington on flute. Later on, The Black Dog adopted the black piano, and since that fall, I play with Rover almost every week. Full Moon Rabbit was the start of all this. Thank you!