Wednesday, September 21, 2005

2005 NCFC Camping Trip Memories

Well the 2005 camping trip is now just a memory. But what a memory it is!
We had a wonderful time in the Santa Cruz mountains last weekend for the fifty year in a row. The weather was beautiful, if not a tiny bit cold...
On Friday night, we hosted Elysium Calling in concert. Garth and Kenneth played selections off their new album: Imagination. They also invited folks from the audience to come up and jam with them throughout the evening. It was a great show.
On Saturday, Scott August was up for the day. He presented a beginners workshop in the morning and I know that Walt and Barbara (the two folks present who are just starting their flute path) appreciated Scotts insight. I know that Dan and I learned a few tricks from Scott's teaching style. I always appreciated seeing how others present the instrument to new players.
In the afternoon, we had Scott present a songwriting/composing workshop. Since Scott is a composer in his 'day job' this was a unique opportunity to learn from a pro. Scott presented many ideas for putting a composition together, starting with what he called "atoms" and building from there. As the last exercise, he sent us all into the woods for 30 minutes to compose a song using the skills he has taught us. When we returned, everyone - including the beginners in the crowd, played their composition. It was fun to see everyones idea come together, even in that short period of time.
On Saturday evening, Scott played a concert featuring tunes off his new album: New Fire. It was spectacular. Even though Scott played along to recorded tracks (flute karioke) in the background, he kept it interesting with rattles and other sound effects. I especially enjoyed the song "Sombra de la luna" which features a Clay Mayan Moon Goddess flute made by Xavier Quijas Yxayotl
We're not sure if we're going to have the camping trip next year, with the INAFA conference happening in the bay area. If we do, don't miss it.

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