Del Sur: Saturday Night Live!

Great news! The new Latin band called Del Sur is going to be performing on the first Saturday of every month at the Iron Post!

We were there Saturday night and had a terrific time. The band includes four very professional, very talented musicians with a great deal of passion for the music they play.

The tunes are taken from all over Latin America and represent a wide range of musical types. There is Andean music from Bolivia and Peru with the haunting sounds of the pan flute, reminiscent of the song "El Condor Passa" that so intrigued the popular musician Paul Simon some time back.

There are lively Caribbean tunes from the Dominican Republic, with lots of bongo and conga beats.

Then the Columbian cumbias come along, with good sounds for dancing, and the crowd at the Post responds warmly, with dozens of lovely ladies (and a few gents) gyrating to the beat.

This week a guest performer did two numbers as well. I don't know his name (maybe Eduardo can provide it in a comment here?), but he is a singer and guitarist from Argentina. What an incredible voice! It reminded me of the story of how Andrea Boccelli was singing in a small Tuscan bar when Pavarotti first heard him.

The four regular band members are all wonderfully gifted musicians who all sing as well as play any number of instruments. This time, we enjoyed Eduardo's guitar playing, but also the charanga (a small stringed-instrument a bit like a Spanish lute) and the bongos. He had something that looked like a small football that was "scratched" with a stick to make for interesting percussion. Sorry I don't know much about the actual names of these fascinating ethnic musical instruments.

Alex is a virtuoso with the flutes, switching in an instant from one pan flute to another with a different pitch, as well as two wooden record-type flutes. He has a "shaker" made of shells (?) and uses a drum too.

Ian had two congas with him and also played bongos, several different maracas (big round gourd-like things with musical sounds inside when shaken), a long stick-like instrument that was grated against, the drum that he shares with Alex (and sometimes hits with the maraca and a scarf on top to adjust the sound), and a very long flute.

Julian has his guitar and his very mellifluous voice. I'm not sure if that's the right word, but his singing is so smooth and melodious, like honey.

They are expanding their repertoire on this their second performance and also getting bolder with their performance, putting a terrific amount of energy, charisma, and passion into their singing and playing. And the audience loved it.

The dancers were unwilling to quit and called for more and more "encores" or, in Spanish, "otras".

It's such fun to see what a mix of folks show up for this kind of music and love to dance. Often, Eduardo would ask "Is there anybody here from ... Ecuador? the Dominican Republic? Argentina?" and there always was a shout from somewhere in the audience. It's such a delight that Champaign-Urbana is so blessed with people from all over the globe.

The dancers are not just young women either--there are women and girls of all ages (and a few guys as well) and they seem to really get into it! The room wasn't heated all that much and was a bit chilly at the start of the first set, but by the time more people showed up and lots of them were dancing, it was hot! Many dancers were sweating even.

A few other musicians came to enjoy the show as well. I saw Adam Walton the conga player, as well as Rick Deja the flute and saxophonist and Dave Cubberly, both from Bate Calado.

Del Sur, as Eduardo explained, means "from the South" and the group presents an excellent opportunity to learn something about a wide range of South American music, both folkloric music and popular music. The ethnic instruments (and Alex's ethnic shirt with the beautiful embroidery) -- and all the Spanish being spoken in the audience as well as on stage -- combine to create a very South American atmosphere.

The group played from 6 to 9 and will be there again the first Saturday of each month. In addition, we were delighted to see that Desafinado and Bate Calado, Brazilian bands par excellence, were slated to appear at the Iron Post too.

2012 So Far ...

Now that January is close to finished, I realized I haven't done any blogging in 2012 so far since New Year's. I've gotten out of the habit of taking photos for the blog, and I know that some readers don't care for blogs without pics, so I'll try to remedy that next time.

It's been a weird month weather-wise in Champaign-Urbana: one day it's 50 degrees and dry and everyone is amazed what an easy time we're having of it for a winter month. But then the next day is freezing cold with huge gusts of biting wind and freezing drizzle or snow dusting or both, and then it all comes back to us why we dread winter so much in the Midwest. And for us, it's especially tough dealing with walkers and frozen van doors and slippery parking lots and so on.

On the personal front, in fact, it's been a bit tough. Since Thanksgiving or so, I've been learning firsthand about a painful condition called "sciatica" that involves a long skinny muscle, the piriformis, that is buried underneath the glutes. If it gets irritated and inflamed, it presses on the "sciatic nerve" that runs all the back down from the lower back, under the buttocks, and down the leg to the calf. As if I didn't have enough challenge with severe arthritis in both knees and back, hah!

I had a blissful week of relief on prednisolone just before Christmas, but then the sciatica returned with a vengence. So now I'm going for physical therapy, resting a lot, and trying to stretch that nasty piriformis as best I can. Too bad the therapy last week that helped a LOT caused me to pull a muscle in my right knee (opposite side) by lying on the hard table with my weight on it while having my left lower back massaged. I guess that proves you can't win when it comes to the problems of an aging body.

On the bright side, however, we managed quite a coup in getting a lift chair for David. These are upholstered recliner type chairs that plug into an electric outlet and have a motor inside that moves you all the way up for ease in getting out of the chair as well as all the way back for reclining or sleeping.

The new ones are about a thousand bucks, so I figured we'd never be able to get one. David was having trouble getting out of his prior recliner where you had to pull yourself to a sitting position and then reach down for a lever to bring the footrest door and the chair upright and then you still had to struggle to get out of it. This lift chair does it for you ... so cool. We got it on craigslist for $150 ... wow! This lady bought it ten years ago for when her dad visited her house and he had passed away and she wanted to sell it. What luck, huh?

What else is new? Well, we've been to a couple of jazz gigs. We've missed a few too between lousy weather and body pains. We did catch Desafinado at Buvons (the wine bar inside Corkscrew Wine shop) last weekend. The band has really evolved into a different sound these days with a number of new band members. It's less acoustic and laid back, but we like it anyway. It's a lively contemporary Brazilian sound with some electric instruments and a wide range of percussion and some fast-paced numbers that don't have that samba beat. They had a good crowd at Buvons and a couple of friends joined in for some numbers. As always, Elis Artz gave a wonderful performance on vocals and pulls the whole effort together beautifully.

Buvons has a deal with Mirabelle bakery: they text in handmade pizza orders and then someone brings them over by car. We tried the goat cheese and red peppers and pesto -- very tasty! My friend Frank (source of expert info on plants but also on cuisine) thinks maybe those small extra-sweet red peppers are the ones from South Africa.

Last night we made it to the Iron Post after our Saturday at the Urbana library, despite frosty weather and some frozen patches in the parking lot, to hear Del Sur. This is a new band that gave its second performance and is going to be playing the first Saturday of each month in the slot that used to be Sandunga, the Cuban band. In fact, Eduardo Herrera was a band member for Sandunga (and Bate Calado, another Brazilian band), and now heads up Del Sur along with Julian Norato (also from Sandunga), Ian Middleton, and Alex Agudelo.

Del Sur means "from the South" and Julian, Eduardo, and Alex are from Columbia. Ian is from South London. They play an amazing mix of folkloric and popular Latin American and Caribbean music, including "huaynos, cumbias, porros, zambas, and many other genres." If you're familiar with "El Condor Passa" from Paul Simon, you will recognize the distinctive sound of the pan flute, expertly played by Alex. They also play lively Columbian and Peruvian cumbias that are very danceable and the same dancers who used to come for Sandunga have obliged once again. So it's fun to watch them too. 

Eduardo gives some information about the origins of the songs (his ethnomusicology studies are showing here) and plays some incredible guitar and charanga (and melodica and bongos and vocals). Julian plays guitar and sings in his lovely melodic voice. Alex handles flutes of various kinds and percussion and sings as well. Ian was especially surprising this time. Last time, he mainly played congas, bongos, and other percussion. This time he also played a very long flute and performed some incredible vocals! He has a wonderfully authentic Spanish but speaks English with a delightful British accent (and he's really good looking). We had a lovely time listening and watching the dancers.


What's new with my Etsy business, Beaded Jewelry by Susan? The short answer is nothing. Sadly, there were no sales over the holidays at all. I'm starting to get a bit discouraged about getting people to the online shop. I have put some items on clearance, but that doesn't seem to have made any difference so far. I'm going to retire some items when they come up for renewal to make room for some new ones (if I get around to photographing the new earrings) or, at least, to keep smaller numbers of items to pay for every four months.


I'm hoping that Sara and Theresa will want to have some jewelry parties or something over the winter and start selling my wares again at Farmer's Market in May. They did a good job and had some lovely displays, but some bad luck too with hot weather this summer outside and poor lighting inside at Lincoln Square. Maybe 2012 will be better for Beaded Jewelry by Susan. Let's hope so.


In the continuing household saga of objects wearing out along with our aging bodies, we had to install new "motor mounts" in our ten-year old Honda van. We are still trying to pay off the new air conditioner and waiting for the state to reimburse us on the dental insurance. It was not fun to wrack up another giant bill, for sure. The house door is falling apart by crumbling on the inside so the screws don't hold the plate tight, so that will have to be replaced eventually at considerable expense as well. Glass broke recently in a book case, but we got that taped, thank goodness, and the batteries replaced in the smoke alarms. What's next?


I've been reading a lot (so what's new ... 60-plus years of reading a lot). Now we're looking into audio books or DVDs of various types for David because reading is getting difficult, even with the large print books. Maybe we'll consider an iPad or something like that for him at some point. Have been getting some cool smooth jazz CDs from the library based on a list I found on the Internet.


I've started getting the all-color catalogues from the perennial flower houses. Even though I can't really afford to get many and have to pay Sara to plant them for me, it brightens my day to leaf through the pages and circle my favorites. And I am looking forward to those species tulips she planted in the raised beds on the east side last fall. That will bring my camera out if nothing else will!


Actually, I have been thinking about taking some cat photos for a nice blog post about our five fabulous felines. What do you think? Is anyone interested? They never cease to amaze, inform, entertain, and delight me in all ways. But, of course, they are my (our) cats, and so there is a certain bias.


Well, that's about it for now I guess. No use discussing the wretched state of the world (or the nation, just please don't vote Republican if you have any sense), so I kept it to the small but usually fairly pleasant space of my own little world. Hope you enjoyed it, dear readers. I love comments if you feel so inclined.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

I can't believe that the day after tomorrow is Christmas Eve! It seems as though the time since Thanksgiving has really gone unnaturally fast ...

We haven't actually been that busy, though. Just the usual routine plus some Christmas activities thrown into the mix. We got the Christmas tree early this year because our friend Bob, who helps us put it up, was leaving for a family trip to Guatemala. It turned out to be more complicated than usual finding a cut tree, however, probably for a variety of reasons.

In the past, when we were all able to walk around easily, we would go out to the country and wander around on a Christmas tree farm, sometimes freezing our butts off, and then pick the tree to cut -- usually it wound up being the first tree we spotted a hour or more before. But maybe those farms have closed because of so many people buying artificial trees. Or they planted new small tree seedlings that were wiped out in the horrendous heat this summer. I know some of the cut trees coming from out West were ruined by drought.

But the tree farm specimens kept getting bigger, too big for our house, so we turned to in-town tree lots for trees that had already been cut. There was one that used to be in the parking lot for Jarlings ice cream that we went to several times.

Then the ice cream shop started staying open longer into the late fall and early winter and the tree lot moved to a location where annuals are sold in the spring. So that's where we headed, only to find nothing there but the empty tables from the spring plant sales.

I thought I remembered U of I forestry students selling trees down near the pomology grounds, but there was nobody there either.

So we went to the C-U Optimists Club tent on Springfield Avenue. What a scam! You'd have to be an optimist to think anybody would fall for it. The guy has maybe 12 trees all together to choose from (remember, this is early, December 9). Six of them are Scotch pine, which I don't like to begin with. They are usually ugly, stick your fingers, and don't hold ornaments well.

These Scotch pines were especially ugly, in fact, having twisted trunks and scrappy bare branches. They looked like the leftovers someone might get as a job lot from a real Christmas tree sale.

Then there were six or so Frazier firs that looked fine but were too tall for our house really. I glanced at the price tag anyway just to see what they cost and my mouth fell open: $120! We told him we needed to look further and where were the other tree lots. He claimed he didn't know and didn't think there were any others ...

So we bought a newpaper while trying to exchange the multicolor lights that turned out to be all red because someone put the wrong package on the wrong shelf (but they were out of the cheap ones already and we had to buy a more expensive kind of course). Unlike prior years, there was NO section in the classified for Christmas trees, either on farms or in town.

We then wondered about Prairie Gardens, the nursery center and craft store on the west side of town. I knew they had expensive and beautifully decorated artificial trees for sale, but didn't know if they did cut trees too, so we called. Yes, nice balsam firs, five-six feet tall, for twenty bucks!

Unfortunately, it was evening by then and the young guy in charge of the trees couldn't saw off the bottom for us. When we got back, we got it in the house and got it mounted in the stand and then remembered the bottom hadn't been cut. Well, it has been very pretty and we really enjoyed it, but it didn't take up any water and now it is soooo dry! I plan to get Sara to help me take it down the day after Christmas.

We did have pretty lights all along the top of the breezeway, part way up the Japanese tree lilac, and on the fence, thanks to Sara. One of the strings even plays Christmas carols! It's probably a surprise to the many dog walkers of our neighborhood, hearing the tinkly sound of Christmas music as they pass our driveway.

Well, I sent the cards the other day and finished the wrapping tonight. Tomorrow we go to the library (closed for our usual Saturday visit) and end the evening with Christmas jazz at Silvercreek with piano by Donnie Heitler and Nick Schroeder (great trumpet player). Christmas Eve we will visit with David's son Christopher and son Jonathan and family and then have a quiet dinner and gift exchange, just the two of us. On Christmas Day, I'm making a ham and Vicki and Frank are joining us.

Merry Christmas to all of my blog readers and Happy New Year!

Flying Down to Rio!

 Winter is coming to Champaign-Urbana and many folks are thinking about heading south. My sister and her husband are traveling down the Oregon and California coasts to San Diego and taking a Caribbean cruise. My friend Bob is going to Guatemala over the holidays with family to visit Mayan ruins. What about David and me? In addition to vicarious vacationing via friends' e-mails and photos, we flew down to Rio de Janeiro for the weekend, figuratively speaking of course.

Last weekend we went to the Iron Post (approx. 15 blocks from our house, so closer than South America) for the Brazilian band called Bate Calado. Yesterday, Desafinado played there. David remarked in the middle of a lively number at last night's gig, "It's like being in Rio, isn't it?" Good enough for me!

 Bate Calado--which specializes in performing Brazilian bossa nova, MPB (Música Popular Brasileira), choro, and contemporary Brazilian light pop and rock music--features Gina Reynolds singing rhythmic tunes in Portuguese, Dave Cubberly on electric bass, Rick Deja on saxophone and flute, Eduardo Herrera on guitar, and Andy Burton on drums. This time Ian Middleton joined them on congas and various percussion instruments as well.

There was a good-sized audience and the sets were energetic. Gina dances around a bit as she sings and the beat was a toe-tapper!

Than last night we heard Desafinado. As our regular blog readers know, we've been following this group for years and years. The band members have changed some, including recently, but the terrific samba and bossa nova sound is very consistent and the musicianship is always top-notch!

Greg Jahiel is the group's earliest member and guitar player (and he does Portuguese vocals). But he's "on leave" right now with happy parenting. George Turner has been playing with them for a while, but George is busy teaching right now. So a new guitarist has joined the group.

 His name is Gabriel and he is from Brazil.

 Gabriel is a terrific guitarist and is fitting in just right with the Desafinado style!

The very talented Luciano Tosta, who used to play with Bate Calado, plays electric mandolin in Desafinado most of the time. But he also plays guitar and tambourine, triangle, gourds, and a number of other funky and interesting percussion instruments.

In addition to Giraldo Rosales, long-time band member and wonderful master of the congas, there was a new drummer tonite named Niko who did a fine job.

Another crossover from Bate Calado is Dave Cubberly on electric bass. We enjoyed Dave's playing last weekend and were happy to see him back again with this band!

One of the earliest band members is, of course, the multitasking musician Tom Paynter, who is equally impressive on keyboards, flute, and melodica.

We were lucky enough (and early enough) to get a table right near the band and this time we were close enough to Tom to watch some of his amazing runs on the Baldwin and his flute fingering.

As with many photos of pianists, we usually just see the back of Tom's head, but here we caught a close-up with a bit of profile, including a great expression of what looks to me like "feeling the music." 

But it wouldn't be Desafinado without the voice, beauty, warmth, and energy of the incomparable Elis Artz!

As always, Elis really lights up the stage with her dynamic performances, belting out soul-shaking sambas, definitely spirited contemporary Brazilian tunes, and old favorite bossa novas by Antonio Carlos Jobim.

At this gig, Elis was so open-hearted and generous in bringing up other friends to sing with her. Here Brazilian friend Robert Perrerre joins in for some great numbers.

Another Brazilian friend, Paulo Henrique, provided some very lively percussion.

And Gina Reynolds, the singer from Bate Calado, was in the audience and came up for some solos, duets, and three-way performances with Elis and Robert.

Gina has a lovely voice that is quite different from Elis' and the two blend together very nicely indeed.

 

It was a terrific gig, with two sets full of wonderful music, great performers, and a real sense of being in South America--flying to Rio--for a Saturday night! 

International Gem and Jewelry Show

What fun! Last weekend we made a trip to Collinsville, Illinois to the International Gem and Jewelry show. We had a wonderful time exploring all the new beads and buying some great new crystal, lampwork, and metal trim to use (soon!) in new designs for Beaded Jewelry by Susan.

We had a beautiful fall day for the trip down, about a three-hour drive from Champaign-Urbana. The fall color on the trees was fantastic, and we saw a few hawks at the edge of the interstate. Once we got down south a bit, the terrain started to be less flat and there were rolling hills and river valleys that we don't get to see much around Champaign County, so it was a nice treat.

 Our friend Bob dropped us off at the Gateway Center for the show and went on to spent a pleasant afternoon in nearby Edwardsville, checking out the historical houses there. Meanwhile, we entered the center excitedly and began the great bead expedition! It had been quite a while since we'd been to a bead show and the anticipation had built to a peak.

This year my focus seemed to be on Chinese crystal. I love crystal and it makes such wonderful trim and accompaniment for lampwork and other delicate glass beads and pearls. Of course, I have a big collection of crystal already, both the expensive Austrian Swarovski and the new Celestial Crystal. But there were new colors in the lovely faceted rondelles I like so much and excellent prices. So I stocked up!

Also found some lovely lampwork that was faceted: colorful patterns inside clear glass rondelles with the whole outer bead faceted. Got some more of the interesting opaque lampwork beads too--with swirls, clusters of flowers, and geometric patterns. Although I didn't photograph them, I also found bags of tiny adorable bead caps in silver, gold, and bronze plating ... just right for earring trim.

I saw a lot of lovely stone beads at the show as well, but many of them are too large and heavy for earrings and right now I am mainly doing earrings and some pendants. I also saw lots of those charming ribbon necklets for suspending bead charm pendants, like the ones that Theresa and Sara Jones have been making. I have already made a few pendants and a bunch of new earrings for them to sell at the Holiday Market inside Lincoln Square (now that it's too cold for the outdoor Farmer's Market), beginning next weekend for the entire month of November.

I had to get a new Plano storage box for all the new beads and do quite a bit of reorganizing of my crystal collection. That's always time well spent because it makes it so much easier and faster for me to locate the bead I want in the middle of a design moment. I have started making new designs with the new bead and am looking forward to doing more of that very soon.

Hopefully, at some point I will take new photos of new jewelry to add to the Etsy site. In the meanwhile, I will continue to pass new work to Sara and Theresa for sales at Holiday Market and, at the end of the month, the U of I Holiday Bazaar in the Illini Union. I hope that local fans of Beaded Jewelry by Susan will be able to come to some of these events. If not, you can always shop online in my Etsy shop.

Provena Go Pink Tonight!

Tonight, Tuesday October 25, is the fundraising event at Provena Hospital featuring Beaded Jewelry by Susan. Drop by for jewelry, snacks, and speakers!

It’s time to Go PINK! in honor of breast cancer awareness month. Provena Covenant Medical Center is putting on this fun, free and informative event on Tuesday, October 25 from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. in the auditoriums at Provena. Go PINK! will feature world-renowned University of Illinois breast cancer researcher Ann Nardulli, Ph.D., who will discuss the latest advancements in fighting cancer. In addition, two breast cancer survivors will be on hand to share their stories, and they will join a panel of medical experts to answer questions about prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

“The focus of this event is of course breast cancer awareness, but we wanted to bring in some other exciting things for women to do as well,” said Louise Fellmann, Women’s Health Program Coordinator. Rod Sickler Salon & Spa will be providing free mini-manicures and mini-facials, Confidentially Yours will be doing bra fittings, and Macy’s will have fall fashions and a lipstick station. There will also be plenty of educational booths and free health risk assessments, plus light hors d’oeuvres, PINKtinis from Holiday Inn, door prizes and other giveaways.

This event is made possible by proceeds from It's All in the Jeans Day. Registration is requested by not required. To register, call 866-PROVENA toll-free or visit www.provena.org/covenant/rsvp.

Go Pink with Beaded Jewelry by Susan

Beaded Jewelry by Susan earrings will be available at the Go Pink event at the  breast cancer fundraising evening at Provena Hospital next week:

Go PINK!

Join us on Tuesday, October 25 in the Auditoriums at Provena Covenant Medical Center from 5 p.m. - 7 p.m. for this fun, free and informative evening focused on breast cancer awareness. Wear your favorite casual pink attire and join us for a night of pampering, education, networking and more. Registration is requested but not required. To register, call 866-PROVENA or visit www.provena.org/covenant/rsvp.
World-Renowned University of Illinois Breast Cancer Researcher Ann Nardulli, Ph.D. will discuss the latest advancements in fighting cancer, two breast cancer survivors will share their stories, and a panel of medical experts and breast cancer survivors of all ages will answer your questions about prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

• Mini-manicures and mini-facials courtesy of Rod Sickler Salon & Spa
• Free bra fittings courtesy of Confidentially Yours
• Fall fashions from Macy’s
• Free health risk assessments
• Light hors d’oeuvres and wine
• PINKtinis, courtesy of Holiday Inn in Urbana
• Door prizes
• Giveaways