Sal Goes to Midwest UkeFest 2015

Sal had a great time at this year's Midwest Uke Fest.  There were lots of great classes to attend, and most of her ukulele-playing friends were there to share in the fun.  What could be bad about a whole weekend of ukulele playing, learning, and listening!?

Since Sal has been to the Fest two times before, she has many memories to share.  Click here to read about Sal's experiences at UkeFest 2013 and here to read about Uke Fest 2014.  (I just read the posts again before adding the links here, and am glad to have revisited those delightful times!  <3 Uke Fest every year!!!)

A delicious tradition.  Going out for Thai food the night before Uke Fest begins.

Stu Fuchs -- a wonderful instructor!  Sal and I met him at Mighty Uke Day and were looking forward to attending more of his workshops at Uke Fest.   We were not disappointed!  This year Sal and I didn't take photos with the other instructors, but you can see those gifted fellows in the previous years' posts via the links above.)

Each year there is an Open Mic Concert at the Uke Fest.  Nicole, one of our fellow Fleaharmonics, did an amazing solo at the Open Mic last year.  This year she blew us away again by performing an original song -- with an assist from Jeff (another fellow Fleaharmonic).  Check out  Nicole and Jeff's performance here!

At last year's Open Mic, our whole Cleveland contingent performed The Tide Is High.  This year we did another fun song.  Here is our rendition of Build Me Up, Buttercup.  (We don't actually start playing until a minute and twenty seconds in.)  We were quite nervous, but it was fun, too.  We're already thinking about what we should play next year!

At last year's Uke Fest we took some mock-busking photos in front of Woodburn's pizza place.  Of course doing something once means it becomes a tradition, so we had to do more fake busking this year.  There was some discussion of where the photos should be taken.  Recreate last year's shots -- or find a new place?  From the photos below you can see we chose to find a new spot.  I have cropped the pictures into squares, so we can all envision what they would look like as album covers!

I used the "fade color" effect in iPhoto on this picture.  It makes things look a bit bleak -- which I think is what we were going for by busking on an abandoned train.

The same shot, using my favorite combination of effects for stuff like this -- "antique" and "edge blur."  Much better for an album cover, I'd say.

Another angle on the thing.  Used my favorite effects on this one, too.  If this was the album cover, I would put the name of the band in the lower left of the picture.

This one would be a cool album cover, too!  Same effects.

You can't keep a ukulele band down for long!  Presenting a cover for an album of happy songs by The Cleveland Fleaharmonics!

A BIT OF MUSING ABOUT LIFE...  It is common knowledge that the ukulele is the world's happiest instrument!  While playing it, uke lovers lose their cares for a while and feel true joy (unless they are practicing barre chords -- but that is a subject for another day...)  Unfortunately, sometimes life presents circumstances that make it hard to pick up the instrument and get happy.  Sal and I were going through such a shadowy period during Uke Fest, but the warm atmosphere, the challenging classes that forced us to concentrate, and the companionship of friends and fellow ukers brought us through.  Thanks to the Uke Fest family and our fellow Cleveland Fleaharmonics for a wonderfully uplifting weekend!  Looking forward to next year already!

Sal Goes to Dulcimer Days

Coshocton, Ohio is most famous as the home of Roscoe Village, but many music lovers also know the city as the site of the annual Coshocton Dulcimer Days Festival.  I won't get into the very long story of why we went there, but suffice it to say, three Fleaharmonics and Sal ended up at the festival.  Unfortunately for us, and for those who worked so hard to prepare for the big event, the rain poured down for hours.  Navigating the charmingly uneven brick sidewalks meant following a zigzag course in an attempt to avoid an overabundance of gigantic puddles.  Most of the vendors -- who were supposed to be in tents along the streets -- packed up and went home.  It was a pretty dismal day.  All was not lost, however.  The three of us (and Sal) took a ukulele workshop with Bing Futch -- a super musician and teacher.  This prevented the trip from being a total washout -- pun intended!

Hoping to go to a drier Dulcimer Days next year!

This was Bing Futch's third meeting with Sal.  The others took place at the Midwest Uke Fest, which happens each August in Woodburn, Indiana.  We'll all be meeting there in just a few weeks for two days of ukulele fun and learning.

Sal Spends a Blissful Weekend at the Midwest Uke Fest!

The Midwest Uke Fest was one of the highlights of last summer, and I was sooo looking forward to going again this year!  I signed up early and was glad to find that several of my favorite Fleas were also going.  The weeks of anticipation stretched before us...  And then, suddenly, it was time! 

Most of the Fleas drove their own cars -- for various reasons -- but Sal and I were able to hitch a ride.  (Thanks, Bruce, for letting us tag along with you.)  Before going to the motel where out-of-town ukers customarily stay, we stopped at Folkcraft Instruments to say "hello," pick up our registration packets, have a strap button put on my beautiful Druid Moon ukulele -- and, let's face it, maybe we just couldn't wait to get to the scene of the weekend's uke-tastic events...  While we were there, Thomas, a fellow Flea, arrived at Folkcraft, too.  Great minds.

We got our registration packets, and I received a surprise extra in mine!  It requires a small flashback to explain it, so here goes.  Last year I brought Sal to the Uke Fest, and took many pictures of her there.  If you'd care to take a journey down memory lane, here is the post about last year's Uke Fest.  When registering for the Fest, you can order a t-shirt, which I always do.  This year my packet also contained a tiny Uke Fest shirt for Sal!  What a thoughtful -- and fun -- gesture from the wonderful Folkcraft people!  You'll see a photo of Sal wearing her shirt later in this post.  :)

After the visit to Folkcraft, we went to the motel to check in, and meet up with the rest of the Cleveland contingent.  We all went out to dinner together -- with the exception of the one unlucky Flea who had to work that day and arrived too late to join us.  After all the driving, everyone was looking forward to a beer or glass of wine.  We found a Thai restaurant, and began looking at the beverages on the menu.  When our server came to the table, I asked her to describe two of the beers listed.  She then stated that the restaurant did not serve alcohol or pop -- even though they were on the menu!  All of our faces simultaneously fell!  It was quite funny, actually.   

There was no beer or wine, but the food was tasty and we had a good time anyway.

After our meal, we returned to the hotel, and everybody met in my room to practice the song we planned to do at the Open Mic Concert on Sunday.  Happily, wine and other liquid refreshments were available -- thanks to the prior planning of almost everyone in the group!

For some reason I was given a big room with a sitting area, so it was our practice space on Friday and Saturday nights...  and the place to have a bit of a party, too.

As in previous years, the Midwest Uke Fest was wonderful!  The classes were great -- and so were the people!  Intense learning, lots of laughs, wonderful camaraderie...   <3 the Midwest Uke Fest!!!

Of course I had to get photos of Sal with all of the instructors!  Check out these fine musicians and the creative ways they elected to pose with Sal!

King Richard, as he was jokingly called by his fellow instructors, is also the big cheese at Folkcraft.

 Bing Futch with Sal.  I took two of his classes, and he blew my mind at least three times!

Li'l Rev and Sal.  I really enjoyed my classes with him.  I've heard that he will be an instructor at next year's Uke Fest, too, and am looking forward to taking more of his classes.

Sal hanging out with The Ukulele Cowboy Society.  They are based in Columbus, so I envision some Flea field trips and/or group outings to see them when they come to Cleveland to perform.

Nick -- the guy who can do it all -- measuring Sal for her t-shirt.  He was not an instructor, but Sal wanted to pose with him anyway!

Sal wearing her Midwest Uke Fest T-shirt on stage.  Doesn't she look great!?  What a wonderful surprise this shirt was!  A gesture like this says a lot about the Folkcraft family.  They are good people!

The Fleas rehearsed again in my room on Saturday night.  We practiced our group song, and Nicole played through her solo for us.  And then it was Sunday -- a day of more great classes and... gulp... the Open Mic.  Happily, we didn't embarrass ourselves -- and Nicole was outstanding!  Check out the videos of our performances.

The Tide is High performed by our merry band!   (Don't worry about the thumb.  It's soon removed!)  From left to right you can see Thomas, Holly, Nicole, and me.  Unfortunately, because of the angle this was shot from you can't see Bruce and Tabitha, who are behind us.  I guess we'll have to configure ourselves differently next year so all the Fleas get their 15 minutes of fame!

The Cuckoo performed by Nicole.  The audience was amazed by this -- and for good reason!  Wow!

GUSH ALERT!  Picking up the ukulele was one of the best things I ever did!  It has brought me so much joy -- through playing it and through the people I've met because of it.  One of the best things about my uke buddies is that they don't look askance at my kooky ideas.  They are willing to do things that others would look askance at.  For example, in the time we had left after eating lunch on Sunday, they agreed to walk quite a distance to pose for a photo with Sal and a tin man!  We saw this metallic fellow in front of a heating and cooling company as we drove into town, and I immediately thought that Sal must be photographed with him.  I was afraid I would have to do this necessary task alone, but most of the hardy Fleas made the trek with me. 

What fun!

As we were walking back from the tin man photo shoot, I had another crazy idea for a Sal photo.  What if we pretended we were busking in front of Woodburn's bowling alley?  As I said before, my uke buddies are game for anything, so they all got into the spirit of the thing.  I thought we should have a cardboard sign, so I explained what we planned to do to Folkcraft's Nick, who readily agreed to get us a big piece of cardboard.  After that the Fleas contributed their ideas for the perfect wording, and Tabitha did a great job of lettering and decorating the sign -- with much verbal input from the rest of the group.

After we ate our Sunday dinner, we all walked to the bowling alley, and realized that a photo there would not work.  The sign was too high on the wall, and the light was not good for photography.  After some pondering and walking around, we discovered that there was a pizza place around the corner.  It looked perfect, so we began to get out our ukes and set up our scene.  Then we saw a cop car -- with a cop disembarking from it -- next door!  It appeared that we were doing our pretend busking next to the police station!  Much hilarity ensued as we discussed the possibility of being arrested and calling Folkcraft to ask them to send somebody to bail us out, etc.  Some even floated the possibility of asking the cop to pretend to arrest us and taking a photo of that, but wiser heads prevailed.

Usually I don't want to be in photos, but these turned out so great that I wish there had been a passerby to take them so I could have been part of the picture, so to speak.  These photos are classic!  Our first album cover!  ;)

The wall was a bright color, but these pictures were crying out to be sepia!

Don't you love these tough characters!?  Suggested group name = The Hard Cases! 

We went back to the hotel, had one last little drinks party in my room, and went downstairs to the lobby for a final jam session.  On Friday and Saturday night other uke players had been there, but tonight it was just us.  It was fun, but we were pretty tired, and I know I was about ready to call it a day, when in walked Bing Futch.  He sat down and joined us.  We had a great half hour of playing with him, but had to regretfully say, as midnight passed, that it was time to say a final goodnight...

Good-bye to Uke Fest one more time...  Already counting the months until we meet again next year...  Thanks so much to everyone at Folkcraft for all they do to make this a wonderful experience; to the instructors for their patience, skill, kindness, etc.; and to the awesome Flea contingent for making every experience so much fun!  You guys are the bomb!

Monday morning arrived, and it was time to return to real life.  Sigh...  But happily, some of us were willing and able to make a fun stop on the way home -- Sechler's Pickle factory.  Next post:  all about our pickle adventures.

Sal at the Midwest Uke Fest!

Last year Folkcraft Instruments put together their first Midwest Uke Fest and I, a person who had only played the ukulele for a few months, bravely ventured there in search of musical knowledge and new experiences.  A few other members of the Cleveland Jumping Fleas were also going and, though I was not well acquainted with them, it was good to see some familiar faces in faraway Woodburn, Indiana.  The two-day event was amazing, and I decided that I had to return in 2013 for the second Midwest Uke Fest.

As August 2013 grew closer, I started to "encourage" some of my fellow Fleas to attend this year's Uke Fest.  Surprisingly, a few of them did!  To be perfectly honest, my nagging probably didn't make much difference, but it is possible that my constant begging was the last little nudge they needed to sign up.  ;)  Of course Sal had to go along, too.  (As I said in a previous post, the Ohio-travel-only rule does not apply to ukulele events.)

One of the things Uke Fest attendees love to do is get their picture taken in front of a big Folkcraft/Midwest Uke Fest banner.  The camera is activated by a computer, which e-mails a copy of the photo.  We decided that we should get a shot of all the Clevelanders together, so we gathered our group and posed for a couple of photos.  Sal was, of course, included, as were some other ukes.  Then it was time to take a silly picture.  We posed in goofy ways, waited as the computer counted down... 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2 .... and suddenly we were photo bombed!  The resulting picture is much funnier than the one we were about to take and thus ended the photo session -- with much hilarity!

This photo bomb is presented by Bing Futch!  You can see the edge of Sal peeking out from under his arm.  I'd say this photo reflects everyone's happy mood pretty well.

The Uke Fest begins at 8:00 a.m. on both Saturday and Sunday, and it's a pretty long drive from the motel to the Folkcraft facility.  One of our merry band is extremely prompt -- and the rest of us are a bit more casual about time -- so on the second morning I decided to take some funny shots of Bruce impatiently looking at his pocket watch while other Fleas pretended to rush to the car. 

Bruce checking the time, while Joe and Norma "run" in slo-mo to the car.  Sal is waiting on the trunk.

Norma breaks character. 

I asked each of the wonderful instructors to pose with Sal, and all of them had fun ideas of what to do with her.  I love creative people!

Sal and Ehukai Teves share a musical moment.

What happy music they made!

 Lois Hornbostel -- dulcimer-player extraordinaire and a friend of Sal, too -- being a bit fierce!

The Uke Fest was featured in the local newspaper -- and there's a picture of Bing Futch on the front page!  Too bad they didn't have the photo bomb shot -- or this one with Sal.

Sal and Butch Ross getting ready to Rock and Roll!

Yeah!

Sal with the swingin' Gerald Ross.

Since the Uke Fest is held in the shop where Folkcraft makes and sells their beautiful handcrafted ukuleles and dulcimers, people attending the Fest pass by the displays of these instruments several times a day.  After last year's Fest, I decided that the next year (which is this year), I would treat myself to one of these beauties.  There are several types of wood to choose from, and I am certainly no expert, so when Ehukai Teves and I were both in the shop on the second day of last year's Fest, I asked him what wood he would choose.  He told me he would get a black walnut body and a butternut soundboard.  From that point on I thought about this beautiful future ukulele...

Of course I don't really need another ukulele, so as I walked past the instruments on the wall during Uke Fest 2013 I tried to resist temptation, but in the end it was too much.  I broke down and ordered myself a Druid Moon concert ukulele with -- you guessed it -- a black walnut body and a butternut soundboard.  It will be arriving in a few weeks.  I can't wait to play it!

Which of these is not like the others?  Sal, while very cute, is a bit out of her league on this wall of handmade instruments.

Sal posing with wood that will someday make beautiful music.  The picture was pretty boring, but then I did some things to it on iPhoto and now I think it's neat.

Richard Ash -- head honcho of Folkcraft -- and Nick Young, who answered all my questions and placed my order.  These gentlemen were kind enough to pose with Sal -- even though she is not handmade.  ;)  I asked them to pose by the register/computer to show that this is where the construction of Sal's future sibling began!

Once again, the Midwest Uke Fest was a peak experience for me!  If I was a gambler -- or as the song goes, "if I were a gambler" -- I'd be willing to bet that the other Fleas had a great time, too.  We were treated to informative classes with great (and patient) instructors; a super-friendly family atmosphere; entertaining concerts by all of the multi-talented artists/instructors; and fun jam sessions at the motel after each day's official activities were over.  Who could ask for anything more!?  

Even though a few days have passed since the Uke Fest ended, I'm still pretty much on a cloud of ukulele bliss.  Thanks to the Ash family and all of the instructors for giving us this joyful feeling (and a bunch of new stuff to practice, too)!

Already looking forward to Uke Fest 2014!!!