Sal Does the Full Cleveland (but not fully...)

Hooray for Peet McCain!  He had a terrific idea and made it happen -- The Full Cleveland!  On the morning of October 11th, a bunch of people gathered on the far eastern edge of Cleveland, with the goal of spending the day walking all the way to the far western edge.  Sal and I wanted to be a part of this, and were able to spend the first half of the day doing so.  In the afternoon we had to go get ready for Music for the Millwheel, which you can read about here, but the morning was all about participating in The Full Cleveland! Because of some clock issues, I missed meeting up with the group at the starting point -- the Stokes/Windemere Rapid Station, but found them at Lakeview Cemetery.  

The Full Cleveland group -- including Sal -- at Lakeview Cemetery.  I am taking the photo, but am represented by the bright yellow ukulele.  A couple of us brought ukes along to play as we traveled across the city.  We did find a couple of occasions to play -- and it was fun!  Gotta spread the uke joy!

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Peet had planned a really nice route for us, including a stop at Coquette Patisserie, where we had beverages and fantastic goodies. 

Sal with the fabulously decadent treat I selected from the plethora of delicious-looking choices.

Yes, I ate it all!  And it was fantastic!

After a very pleasant interlude at Coquette, we walked over to the Case Western Reserve University radio station and had a very cool behind-the-scenes tour.

Radio lovers!

Walking through the CWRU campus toward the Cleveland Museum of Art, we came across this statue.  It was an obvious place for a Sal photo!

The Full Cleveland group by the fountain in front of the Art Museum.

Sal's portrait at the Art Museum fountain.  For some reason I always feel the need to use iPhoto effects on fountain shots of Sal. 

The group was librarian-heavy! Sal was hanging out in my bag for this photo.  (She doesn't have a finger to shush with!)

Sal and I were having a great time!  We enjoyed stops at a couple other locations, and wished to continue, but our Full Cleveland ended at Gallucci's -- where everybody was getting something to eat.  It smelled heavenly in there, and I was wandering around trying to decide what to get, when I checked the time.  Uh-oh!  It was time to rush off to meet my performing chums and prepare for Music for the Millwheel!  I'm hoping that next year Sal and I will be able to do the full Full Cleveland II!

Sal Attends a Fantastic Show -- Pink Martini and the Von Trapps!

Saturday was a great day!  It was just what Sal and I needed!  We spent the whole afternoon with the Cleveland Jumping Fleas -- rehearsing for our next Singalong performance from 1:00-3:00, and having our usual Tunes in Tremont jam from 3:00-4:30.  Both the rehearsal and the jam were tremendous fun!

After that I met my friend Heidi and we had a delicious dinner at Aladdin's, then went over to the Cleveland Museum of Art. We had tickets to see Pink Martini and the Von Trapps.  Heidi had seen Pink Martini perform before, and was sure I would enjoy the show -- and she was absolutely right!  The show was fantastic!

Pink Martini is hard to describe, so I stole this from the internet:  Describing itself as a "little orchestra," its music crosses genres such as classical, latin, jazz and classic pop.  Their show was a delicious mishmash of music.  They sang in several languages, and their infectious rhythms made it impossible to resist dancing in my seat.  There was lots of wonderful piano, upright bass, violin, trumpet, and trombone playing, and gobs of amazing percussion.  Completely delightful!

The highlights of Pink Martini's performance were many, but I will mention just one.  One of the percussionists - Derek Rieth -- played an instrument which looked like a giant gourd with beads on it.  You wouldn't think that such an instrument could make such a variety of sounds, but it was really cool!  And then I noticed that Mr. Rieth bears a striking resemblance to the actor who plays Mr. Bates in Downton Abbey, which made it even better!  (Downton fans know that Mr. Bates is a man of sterling qualities -- loyalty, integrity, faithfulness, etc. -- and he's a bit dreamy, too..)

Before the show I asked an usher if I could put Sal on the edge of the stage and take a picture.  I was told that I could not do it then, but that after the show I could quickly do so.  When I saw that the cool gourd instrument was conveniently placed near the edge of the stage, I decided this was where Sal should pose.  Too bad that ugly black bag was there... 

Enough about Mr. Bates!  Back to the concert!

You would be skeptical if I used all the superlatives that would be necessary to describe the performance of the Von Trapps, so I'll just write what I said to Heidi after many of their songs - WOW!  Lovers of The Sound of Music will be happy to know that these young people are from "the family Von Trapp" -- as famously introduced in the concert scene from that iconic film.  They are four great-grandchildren of the Captain and Maria -- Sofi (25), Melanie (23), Amanda (22), and August (19).  Their grandfather was the "incorrigible" young man called Kurt in the film. After the Von Trapps finished singing their first song, I turned to Heidi and said, "My mind is officially blown."  Their voices were so lovely and their harmonies so tight.  I honestly could not believe what I was hearing.  It was other-worldly.

My enjoyment was complete when August came out to sing a solo number -- accompanying himself on a ukulele!  I had to slip my camera out of my purse and take a couple of shots.  When introducing this song, which August wrote, Thomas Lauderdale, the pianist -- and founder of Pink Martini -- said that this song sounds like it's coming from the child of Simon and Garfunkel.  Of course this would be biologically impossible, but he was right!  The song was very Simon and Garfunkel-esque -- which is a great compliment!

August VonTrapp singing and doing some nice fingerpicking on his uke.  He sang this song alone at the show but here is a video of him singing it with his sister.

Then the other VonTrapps came out and they all sang Dream a Little Dream while August strummed.  Hearing them perform the song so beautifully made me smile.  It's a lovely song -- and we Fleas had played the same tune at our jam that afternoon!  Our Flea rendition obviously could not compare -- but we had a great time singing and playing it, which is the most important thing.

Dream a Little Dream... Here's a video from another show on this tour.

After the show, Pink Martini and the Von Trapps sat at a table to sign CDs, etc.  I had purchased a CD before the show, so I got in line.  When I reached the front of the queue, I placed my CD on the table to be signed by China Forbes, the lead singer of Pink Martini.  She was talking to someone else and I didn't want to interrupt her, so I began speaking to August Von Trapp, who was sitting next to her.  I told him about Sal, and asked him to pose with her.  I also gave him one of our Cleveland Jumping Flea cards, so maybe next time he's in Cleveland he can attend a jam.  ;)  Derek Rieth, the percussionist I think of as Mr. Bates, was sitting next to him. 

August Von Trapp and Derek Rieth with Sal. Notice Sal's card -- and the Cleveland Jumping Fleas card -- on the table.  :)

 I moved farther down the table and got the following shot of the Von Trapp sisters with Sal.

Did these young ladies think I was a nut?  Perhaps... but they were very nice anyway.  :)

Whenever I meet famous people I'm always a bit flustered.  As I worked my way down the table introducing these wonderful musicians to Sal, my CD completely slipped my mind.  As I reached the end, however, I realized that I had not seen the disc since I put it down on the table to be signed.  I went back to look for it and it was gone.  Somebody else probably picked it up -- perhaps as discombobulated as I was in the show's afterglow.  I looked in my purse to make sure I hadn't stuck it in there.  No CD.  There was a lull in the autograph line, so I said something about my CD being gone, and somebody said that CDs were passed down the table to be signed by everyone.  I looked on the table again and saw several different discs -- but not the one I had purchased.  As you can imagine, I was a bit bummed.  That was 20 bucks down the tubes.  I had to wait for Heidi -- who had been in a different line to buy some merch -- so I was hanging around in front of the table debating whether to buy another copy of the CD or not.  Perhaps it appeared that I was still looking for the disc -- even though I'd given up hope by then -- because Derek Rieth asked me if I'd found it.  When I said no, he came to the rescue -- just as one might expect from the hero of Downton Abbey!  He asked someone to give me another CD, and soon I had one!  If you need evidence that there are nice people in the world -- look no further! I now possess the CD -- and a very nice memory.

That's the end of the concert portion of the story, but if you have a couple more minutes to spare, perhaps you'd like to read on for a pre-concert tale of "so close and yet so far."  Heidi and I arrived at the show very early, hoping to spend some time enjoying the museum's collection before the music began.  Heidi particularly wanted to see the Ai WeiWei Zodiac animal heads that were on display in the atrium, and which were scheduled to be at the museum only through Sunday.  She had looked at the museum's hours online, and read that it would be open until 9:00.  Unfortunately, Heidi had a terrible cold for several days, which caused a severe case of fuzzy head.  The museum is open on Fridays until 9:00, and the concert was on Saturday!   Oh well... The museum was closed when we arrived, so we spent a long time in the lobby -- along with many other people who may have had the same idea of combining the concert with some art appreciation.  We got a tantalizing look at the Zodiac heads in the distance through a grate dividing the lobby from the atrium.  Yep, so close and yet so far...  The good news, though, is that Heidi's favorite piece of art is in a case in the hall leading to the parking garage, so she and Sal posed for a photo next to it.

Heidi and Sal next to the super-cool

If you ever have the opportunity to see Pink Martini and/or the Von Trapps, go!!!  They are all amazing! 

Sal Hears Heavenly Music

Lovers of choral music should rush over to the Cleveland Museum of Art by June 9th to experience the incredible Forty Part Motet.  After discovering it on a Mothers' Day outing, I decided that I must return with Sal.  I thought it would be best to go early in the day, as I was hoping to get some unpopulated photos -- and I invited a musical friend to come along, too, because I knew she would enjoy the Motet.  And I was right!  She did!

We got to the Museum shortly after it opened, but alas, we were not alone with the Motet.   A few early birds were already there enjoying the celestial melody.  It took some patience to get a few photos without people in them.  (In other words, I had to wait while people stood in or walked through my shots.  A lesson in slowing down, which I definitely need.)

This sign explains what the Motet is.  If you can't read it -- the writing is obviously quite small -- click on the link above for a nice description.  (No need for me to reinvent the wheel.)

I would never consider touching any of the works of art in the museum or putting Sal on them, but after some thought, I decided that resting her on top of some of the speakers would be okay, so I proceeded to do so.  (My apparently flawed logic was that the music itself was the art.  The speakers were just the way the art was being conveyed to the listeners, so were not intrinsically valuable, and could be touched.)  As I was taking this picture, a guard approached me and told me that I was not allowed to put Sal on top of the speakers.  Oops!

After being told that Sal was uke-non-grata on the speakers, I put her on the bench in the center of the room and took some pictures of her enjoying the music surrounding her.

As you can see, it was not possible to get any photos of the room occupied only by art -- unless you consider each human a work of art, too.  It's amazing to sit or stand in the center and hear the music surround you -- and to walk around and listen a bit to each individual voice coming out of each individual speaker.  This is not something you glance at and move on.  People stay a long time enjoying the immersive experience.

As we left the room to stroll through the museum in the short time we had remaining (I had to go to work in the afternoon), we saw another interesting view of the Motet.  Had to take a few more shots of Sal there.

We saw lots of interesting things, but I didn't want to get into any more trouble, so I kept Sal and the camera in their respective cases.  Couldn't resist taking a mummy shot, though!  No flash, of course!