It was a good season!

The group performed twice in August, concluding another summer of performances. Although the season was short, it was successful none-the-less.

Ed and Steve prepare to load onto the portable stage at Silver lake Drive-in.

First off, we added a new member to the group. Ella did a great job getting up-to-speed with Emma and Frankie. Also, by practicing familiar songs, we strengthened and sharpened some of the vocal arrangements in our repertoire.  

Secondly, we brought “The Boy Next Door,” “Sway,” and “The Loco-motion” back into the setlist, while adding “Lollipop.” These songs seemed to go over well, and they were fun to learn.

Emma, Frankie, and Ella perform in Branchport for a private party on Keuka Lake.

Finally, we experimented with four horn players for our Charcoal Corral/ Silver Lake Drive-in show. Matt Doi and Dave Burlone covered some songs where baritone and tenor sax play at the same time. Also, on “I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do, I Do” by ABBA, both players played tenor saxophone, and boy, did it sound good! I think this format has merit though we have to tweak it for next year. Dave recommended a dedicated baritone saxophone book as a suggestion.

Recording resumes in August

Another positive in 2020 was the resumption of recording. We began working on some of these tracks back in 2015, and it felt good to get the ball rolling again. With singers in college, we have a three-month window to prepare for live performances and record tracks. Suffice it to say this has been a real challenge. 

One person, in particular, Michael Lynch, has been extremely patient with us. Micheal provided two songs for us to record. One of these songs is entitled “Mister Sunshine.” I thought something was missing in our initial music tracks, so this summer, we added harpsichord. James created the part we recorded, and it sounds excellent. We shot the video below after James tuned the instrument. Here he is playing a Bach piece.

Emma is coming into the studio to record vocals early this month, and with photos already taken of the new group, we hope to have at least a single release soon. We will keep you posted on our progress in the October issue of The Confetti Clatter. Thanks for reading, and please feel free to add a comment or question.