Scoring

Every day this past week I felt a little tinge of guilt that I couldn't find time for a daily journal update. I've decided to go a little easier on myself and just do weekly updates until the Yanni tour resumes.

I finished the orchestral score for Spring Peepers on Friday but still have work to do on Dragonflies. I'll be performing these two pieces with the Chattanooga Symphony next week for their July 3, Pops in the Park concert.

On Wednesday of last week I took a day trip to Black Mountain North Carolina with a few friends who have been helping each other build guitars. We made an appointment to see Jerry Reed Smith's workshop where he builds bowed psalteries and the most beautiful hammer dulcimers I've ever seen. We stopped by Jerry's store, Song of the Wood, for what was to be just a few moments. I ended up playing every hammer dulcimer in the store in an impromptu comparison test. The results, which are strictly my opinion, will appear in an article on this web site after I've played a few more instruments. Dennis's Schreiner bought a bowed psaltery while we were there. You can see a picture of Dennis and his new instrument by clicking the link at the bottom of my pictures page.

We arrived at Jerry's workshop about two hours later than we'd planned. We toured his new studio and performance venue which is still under construction and then went to his workshop where we talked for hours about about hammer dulcimer design and relative issues. I got my name on the list for one of Jerry's custom built instruments. It has a higher range than my D600 so they will compliment each other nicely, especially in the recording studio.

Our conversations veered from hammer dulcimers to music in general, and I learned that Jerry produced the first album of my favorite singer/songwriter, David Wilcox. He also introduced me to the music of another great singer/songwriter, Peter Mayer. I'm hooked already. I should also mention that, in my opinion, Jerry's Strayaway Child hammer dulcimer CD is the best traditional recording - ever. "Best" is a word that I rarely use when talking about music or instruments. It's just that everything about this cd is great. Check it out at the Song of the Wood web site.

On Friday of last week Angie and I went downtown to see my friend Patty Wilbanks perform with Dale Martin at the Rhythm at Noon concert in Miller Plaza. She was excellent as always.

I spent Saturday and Sunday street performing at the Tennessee Aquarium. It was my first time back since the Yanni tour and I wondered if I'd run into anyone who'd seen a concert. The very first people to walk up after I began playing told me they'd seen Yanni in Atlanta and he had a guy playing the same instrument I play. I asked if they remembered his name, and they laughed as they realized it was me. Their names are Mike and Norma, and you can see their picture on the pictures page along with other shots from the Aquarium this past weekend. ¶ 6:40 PM

Performing with the Chattanooga Symphony

I'm still receiving new fan pictures which is great, but it's going to be a few days before I get to post them, as quite a few exciting projects are demanding my immediate attention.

I've just been asked to perform with the Chattanooga Symphony for their July 3, Pops In The Park concert. It will be the second time I've gotten to play with our local orchestra and I'm thrilled and honored that Maestro Robert Bernhart is giving me this opportunity. We'll be playing the intermezzo from the Hary Janos Suite by Zolton Kodaly, which is a fiery hungarian folk ballad. Those of you who have my Turning Point cd will recognize the title right away. The version I play with the symphony is straight from the original orchestral score. I play the cymbolum part, which is the Hungarian ancestor of the hammer dulcimer.

Also on the program are two of my tunes, Spring Peepers and Dragonflies. These are from my first cd, Questions in the Calm. Playing my own music with a full orchestra is like a dream come true, but it also means I have a lot of work to do writing the string arrangements. I worked over 12 hours yesterday on Spring Peepers, finally forcing myself to stop and go to bed. The scores need to be finished by Friday so I'll have to press on today.

On top of all this I'm playing a reception this afternoon hosted by Allied Arts of Chattanooga at the Chattanooga Theatre Center, going to Black Mountain, NC Wednesday to visit and deliver cds to hammer dulcimer craftsman Jerry Reed Smith at his store, Song of the Wood, and getting ready to start street performing again this weekend at the Tennessee Aquarium.

Later in July I'll be teaching, performing and selling hammer dulcimers at a workshop in Evart Michigan, and this fall I'll do a workshop in Jefferson County, Missouri. If you're in either one of these areas, please write and let me know. I'd like to find some venue's along the way at which I could possibly put together a few small concerts - even house concerts are not out of the question. ¶ 6:42 PM

Fan Pictures Update

Thank you to those who sent me updated information for the fan pictures page. I think I've made all the changes, as well as added the new pictures some of you sent.

"Thanks for the wonderful pictures, and a million thanks for your concert diary, it meant a lot to me. Keep in touch. Love your CD's, they play right along side of Ethnicity." - Helen

I appreciate all the kindness expressed in your emails. During the week I didn't post any updates the number of hits per day on this site fell to around 4 thousand per day. After I posted the fan pics, they jumped back above 20 thousand. Thanks.

I received a message from David yesterday. He made it home safely to find that his wife and daughter have done some remodeling in their home. He said it was a nice surprise.

I've already spent too much time this morning updating the pictures so this post will be short. Most of my time for the last few days has been spent in putting my street performing rig back together and relearning my solo show. My local gigs start next week. ¶ 6:43 PM

Fan Pictures Phase One

I'm going to need your help to complete this project. I have several gigabytes of pictures in my computer which need to be archived. I'd like to add names to as many of the fan photos as possible before I remove them from my hard drive. I'll also add names to the pictures on this web site.

I posted 48 pictures today, which you can see by clicking my pictures link and scrolling to the bottom. A few of these have names, but most are labled with a meaningless number. Your job is to pick out any photos in which you can identify the people and email me with correct names and spellings. Please don't be offended if you think I should know your name already, in many cases I do. There's even a picture of my family in this list that is unlabeled at this point. I'm just looking for a little help in completing the task.

Be sure to include the number at the bottom of the picture when you write. The pictures I posted today are not all of the fan photos I have. They're only the ones I have separated so far. Floating around somewhere on my hard drive are a bunch of shots that fans themselves have taken and emailed to me. I plan to add these in a second post. If you have any pictures that you'd like me to add, go ahead and send them as email attachments, even if you've already sent them once. It doesn't matter if I'm in the photo or not. I'm just looking for shots of fans at concerts. ¶ 6:45 PM

All The Way From Chattanooga, TN!

It's been almost a week since our last show in Miami. Judging from the amount of email I've received in the last six days this journal update is way overdue.

Let me begin by simply saying thank you to those of you with whom I've shared this experience. It is gratifying and humbling to read your email. I feel a sense of responsibility to keep the journal going, knowing that for many of you, it has become a daily habit. ¶ 6:51 PM

St. Louis, MO

Talk about pressure. The audience for the St. Louis show included my mother, grandmother, sisters, a niece, my top student who drove all the way from Chattanooga, and a bunch of friends. It felt like the first show in Las Vegas all over again. The time I got to spend with everyone was too short and frenetic, but everyone seemed to understand.

I have been jokingly called the "mountain man" since the beginning of the tour and everyone laughed when I announced at soundcheck that I'd have four generations of hillbillies in the audience.



Family and Friends After the St. Louis Show

On the flight to Miami Monday afternoon, Walter, Jenifer, Alfreda and I have shared a first class cabin for last time. We talked about how much fun it has been and what everyone was planning to do next. I made a conscious decision to spend as much time as I could leading up to the Miami show just 'hanging out' with people. That's why I'm just now getting to this journal update.

There are fifty-nine shows behind us now, with one to go.We've performed for neary a half million people collectively in the last few months and I've been priveliged to personally meet thousands of fans. I've also built strong friendships with many of my tour mates.

I miss my family, yet I will miss my new friends. I miss riding my bicycle every day, yet I will miss laughing and singing on the back of the bus. I miss the ordinary routines of home, yet I will miss the extrordinary event of which you've all been a part. This morning, as one foot steps into the comfort of my sun-drenched living room, the other hesitates in flattering blue stage light. I have enjoyed the moment. In a very short while the lights and staging will be carefully packed away and stored, as will my memories. Life is good. ¶ 6:53 PM

Time To Go Home!!!!!!!!!

The day began as many others on this tour, with a brief call from David Hudson, "Hullo Dan, you want to go down to the Starbucks and have a bit of breaky? (short for breakfast)." We talked about the end of the tour, this leg of it anyway, and what we'd do first when we got back home. David was of course anxious to see his family, but he also wanted to get back to painting, making more didges, and riding his motorcycle.

We also talked about the uncertainty of whether or not we'd get back together with the same people. There are no guarantees in the music business. Putting together a show like the Ethnicity Tour is an amazingly large undertaking. Trying to pull all the same elements together a second time will be even harder. It's like snapping a picture of 27 cats. Sure, you caught them all in the perfect pose. Now, try to get them to do it again.

As the day progressed I was conscious of many "last time I'll do this" thoughts. I also caught myself daydreaming, "this time next week I'll be . . ."

Sometimes, living in the moment is anticipating the future.

Kristen, the french horn player, joined us for breakfast and she and David discussed plans for him to paint a turtle on her instrument case after breakfast. His art work is bright and beautiful. If you've ever seen a french horn case you've probably noticed that it already resembles a turtle shell. I snapped a shot of the finished product which he completed in about an hour, but accidentally deleted it from my camera. I'll see if Kristen can't get another picture taken so I can post it here. Quite a few of the musicians bought didgeridoos from David and he's custom painted them all. Check out more of his art on his web site: http://www.davidhudson.com.au

Later, quite a few of us went down to hotel swimming pool. Walter and I staged improvisational races which included such events as hopping to the end of the pool on one foot, one armed swimming, walking on your hands, etc.. It was goofy, but the competition was serious enough that I was sore the next day. We had a blast and before I knew it, we were all boarding the bus "one last time," to head to the venue.

Yanni gave us an emotional, end of tour pep talk at sound check in which he thanked us for helping his dream come true, talked about our success in light of what was happening on the world stage, and assured us that management is hard at work putting together the next phases of this tour.

There were lots of hugs, pictures being snapped, and gifts exchanged at catering. Time accelerated as we awaited the familiar call of "places on stage."

Every song had special meeting in Miami and the audience seemed to sense it. They were supercharged from beginning to end and we responded accordingly, even though it was the same show we'd performed 59 times prior to that night. The only odd thing that happened was at the very end. David is the last person to get introduced, and that happens during the encore. Yanni introduced Walter, Rick and Brad, and then said the usual, "He was the sound of Survivor Australia, on didgeridoo, our Australian friend, David Hudson!" The spotlight searched stage right for a moment and it became apparent that David just wasn't there. After an akward pause Yanni said, "I guess he must have gone on a walkabout!"

I was a little worried, wondering if he'd been hurt backstage. David is a professional and would not miss a call unless something serious had happened. Right? As it turns out he just simply forgot the final call. He won't admit it, but I think, no, I'm sure, he was the culprit who was busy filling everyone's shoes with shaving cream back in the dressing room!

After the show, I hung out down front, signing autographs until I was literally escorted of the floor by security. I changed, and then hung out with fans in the parking lot until time for the rather somber ride back to the hotel. Once back, I said my goodbyes to everyone and got a few hours sleep.

David joined me the next morning for one final cup of coffee. Here's a picture taken just before I boarded the airport shuttle. [this pic is now on the Photographs page]

This post has gone on long enough and there's still a lot more I'd like to tell you. I guess you'll have to come back to learn more about my soon to be released nature DVD, the selling of our bus guitar, the posting of all the fan pics, life back home, and my cd project with Alfreda. Thanks for reading, until next time - Dan ¶ 6:46 PM

Rolling into St. Louis

We rolled into St. Louis around 6am and quite a few of us got together for breakfast at 6:30. We reminisced and had some good laughs.

I'm posting a few pictures today and then I'm off to meet with friends and family that are coming to tonight's show. I was born in St. Louis, lived here until I was around 11 when we moved to southeast Missouri. We settled in a town of about 10 thousand good people called Kennett. Yes, it is the same small town where Cheryl Crow grew up. She's a year younger than me a was a buddy of mine in high school. Anyway, I'll have four generations of family in the audience tonight - from nieces to my grandmother, Zenith Shannon. I also have quite a few friends driving up from Kennett, and one of my students is driving all the way from Chattanooga. I hope I have enough time to see everyone!

You'll find the new photos by scrolling down on the pictures page. Use the link to the left. ¶ 6:55 PM