the gears they are a-changin'

Well, after a very good (and intense) weekend as part of the North America Stewardship Conference in Toronto (so many highlights... some powerful speakers... Bill Phipps' keynote address on the first night, and Rick Tobias on the next night particularly moved and inspired me), I'm now in the throes (throws?) of the final stages of recording for the new CD (recording some children's and group vocals here at home - last session in the studio this Saturday, with the flute/pennywhistle/clarinet player and hopefully the trombone and trumpet players as well)... and beginning work on the graphic design phase... while packing boxes for our impending move, and getting set for our various summer travels (I'll be heading to Paraguay for 2 weeks as part of the songleading team for the Mennonite World Conference Assembly there)...

And in a few minutes Matthew gets home from his last day as a grade 6 student... looking forward to celebrating that with him as well...

Summer's here!

how many styles in a week?

... let's see...

Thursday morning - recording some bluegrass for the new CD with Darren and Rick at CedarTree.

Friday night - all-ages concert in Alma

Saturday night - performing some Cuban and Andean music with Amos, and jamming with South African jazz musicians at the "World Music Collaborative Concert" at the "Sound in the Lands" festival

Sunday morning - accompanying congregational singing, led by Julie, with our church community

Tuesday night - recording some Amos Lopez originals in our kitchen

Wednesday morning - laying down some accordion parts and pretending to be a Cajun player at another recording session for the new disc...

All in a week's work. Whew! Good fun.

upcoming stuff

I'm involved in some upcoming events that you might want to participate in (you're warmly invited!) if you're in the area:

- this Thursday (June 4) - the Sound in the Lands conference begins, and guess who they have listed as presenting the first workshop...? (Hint: it's on "Community Supported Music: An Alternative Business Model for the Arts")
- also Thursday - Mennofolk (I'll not be performing, but lots of great folks from far and wide will be)
- Friday evening - I'll be doing a concert at Alma United Church in Elora
- Saturday evening - I'll be accompanying Amos Lopez (who arrives from Cuba this afternoon) as part of the "World Music Collaborative Concert" at the Sound in the Lands conference
- Friday, June 19th, I'll be leading worship in the morning at the North America Stewardship Conference in Toronto (here are the presenters at that conference), and doing a concert there in the evening.

In the midst of all that I need to get my May "delivery of songs" out to the members of SmallTall Music (yes, it'll be a few days late this time)... and do a bunch more sessions with different musicians to finish recording the new studio album so that it can be in the mixing stage by the time I leave in July to be part of the songleading team at the Mennonite World Conference Assembly... for which I still need to get a visa (a little something I overlooked)...

Yikes!

It feels kind of daunting at the moment... but at the same time, I'm also very grateful... it's what I love to do... and it's wonderful to have so many vivid experiences of being part of a global "body" together...