The next flight leg was to Middletown Ohio to visit Jean Barford's Diamond Jubilee Chorus.
Initially I was dodging scattered clouds but after I passed over the Mississippi the skies cleared and I noticed it was time for lunch. I had to create my own tray table. :-) Passing over Indianapolis I picked up several large liquid bugs on my windshield - remember - no wipers.... (Bugs over a mile high? Remind me never to visit Indianapolis). Uneventful flight. Photos: https://goo.gl/photos/fyRJDjk4UPoqCyff8
Tuesday night the Diamond Jubilee Chorus meets in rented space at a local mall. They have quite a setup with an office for the Director, and separate rehearsal rooms labeled "Leads" "Basses" etc. In the large storefront space are both risers and a set of chairs in orchestra arrangement around a keyboard. This might be the nicest rehearsal space I see on the whole trip!
My hostess Rochelle and fellow lead, Tonda, were the welcoming committee, picking me up at the airport and chauffeuring me to the hotel, the rehearsal, a light meal after the rehearsal, back to my hotel, and this morning, to the airport.
I was keen to rehearse with Jean - - she is legendary! And I was not disappointed. She has a great ear, and instinctively zeros in on the right interpretation. Diamond Jubilee also has a show this fall, November 14, so we ran through some show music and then started working on choreography, admittedly, not my favorite subject. It was a long night for the chorus, with pre-rehearsals for double quartets working on show music, and then warmups, working on songs, and then an hour of choreography, and more songs, but the reward was the meal and socializing with Rochelle and Tonda and a few others afterwards. It was a long day, and I was pretty tired, and dozed off at my computer before I could finish the blog.
Wednesday is a rest day - I have a short flight to Kent Ohio where I'll stay with friend Craig Resta, see this famous university, and get a chance to do my laundry!
Bugs a mile high.....I knew there was a reason I moved to the West Coast.
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