9/11

Today is, of course, the 20th anniverary of 9/11. We have seen a great deal of television coverage: re-living the event 20 years ago and reflecting on how it has affected our nation. It is all extremely sobering. I think that if one sentence sums it all up, it is that Osama bin Laden has actually achieved what he set out to do by attacking the Twin Towers. We have played right into his hands. Savanna is visiting us today. She is geting out of the wayof Krystal, who is visiting from California. She feels it is better to just not be there than to be the occasion for conflict. WE had lunch on the deck together and then ELlen and I went to Subaru and piced up our car, which had the AC repaired. That turned out to be more complicated than expected. I'll go into all that later. Right now we're about to go to a Cantrip Concert - a Celtic Band - at Scott Farm. It's a beautiful afternoon: should be fun! "Cantrip The name Cantrip is an Old Scots word meaning a charm, magic spell or piece of mischief and it aptly describes the unexpected twists and turns in their musical arrangements, likewise the compelling potency of their musicianship. Swirling border pipes, raging fiddle, thunderous guitar and three rich voices blend to create a sound energetic enough to tear the roof off. After 20 years of touring, Cantrip has found a character like no other. Echoes can be heard of trad music from the 1960s and 70s, but the years have slowly infested their music with the sounds of funk, metal, bluegrass, swing, and even klezmer. Dan Houghton, Jon Bews and Eric McDonald stir the elements in a witches’ cauldron, slowly coalescing into chaotic order. The three are the closest of friends, and it is this friendship that has cemented the band’s musicality through the years and across ponds. Dan began his career with the whistle at age seven and started playing bagpipes in the early nineties, proceeding to win the Scottish Lowland and Border Pipers’ Society Open Borderpipes and New Composition events (multiple times), as well as the Maitre de Cornemuse at St. Chartier. He is also an accomplished player on flute, bouzouki and DADGAD guitar. Jon is a veteran fiddler, having started at age four. A prizewinning graduate of the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland in 1994, he has performed and recorded with a diverse roster of artists. Eric studied mandolin and guitar at Berklee College of Music. He cut his teeth playing for contra dances in New England, where he can still often be seen from the dance floor, in addition to his work with Cantrip."

Cantrip. In addition to thee three, Keith Murphey is joining them - one of our favorite local musicians.