The Christmas season has always been special for Kate and me. This year is no exception. Kate, of course, can’t have the same perspective. She doesn’t recognize it as a season, but that doesn’t take away from her pleasure. She enjoys each individual experience even if she can’t recognize and remember that it is the Christmas season. I know that we may not be able to enjoy the season in the same way next year, so I am savoring every moment and trying to make each one special.
We attended our first Christmas event the last of November with a luncheon with the seniors at our church. Since returning from Texas, we have played a lot of Christmas music and watched quite a number of Christmas concerts on YouTube. In addition, a good bit of the music I play at home is music of the season. Last Thursday at opera night at Casa Bella, one part of the program featured Christmas music. We were back at Casa Bella on Monday night for their annual Christmas dinner that also included a program of music. We will attend jazz night tonight. I am sure we will hear more of the same music in a different style.
Everything we have experienced until last night has involved traditional music. We joined friends at the Flat Rock Playhouse in North Carolina for a Christmas program featuring Asleep at the Wheel. Quite honestly, I had never heard of the group until a couple of months ago when a couple we met at Broadway night told us about them. Knowing that Kate is from Texas, they thought it would be something they would enjoy. I was hesitant but accepted their invitation thinking that Kate might like it and that it would be a good social occasion for both of us. I am glad I did.
For those of you who, like me, haven’t known about this band before, I should let you know that they are an Austin, Texas, band that has been around since 1970. Ironically, they started in West Virginia. They have won 10 Grammy awards over that time and have had quite a number of big hits and albums. Like all the other groups of that age, they have only one of the original members with them, their lead singer. The other members are all on the young side. That adds a good bit of vitality and quality to their performance, but it is still a classic Texas-style band. Even when they play traditional Christmas music, it has a Texas flavor.
Given that description, you might expect that it is not my kind of music, and I would say that it isn’t the kind of music that I would play at home. On the other hand, Kate and I loved it. We found the group to be very likeable personally and the rhythm of the music engaging. I found myself tapping my feet throughout the performance. Every time I looked at Kate, she was smiling. It was a good night to let your hair down and enjoy the season.
This will go down as a unique Christmas event for us and an interesting complement to the other seasonal events we are enjoying. It was also another reminder of the power of music to stir one’s emotions. The night before we had watched a memorial service with Itzhak Perlman and the Pittsburgh Symphony. They were honoring the memory of those killed at the Tree of Life Synagogue. It was a moving performance. The emotions aroused by that concert were quite a contrast with those we experienced last night. No wonder music has such impact. It has the ability to stir so many different feelings. It has touched our lives in many ways, and I expect it to do so in the future.
