Latest Articles by Sarah Canice Funke
Sarah & Sarah
We enjoyed a night of Michael Kaeshammer (not MC Hammer). In Brantford. Slings and Arrows mentioned Brantford. It's kind of a po-dunk town just west of Hamilton. I think everyone from the city was there, including the mayor. The venue (with signs from the 403!) was extremely small. Sarah and I kept looking for the real theatre because we felt that they had simply stuck a few stacking chairs in the foyer. The concert was sponsored by an anonymous donor, so we figured "maybe ol' Anon didn't donate enough to get inside the theatre. Just enough to make it off the front porch..."
But the concert was good, even if, as Sarah noted, we lowered the age of the audience demographic rather dramatically. And rather disruptively burst out in uncontrollable laughter when Kaeshammer thanked the audience for coming out "on a school night." You can't really take us anywhere.
I also realized that I was displaying traits of my father, who being a general construction manager, can't really spend the night in a hotel without inspecting the grout and wallpaper and leaving a card on the desk when we leave. Once you are in a certain mindset, it is really hard to transition to "fun" mode. After writing program notes for the music department all semester, I found myself reading through Kaeshammer's program, making cursory editorial remarks to Sarah. The number of sheer spelling and punctuation mistakes was appallingly unprofessional. But I sound like Niles on Fraser....and, oh wait, I do that anyway and can't blame my job in the long run.
And Kaeshammer can play himself some piano.
I've decided my true calling in life (if my hand never gets back up to speed) is to learn me some stand-up bass and join a jazz band. To be the pianist would be more fun, because you can do some pretty mean solos on the piano. But I would be content to play bass. I've also decided that I am going to get in the habit of applauding after cadenzas during my next concerto. I feel sorry for classical musicians: so separated from immediate feedback and audience energy.
