Part I: Busking at the Amherst Winter Market, Saturday, February 16, 2013:
(It says "today" because I wrote this chunk that day, but it was too boring to publish on its own, so I decided to hold off until I had more material.)
Today was another fabulous day playing at the market! The Amherst Winter Farmers' Market, that is. I loved it last time and I loved it this time because of the nice general atmosphere, friendly people, acoustics, temperature, and this time because I was playing really well. There's this sweet spot on the "amount of sleep" scale in which I play well, and I was just tired enough to hit it. Getting right to it...
1. A guy complimented my performance and said, "You're ready to hit the street this summer!" Ha, good idea.
2. A nice lady [from Leverett] complimented my piano ensemble, then changed it "accordion ensemble." Yessss. ("Ensemble" because I wore my piano headband too). I hadn't thought of insisting that people call it an accordion dress.
3. I played my newest song, the theme from Downton Abbey. No one recognized it Thursday night, but that was not the case today. It all started with a woman about my age who was working at a stall. She came over and said, "Can I ask you a favor? Would you play the Downton Abbey theme song again?" Yesss. Other people recognized it as well, and it had a good response. I'll be playing it at the Really Big Show, so it's good to practice. In case you missed the unveiling, here it is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=in9OtWrAtTA
4. A lady from the Valley Advocate asked if she could take my photo. Keep an eye out! (Editor's note: someone told me I'm in the most recent Advocate! I haven't seen it yet, have you?)
5. A couple came in, and one of them immediately rushed up to me and said "It's my fiancee's birthday. Will you play a special song, but not 'Happy Birthday?'" I showed her my set list, and she chose "Ring of Fire." They danced and it was adorable.
6. I played some songs I haven't played for a while, and people commented on them. I really have to keep playing everything! They were...Wallace and Gromit, I've Just Seen a Face, Don't Stop Me Now, etc.
7. "I Believe When I Fall in Love..." is one of my favorite songs to play, but I didn't think it was great with Flaca, since it isn't really a dance song. But I realized today that Flaca really adds to it, building the drama before the chorus with her tapping feet. Going to play it a lot more now!
8. I had already done the whole set list twice, and I didn't want to bug the vendors by continuing to repeat those songs. And so I thought about other songs I sort of know or used to play that I could pull up, and decided to play the Pirates of the Caribbean theme. I haven't played it for almost a year, and never fully declared it learned, but I was able to play it pretty well today. I've got to bring it back too!
9. A little girl who had been watching on and off came up as I as packing up and asked why I was wearing a dress that looked like a piano. I gave her a long-winded response, and she seemed satisfied. I asked her to "help" me pack up, and let her play with Flaca once she was detached. When it was time to put Flaca away I told the girl I was putting her to bed, and when I asked her to fold the curtains back up over everything, she did it really gently as if she was tucking everything into bed. Cute.
That's it for the market. All the remaining Saturdays are booked, so no more playing for organic veggies for a while. Too bad, I have a little crush on one vendor who gave me spinach. But soon the outdoor market will begin!
Part II: Busking in Northampton on Saturday, March 2, 2013
I was very happy to do my first Saturday in Northampton since January 12, I think. That seems like such a long time, but between snowstorms and snowstorms I had a bit of a hiatus.
I was disappointed to see that other buskers were at my spot. New ones. Two young women who I took to be students, playing guitar and ukulele, doing like Taylor Swift covers and stuff. I tried (okay, not very hard) to be nice, but they were a little rude when I talked about the spot. Busker 101: defer to the regular buskers. If it's your first day out you don't take the best spot. And if the regular inhabitant of that spot comes, you give it up. Harrumph. They said they'd be there for "many hours." I almost snottily told them you can only stay two hours in one spot, but decided that might come back to haunt me.
So I begrudgingly set up on the other side, outside Thornes. And the Thornes manager came out and told me I had to be on the bricks, which I know, but it's too wobbly for Flaca. So I was grumpy. It was also colder than I expected. It ended up being a good day, though. People were out and the parking garage was full. I stopped only because I was tired and had plans, not because it was slowing down. I later learned that it was Parents' Weekend at one of the colleges, which explains the influx of people. It also explains why I didn't recognize most passersby, why they like dressed in designer clothes and didn't look like Valley folks, and why one told her friend, "Don't believe what's written on [homeless people's] signs; it's all lies." Ouch! Anyway, I should check the other colleges' schedules!
I lasted about four hours, partially at the first spot, and partially back in my spot once the girls left (they packed up and walked by me without saying hi or telling me my spot was open. Northampton really ought to issue a buskers' etiquette handbook).
Here are the highlights:
1. "The Final Countdown" was its usual hit! One man proclaimed it "his theme song," another made a reference to Arrested Development, and a third just reacted to it by yelling "Take my money!"
2. Since I was downstream from a homeless lady (I'm assuming), a woman asked me "Are you homeless, too?" I didn't use the student loan sign because it was windy, but maybe I should have. That doesn't happen much.
3. A man stopped to listen for a bit, then told me something interesting. He said that with many buskers, especially women, he feels a little uncomfortable staring at them while they play. Or rather, he worries he makes them uncomfortable, especially if he's the only spectator. This wasn't a concern for my act, though, because he could just stare at Flaca! Perfect.
4. I had a brilliant idea (one that I think I might actually implement). Many babies parade by me while I'm playing, and I often think about the fact that I may very well have provided the first live accordion music that baby had ever heard. Sometimes I'll check in with the parents about it. My idea was that I should print out little certificates, with blanks for the name and date, that say something like "Congratulations! ___(name)_______ heard his/her first live accordion music on __(date)_____. Signed, ______________ (my signature), Sophie's Smokin' Squeezebox." Yeah? I ran it by two baby-havers, and they liked the idea. I'll try to have them ready by Saturday.
5. Everyone commented on Flaca's and my (what the hell is that grammar rule anyway?) matching outfits! It's rare that anyone notices, but it was happening all the time. Cooool.
6. One person yelled out "You should be on TV!" Don't mind if I do!
7. A group of young people lingered for a few songs, include the Final Countdown, which they predictably liked. They came by again later and asked if I liked Gogol Bordello, showing a t-shirt one was wearing. I said I do. As they walked away, I had the idea to play the accordion intro to "When Universes Collide." The t-shirt wearer turned around when he recognized it and flashed me a big thumbs-up.
8. There is the constant relationship between buskers and beggars. I don't have any wisdom on it, other than that many Northampton beggars are pretty cheerful and greet me or at least wave when they walk by. There's one young man however who isn't. We sometimes "work" in close proximity. Anyway, he walked by on Saturday and muttered something. I assume it's something negative. I won't reprimand him for not being cheerful, I just feel bad in any situation where there's tension, which there must be if he says something under his breath. I wish he's just speak up and talk to me about it.
9. Two cheerful young women asked me where to go for food. I gave them suggestions, mostly promoting Sam's pizza, since that's where I go and they're so nice to buskers. We talked specific slices, and they headed in that direction. Yeah Sam's! I guess I'm the go-to direction giver, since some teenagers also stopped and asked me how to get to the music store. That makes sense, ask a musician!
10. I had another brilliant idea, but this one's really boring. Now, people put tips on the linoleum surface in front of Flaca. It's tricky to pick up lots of coins at once, so packing up takes a while. I found myself lamenting this, thinking about the days where tips went into the main part of the box with its squishy cushion bottom. It was so easy to pick up a whole handful. So, on Saturday, I realized I could just close the box the wrong way, turn it right side up, and the coins would be so much easier to pick up! Voila!
11. This was also the first day busking with Flaca's bell. It didn't work perfectly (since the original thumb tack snapped and I can't use its hole anymore), but I think it added something.
12. Statler and Waldorf (see Valentine's Day entry) came by. I was glad to learn that the missing bracelet turned up!
And one more thing....
Black Sheep Open Mic Night: Thursday, February 28, 2013
I've started going to a regular open mic, and I love it. It's a really nice, small, environment, with great musicians. Last Thursday was especially nice. It was only my second time playing, and I didn't think the first had gone over that well. Oddly enough, I wasn't really in the mood to play. I had been playing a lot, and I was just sick of my songs. I was also in sort of a bad mood, so I decided to play only "Morir Soñando" (about death) and the theme to "Twin Peaks" (indirectly about death). But then a friend came in, and for reasons I won't bore you with, I let him pick my songs. I have keys written on my setlist, so he chose three in the same relative key and suggested a powermedley. And so I did it. First was "Chariots of Fire" which I don't play much, but folks knew it and liked it. Same with Twin Peaks. Finally, I've found the American Twin Peaks fans!! I tried to do Laura's Theme too, but couldn't remember the beginning. And ended with the Tetris theme, which I just play really well, so I was happy. I've been working on a new song on which I sing, but I didn't feel like doing it. I met a new musician there, a girl with an amazing singing voice. So I'm thinking of handing off the vocals to her for that one. I'm excited for this week! That is all.
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