Day: March 27, 2011

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Late Night Post-Concert Celebrations At The Neighborhood Grille

Two-and-a-half hours of listening to the most fantastic live music ranging from several marching band tunes to Tchaikowsky’s Symphony No. 4 in F Minor will leave you physically ravenous at the end of the concert.  Trust me.  I would know, given that I was a thrilled spectator in the audience of just such a concert last evening.  And so, one can only imagine how much more ravenous the players in that concert might have been.  Well, I would know that too!  Given that two of those players belong to me as I was one of the proud parents witnessing the incredible performances that they were part of.  A post to aforementioned incredible concert is right here.

Well, so where does one go when its getting late and you want a quick bite?  You go to the local neighborhood grille, of course, aka, Applebees.  Their Appetizer Sampler is perfect for four people because there’s two of everything:  Mozzarella Sticks, Boneless Hot Chicken Fingers, Quesadilla Corners, and lots of Nachos with four kinds of Dips, including a Hot Spinach-Artichoke one.  And as for desserts, well, the Triple-Chocolate Meltdown and the Maple Butter Blondie hit the spot right-on. 

And what did we wash all this down with?  Why, the Classic Mojitos, of course.  Oh, and Diet Sodas for the teetotalers, of course.

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Patiala House, 2011

Patialahouse

Was it mere coincidence that this movie was released in the midst of the international cricket season?  If it wasn’t, it was certainly good timing.  Regardless, Patiala House is is the latest Bollywood offering of a story that embodies in equal parts love of cricket and love of family.  But to truly appreciate the quirky storyline, one must view it through the cultural lens of the strong and strange ties of family in the Indian family schema and how powerful those ties can be even to the extent of sometimes permanently squashing every little smidgen of individuality.  While this may seem terribly improbable from a Western point of view, one truly doesn’t give it a second thought while immersed in such an environment within the confines of the motherland.

And yet, when the Indian diaspora in a London suburb are confronted with the possibilities of a well-examined life, they are slow but sure to begin to poke holes through millenia of orthodox-thinking and customs.  Which is what the story of Gattu and his family is all about.  If you think Gattu’s love of cricket is the driving force of the story, it may be rivaled by the swell of family that surrounds him.  This same family carries out so effective an intervention with Gattu that they become the proverbial wind beneath his wings.  And fly he does.  And very gracefully, at that.  In the face of rumor and ignominy to his father (who acts like a complete cad for the better part of the story), it is Gattu who takes the higher road to bring about reconciliation.

Well, as they say, God’s in his heaven and all’s well with the world!  Oh, by that way, that Sharma girl is growing on me.  This is the second movie I’ve seen her in after that one called Band Baja Baarat. 

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Sixty-First Annual Bands In Review 2011: An Evening To Remember

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Last evening was yet another one for the files.  It was the 61st Annual Bands In Review 2011 musical extravaganza presented by the Music Department of the Ann Arbor Public Schools.

The program consisted of an amazing lineup of pieces of every genre, contemporary and classical, and featured the talents of four of the local Middle-School bands, all three bands of the Huron High school (Varsity, Concert, and Symphony), and the amazing Symphony Band of Pioneer High School.

My firstborn plays the alto-saxophone in HHS’s Concert Band.  Of the two pieces they played, the one recorded and presented here is the Puenteareas, a Pasa Doble tune.  Membership in this band is by audition and invitation.

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My secondborn plays the flute in HHS’s Varsity Band.  Of the two pieces they played, the one recorded and presented here is the El Capeo, another Pasa Doble tune.

HuronVarsityBand.Samira.m4a
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 The third recording is the Tchaikowsky piece (see Program Notes) presented by the HHS’ Symphony Band.

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Absolutely outstanding performances by all bands, although, you’ll understand that I thought the Varsity and Concert Bands were by far the best!