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In the Ancient Spirit

In the Ancient Spirit
 
About a year ago a new book of fife and drum music was published by the Company of Fifers and Drummers. I am excited about the book because it includes a variety of fresh tunes written by modern day composers that have an interest in perpetuating music for the fife and the drum, such as John Benoit, Dominick Cuccia, Greg Rice, Jason Malli, Brendan Mason, Dan Moylan and the late, great Roy Watrous, to name just a few. Also, it recently underwent a face lift and will include the image above on its cover. Lastly, I am happy that a handful of my own tunes, such as Hazards of Hatteras, Cape Horn (yet to be published here), Drummelhund and Gloriana, were recognized and included in the collection along with accompanying drum parts.

These new tunes are coupled with some fun traditional jam tunes that everyone should be excited to add to their repertoire. As you peruse through the book I hope it will become apparent that the new tunes were really written ‘In the Ancient Spirit’ and realize how wonderful it is to see the Company of Fifers and Drummers support this new music.

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Easily add baconworks mp3’s to your iTunes

I finally got around to providing a mechanism for pulling mp3 files, posted on baconworks.com, onto your iPod . Simply click on the following button to have iTunes subscribe to my podcast.
 
Add to iTunes
 
Your iTunes will be updated with any new mp3 files as I post them and from there you can quickly sync them to your iPod. Life is good.

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Skip Concert #2

Skip Healy
 
Skip Healy, Mark Bachand and myself will be performing, once again, at the Company of Fifers and Drummers Hall this coming weekend. We played there a few months back, as you can see.
 
Skip & Friends
 
You can take a listen to a recording of that evening below.

This Saturday’s performance, as before, is a benefit concert for The Juniors Fife & Drum Camp at the Company of Fifers and Drummers Hall, 62 West Main St., Ivoryton, CT (just up the street from the Ivoryton Playhouse). They are asking for a $10 donation. The concert is on Saturday, October 13th and starts at 7:00 PM. For details, contact ccorduan@fsc.edu or call 978-342-7802.

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Sudbury Colonial Faire

Every fall, as the air becomes crisp and the leaves begin to turn, there is a wonderful event that takes place on the grounds of the Wayside Inn in Sudbury, Massachusetts.
 
Colonial Sudbury
 
On the last Saturday of September the Sudbury Companies of Militia and Minute and the Sudbury Ancient Fyfe and Drum Companie host a colonial faire, which features twenty or so fife and drum groups from all over New England and beyond.
 
Sudbury Fife and Drum
 
This years line up includes such perennial favorites as the Middlesex County Volunteers, who have just returned from a month long trip to Scottland where they had the great honor of playing at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Beyond that, they play some of the pertiest fife and drum arrangements you’ll ever hear.
 
MCV at Edinburgh Castle
 
Additionally, all the way from Fort Myer, Virginia comes the United States 3rd Infantry, otherwise known as The Old Guard Fife & Drum. The Old Guard, being an official ceremonial unit for the President of the United States, has also played the wide world over. Imagine having this on your resume; They were asked, by Jackie Kennedy, to play at JFK’s Funeral Parade. You can see them in red at the bottom right of the picture below, which was published in Life Magazine. They are truly classy and put on a great show.
 
Old Guard at JFK Funeral

 
The Ancient Mariners, also recently returning from a European tour, will bring their own unique brand of fife and drum entertainment to the colonial faire, which takes place in what, many years ago, was a corn field across from the Wayside Inn.
 
Mariners and the Prisoner
 
Incidentally, many of the Ancient Mariners are actually Old Guard alumni and, in fact, there is one Mariner that has recently joined. I, myself, auditioned for the Old Guard in 1988 but was rejected on the grounds that I was too short. Basta’ds. A year later I joined the Ancient Mariners to receive my floggings…but I digress.

In any case, the faire really is a great day full of music, apple cider, riotous children’s games such as Soak the Bloke, and a variety of colonial vendors that sell everything from fifes to flapjacks.

Don’t miss it.

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Mariners start a blog…

finger pointing
 
Blogging here about the Mariners and, more specifically, our follies in Switzerland has been quite enjoyable. I’ve received some great, and sometimes funny, feedback via comments, emails and in person about the ‘We Are the Mariner‘ series. One fellow even told me that he can’t read my blog anymore because I made him cry. Sorry about that one.

Also, there is a strong interest with other Mariners, both here and abroad, to share more stories with you as they unfold and to unearth stories from the past. Therefore, I am excited to announce a new blog where The Mariners can continue to chronicle their adventures.

Introducing: www.TheMariners.org

Please take some time to check it out. We look forward to seeing you there and we’ll do our best to write things that won’t make you cry.

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Concert with Skip Healy

Skip
 
I’m excited to announce that I will be performing this Friday evening with a phenomenal flute player named Skip Healy. Skip is a world class musician who has performed with a variety of legendary musicians such as Paddy Keenan, John Doyle, Kevin Burke and Johnny Cunningham, to name just a few. Skip is also an instrument maker who is turning out some beautiful fifes and flutes at his Healy Flute & Fife Company.

The performance is a benefit concert for The Juniors Fife & Drum Camp at the Company of Fifers and Drummers Hall, 62 North Main St., Ivoryton, CT. There is $10 admissions charge. The concert is on Friday, June 8th and starts at 7:00 PM.

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Picnic with Heroes

I just had this picture sent to me of the Roman theater in which the Ancient Mariners will be performing later this summer.
 
Augusta Raurica
 

Doesn’t that look cool! I can’t wait.

Here is the translated advertisement they are running in Basel:

Picnic with Heroes
Tuesday, 14. August 2007 7:30 PM
Swiss Mariners
The concerts of the Swiss Mariners in the Roman theater In Augusta Raurica are unforgettable. The oldest Drum and Fife Corps outside the USA with their traditional American Drum and Fife Medleys will return to the walls of the Roman Theater as to say “back to the roots”.

I’m not really sure I get the heroes bit, but that’s O.k., it is cool anyhow.

Here it is in German if you’re interested:

Picknick mit Helden
Dienstag, 14. August 2007 19.30 Uhr
Swiss Mariners
Die Auftritte der Swiss Mariners im Römischen Theater in Augusta Raurica sind unvergessen. Jetzt kehrt das älteste Drum and Fife Corps ausserhalb der USA mit seinen traditionellen amerikanischen Trommel- und Pfeifer-Melodien in die römischen Mauern zurück – und damit «back to the roots».