Explore #yeg...March 8...Part Two

Dan & I are taking full advantage of beating the "first-time" subscriber system with the ESO. That's the Edmonton Symphony Orchestra. Yes, I feel slightly bad about this, but I made a big donation last year to ease some of that guilt. I mean, make up for lost ticket money. Whatevs. They got bums in seats. Not the homeless kind of bums. The butt kind.

Gosh, what the hell kind of tangent was that?! My apologies Dear Reader. But really, what have you come to expect from me if not complete and utter chaotic randomness?

Lisa. Shuttup and get to the point. Please.

Okay, my point is this. Dan got a "First Time Subscriber Invitation" to a Saturday morning dress rehearsal of an upcoming performance. And it worked with our schedules. And there was the offer of coffee & pastries. So I made him RSVP.

And it was just plain amazeballs to sit in the Winspear Centre with about 40 other people and watch the Symphony play! No tuxedos & tails in sight. No busybody shushing me during the performance. Choice of (almost) any seat in the house. Space to stretch my legs. And I got to wear jeans!

There was a Guest Conductor, and he chatted and answered some questions after. He is a young gentleman from California and it was really awesome to listen to him talk about his inspiration for choosing the pieces he did, and some of the nuances about this particular performance.

We were treated to an extended percussion practice because there was a replacement timpanist! And holy doodle was the percussion ever AMAZING! They used every damn instrument available! They banged a gong then dipped it in to a bucket of water for pete's sake!!

At any rate, it was a lovely way to start the day. I highly recommend it! Too bad next year we have to be regular old subscribers, and each buy a ticket and pay full price! Gasp! #firstworldproblems

later loves

Explore #yeg...March 8...Part One

Saturday, March 8th

Alberta Art Gallery

Photographers: Lisa & Dan

This photo makes me giggle so much. Dan asked if I would like a photo of myself in the gallery, y'know, with some art. And this is what I get. My giant head blocking the art. And I cropped this photo down a lot. Just imagine all the beige background that I got rid of. I need to give BFF some lessons in subject placement. He's actually a really good sport, so I can't rag on him too much.

This was part of the large sculptural installation by artist...umm...Leslie? Nope, Lyndal Osbourne! There we go! This particular sculpture (mixed media piece?!) is called Tides and incorporates objects she has (obviously) collected from the beach. So there are twigs, and rocks, and barnacles, and garbage. But it's been beautifully arranged on these little tables, and it was quite compelling actually. I told Dan to take a photo of me in between the two piles that matched my outfit. Well...one out of two ain't bad. Ha!

And last but not least, this amazing piece by Jill Stanton! It's so ME! I love all the little details on this grand scale. It looks almost like individual wall paper panels that have been applied on the three huge walls just beside the lobby. They usually use this space for weddings, and receptions, and the like. Unfortunately, by this point of the day I was getting light-headed and really needed to eat or else I would have loved to spend more time exploring all the creature and intricacies of this piece. Another time, perhaps...

Have you played the tourist in your own town lately?

What are you waiting for?!

later loves