The Community Music Hangout gathered on Sunday, November 5th for the 36th edition of the hang. We met under gloomy skies with a slight threat of rain. The winds were calm and overall, it was a very pleasant day. As usual, it was actually quite comfortable without the sunshine relentlessly baking us. So we got after it and got the Hangout under way. Rikki and I wheeled up to the piano at the appointed time and, when we did, we saw Patricia already seated nearby. Patricia is the person who named the Golden Mile! She does a ton of fabulous work with Illuminate to facilitate the art projects along the Golden Mile. She successfully convinced the recs and parks department that pianos on the promenade could work. Without her efforts, we certainly wouldn’t have the Hangout in the form we do. Thank you, Patricia! Nice to see you! Soon, we started to see some of our Hangout regulars: Nick showed up with his guitar; Brian biked up with his voice; and Adam walked up with his voice too! And then we had Nina’s friend Jorge make his first appearance at the hangout with his guitar as well. It’s always great when friends invite friends to the Hangout. It’s for everybody; you are all invited! Then, Ester biked up. Nice to see you! Kyle came zipping around the bend on his longboard, bass amp in hand. I am quite sure I could not muster that level of grace and poise on any type of board, long or otherwise. Soon, Zach rolled up with is drum set and our rhythm section was again assembled! We also pulled in Ben from the crowd to play some guitar with us. Nice! At the Hangout, we’re always trying to pull people in to join in the fun. It’s especially nice when we get a youngster on the piano. Yesterday we had an absolute all-star in 10-year-old Jacob. He played a few of his original compositions as well as some classical pieces. He played brilliantly! It’s fun to be humbled by a 10 year old, and he humbled all of us adults standing around watching him work. Great playing Jacob! Later on, we had a bunch of players hop on the piano or jump in to sing songs. Miles sang “The Way You Look Tonight” which reminded me of DS9. And Leon and William both played excellent piano. Thanks for joining in, folks!
It was well after 4pm by the time we managed to pull ourselves away from the Hangout. Gosh, I know I always say this, but it was, once again, a new high for the Hangout. I was just blown away by the energy, the smiles, the dancing, all of it. I kind of can’t believe this thing exists. And although I started it, we are ALL creating it. Thank you to everyone who shows up! The Hangout would be nothing without you! We’ll see you next for the ONE YEAR ANNIVERSARY of the very first Community Music Hangout on Sunday, November 12th, from 11:30 – 2:30 (at least). See you there!