March 2020…We had everything to look forward to: That first “Play ball!”, spring flowers, longer lazier days, the whole re-birth thing. And at the LEDC, preparations for the coming Farmers Market season and those first tastes of fresh greens and strawberries, catching up on the gossip, and shaking off the winter blahs…READY, SET, GOoooo…insert record scratch here…Covid on the Flip-side. Life on The Landing was about to change.
Could the Farmers Market survive? The answer was YES, but in ways we had to reimagine and reconfigure. And unfortunately, along with so many other treats that we took for granted, the new safety protocols and technical logistics meant that the musicians’ tent had to go silent. That was The Day the Music Died…
Three years and lots of wistful comments later, it’s time for an energy boost with our own reprise of The Way We Were. But it takes more than saying so…it takes reestablishing connections and cooperation. It takes reaching out to our Lansdowne communityfor some help in getting us back on the map. We still have that spot on the Landing, and a tent and sound system, and we still have an audience…now we just need the music. Hmmm.
Fact: The actual running time of the Farmers Market, May to October, is 88 hours and I’m mostly there for all of them. Adding music back into the rotation is only a wish unless and until we have musicians willing…or maybe even eager… to spend just 2* of them in front of an audience. And maybe get a chance to try out some new stuff, or just their chops, in front of a friendly crowd. Think of the marketing opportunities on Community Days, when our crowd overflows the Market space.
NOTE: As in the past, this is a volunteer gig…that means no pay…unless you count all the good will you generate, the experience for young talent to get in front of a friendly audience, or a chance to do some marketing and merch sales.
Fact: If we want music at Lansdowne Farmers Market, (and word from The Landing is Yeah, we do), we need music people who know music people to help us provide it.
You see where I’m goin’ with this, right?
I’m making a no-apologies appeal to our local music population…please help us either by
- Hooking me and the LEDC up with some new local talent
- Filling a 2 hour slot yourself
- And now for the BIG ASK: Volunteering to be an active part of the team for a season. We can do this…we can only do this… together.
TRUTH: I’m just vamping until the talent shows up.
So, unless you want to hear me singing show tunes ( you’ve been warned !) every Saturday, I need to hear from some of the fine musicians that make Lansdowne their home.
Is that YOU?
It’s timeto Give Life Back to Music.
You know you want to.
You know where to find me.
I’m waiting for you.
With a Song in My Heart. Big finish here!
Terry Baraldi