[Dixielandjazz] New Respect For Banjoists

[Gluetje1 at aol.com]

Thanks for posting this Steve.  I was there!  I went specifically  to hear 
Wachter with a symphony as well as to attend a Hall of Fame Induction  Ceremony 
for new inductees into the National Banjo Museum Hall of Fame.   That museum 
will be moving to downtown Bricktown area of Oklahoma City during  the coming 
months.  For any interested below is my partial review  of both those events.
 
   
Folks, what an awesome evening watching "gypsy" Buddy work with a  symphony, 
even one as young in history and age of musicians as the Oklahoma City  
Philharmonic.  Just a huge success in every way!  Full house and I  imagine that is 
true this evening as well.  Extensive program, everything  from jazz to blue 
grass to Broadway medleys, Tin Pan Alley, to the  classics.  Don't miss a 
future such opportunity.  A chance to see the  sweep of Buddy's versatility.  He 
opened with this piece, "P. de Sarasate's  Zigeunerweisen", a violin virtuoso 
piece which Buddy translated as Gypsy  Airs.  He played the opening movement on 
tenor, quickly sat that down to  play the rest on plectrum.  I really enjoyed 
the weaving in and out of  banjo with the voices or timbres of the various 
orchestral instruments.  If  I could grab some of those samples out of the air to 
hear again, my first  choice would be a scarce handful of occasions where 
banjo followed solo  concert harp or vice versa.  Even though I watched and heard 
Buddy do  this piece, I found it hard to believe it was possible to do even 
half as  well.
 
Prior to the concert, the Okie Dokie Banjo Banjo did a really righteous and  
well prepared job of entertaining attendees as they arrived.   They had 
integrated the museum kids band making it a super special treat for  me--and I 
presume for the kids.
 
The Hall of Fame Induction -- not only neat to see--but boy did it make me  
smarter.  Johnny had done extensive DVD video history of all  inductees--so you 
saw Steve DiBonaventura's film of Dale's banjos, the  stories of Dupen, 
Higgins, Stevison, Jad Paul, and Maurice Bolyer.   Bolyer's son's "speech" on his 
memories of his dad was so  touching.  Learning more about Jad Paul--he's 92 
and in Assisted  Living--has been visiting with Johnny by phone.  Hey, gang, if 
you don't  know the banjo hits Paul has written, get busy learning where 
credit is  due!  It took me forever to learn that Banjo Picker's Ball was written 
by  Jad Paul--because we stick so many lead sheets in banjo band  books--never 
so much as crediting the source, etc.  For Shame!
 
Nor did I know that THE FIRST banjo cabaret was the Red Garter,  and NOT Your 
Father's Moustache or Shakey's.  Both Jack Duppen,  banjoist, and Harry 
Higgins, business owner were there to tell us how  it all began.
Ginny
 
>From the snippet:

 
In a message dated 4/29/2008 4:47:14 P.M. Central Daylight Time,  
barbonestreet at earthlink.net writes:

Banjo  players often are the butt of jokes. Here's a review from the   
Oklahoma City paper about a Wachter concert with the Philharmonic in   
rebuttal..

Cheers,
Steve  Barbone
www.myspace.com/barbonestreetjazzband






**************Need a new ride? Check out the largest site for U.S. used car 
listings at AOL Autos.      
(http://autos.aol.com/used?NCID=aolcmp00300000002851)