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Winter beware- the Ides of March are upon us

March 12, 2014

As hints of Spring  slowly melt the polar vestiges of winter in the Show-Me State, early March quietly marked another birthday for the BRC founder. Looking back on picking the banjo for 54 years, he reflected, “After all this time, I should be better than I am.” Blessings are myriad- a nice lakeside home, a lovely wife (who once endured 14 banjos in the house), great kids, wonderful grandchildren, currently 9 banjos on site, and challenges of the perennially revenue-negative BRC workshop.BJG B`day card (2)

 

 

 

 

Attached is an all-time favorite (Hallmark) birthday card received a few  years ago from his beloved spouse.

 

 

 

 

Humbly offered below is a  link for your springtime reading enjoyment:

Arts in Health Care 08 (1)

 

 

Jamming

A Bluegrass Immersion Experience- a total cultural reintegration

February 23, 2014

A couple of times per year, the Sunday afternoon brew pub pickers and BRC founder trek across the rolling plains of MO for a Saturday jam session with our Bluegrass brethren in the rural community of Eldon.  The musicians convoke in the activity room of the mid town McDonald`s burger emporium, just across the street from the bait shop, for a marathon of picking and grinning. This gives ample occasion for the joyful acolytes of Bluegrass to renew communal vows of poverty.IMG_3352 - Version 4

Local citizenry gather at the eatery throughout the day for a family meal, and youngsters pull-off their thumping hip hop headphones briefly to regard the live acoustic  music. As a musician resined-up his bow, a coltish youngster asked, ” Is that a violin?”  A smiling response called it a fiddle. As the lad departed,  he shrugged, “What`s the difference?”

A picker quietly mused later, “When you spill beer on a fiddle, no one cares.” The jammers chuckled warmly. A rookie musician, first timer to a picking session, was gently advised that rather than a jam session, this was a Bluegrass Immersion Experience- like a language school. An avuncular veteran encouraged her, “Educating Bluegrass musicians is like breaking wild horses. It`s a total cultural reintegration.” The band generously welcomed the newcomer.

Puzzled parents looking on wondered if this hillbilly culture could be a risky and potential avenue for their kids to experiment with other mysterious music genres like Zydeco, Celtic, Django`s gypsy guitar, Western swing, Flamenco, Ravi`s sibilant sitar, or Klezmer. No worry, mom and dad. Bluegrass music is as homegrown as barbecue on the Fourth of July.

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P.S. Check-out the latest BRC “Peace Dove” banjo, our workshop`s signature model, on ebay from Feb. 23 to March 2nd (sold). Upon receipt of purchase, the buyer emailed, “Great looking and sounding banjo!”

Bio

Banjo on the Subcontinent

January 22, 2014

In the marketplace  of Orccha, a small township in central India, villagers perform a traditional song while chanting a mantra. A friendly musician graciously invites the BRC founder to play the ektara. This East Indian instrument is a single string Hindu banjo. It has a gourd pot and a bamboo stick neck. The ektara is a rhythm instrument used to accompany folk songs in Punjab, Bengal, and Rajastham where this photo was taken. Click photos to enlarge for details.IMG_2969

 

 

Later, at the entrance of the Taj Mahal, a national landmark tightly patrolled by military forces, a security guard confiscated a copy of the Banjo NewsLetter that was poking out of the BRC founder`s coat pocket (I am not making this up). Inside the walled grounds of the spectacular monument, a wintry fog enveloped the Taj Mahal. The BRC founder, now sans his BNL, is pictured with his spouse, as they stand a few steps from a soldier with an assault rifle slung over his shoulder.

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At departure from the UNESCO World Heritage site, the BRC founder recovered his contraband NewsLetter when a street wise local tour guide assistant retrieved the confiscated periodical from a souvenir shop just outside the main gate and returned the wayward  Banjo NewsLetter to its surprised owner.

IMG_3040 - Version 2Check-out the below Comment.

Bio

2014 declared `International Year of the Banjo` by our CEO

January 1, 2014

Three generations of the Banjo Rehabilitation Center clan recently assembled for an annual photo to re-dedicate their workshop to our motto: All banjos deserve a second chance. Year after year, our staff defies annual budget deficits in order to bring restored 5 stringers to entry level pickers at bargain basement prices. Our cherished payback: uniformly positive customer feedback, a busy <banjorehab.com> mailbox of queries, and over 10K website visits per month.IMG_2795 - Version 3

To celebrate the indomitable élan of the BRC staff, our young CEO (front row center in red plaid shirt) declared 2014 as the `International Year of the Banjo` to the cheers and approval of all pictured above.

In a prescient film clip, three siblings of the Marx Brothers strum banjos enchanting a nation of moviegoers in the timeless comedy classic “Duck Soup”  pre-dating the International Year of the Banjo by 70 years.duck-soup-2-copy (1)

G&F Band

`Tis the Season

December 20, 2013

The BRC founder`s band “Gainor & Friends” performed its annual  holiday concert this week for the in-patient children and adults at the University psychiatric center.  Festivities included a mixture of hoedown fiddle tunes and  classic Seasonal sing-a-longs. Staff and patients enjoyed the fun get together and community spirit. The concert was concluded with  a rollicking “Jingle Bell Rock” followed by a nostalgic “White Christmas.”

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After the grateful patients personally  thanked us for the music and good cheer, our mandolin player remarked that this gig was his favorite performance each year.