In March of 2020, I'd been playing in a local Irish slow jam for three years or so, in which time my ability to find chords had improved remarkably, along with other skills. Every now and then, I'd see if anyone there wanted to play other stuff away from the group, with some sporadic successes. So there we were, planning the St. Patrick's Day party, and I was thinking I wouldn't bring in a dish or participate in the potluck part, when suddenly it was all off. The college shut down outside groups, and most of the jam was from off campus. As luck would have it, though, I had found a violinist who was interested in more playing.
In the initial wariness of the time, it started with me sending recorded accompaniments, and Karen would send them back with the violin part added in. We carefully moved up to playing outside (masked, distanced) or in a garage. We've been doing it now for more than a year, and it's very close to Making My Dreams Come True territory. We play classical and pop. We each bring pieces in. We worked on the Bach Double Concerto (with me playing Violin 2 and the bass line of the orchestra), which made Karen's dream come true--she'd been trying to get someone else to play it with her for years. Sound familiar?
Meanwhile, Tony, who I'd played with outside the group but who seems to be in great demand (And why not? Fluent accordionist!), has started coming to join us in trio sessions. Tony has had the dream of playing Bach's "Little" fugue in G, and I recently found an arrangement that looks like it has something in it for each of us.
Seems like something I'd write more about. Maybe I'm afraid to jinx it. Nonetheless, it's a very positive thing, and I'm happy to pass it along. I wrote and said I might need to quarantine when I got home, and Karen suggested I could get a COVID test at Walgreen's and play right away.
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