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BRC Activities

BRC Activities

Spring in the Heartland

March 30, 2024

After a long and dreary winter, recent stunning sunrises have heralded warming weather that summoned the daffodils to emerge in the neighborhoods surrounding the BRC domicile. The Bradford Pear trees soon issued their snowy blooms along the streets around our lake, and the tulip trees, a BRC favorite, began to unfold their blooms.

At a pre-Easter weekend performance, the G&F musicians entertained the residents of a local retirement home with uplifting tunes and cheerful sing-alongs. One of the clients, seated below with the microphone, had some experience in show business and served as the MC fronting the band.

One of the most convincing indicators of Springtime in the Heartland is the return to our waterways of Great Blue Herons that had wintered in the South-  probably near the warm environs of a mangrove swamp. These magnificent avians reappear in the same neighborhood each year, and below is seen the arrival of a solitary and travel-weary heron as its scouts along the treetops on our far shoreline searching for the familiar terrain of the grassy dam near the BRC backyard.

Although summer cannot be far away, cold rains and March winds have buffeted us this past month. A Springtime sunset last week perched a rainbow over the BRC lake framing it along the same far shoreline that greeted the above Great Blue Heron reconnoitering our familiar landscape.

From the BRC:  Wishing you sunshine and balmy days soon.

BRC Activities

Thank you, Ladies

February 17, 2024

Every Wednesday afternoon, the BRC craftsman journeys south to a jam session in a small village near the sprawling Lake of the Ozarks. This picking session has been convening for decades, and in recent years it has been held in the basement of a local church. An admixture of musicians, singers, and a clogger faithfully attend these spirited afternoon get-togethers. In the foreground of the below group photo are three women who grew-up singing in church choirs. They are the core of a folk music quintet that performs at nearby venues.

Although the BRC craftsman handily plays an assortment of different musical instruments, his foremost enjoyment is harmony singing. The three female vocalists above can sing lilting harmony parts with zero rehearsal. It is a prime joy for the BRC craftsman to accompany this talented trio on Wednesday afternoons and blend his baritone and bass intonations with them.

From the BRC: Thank you ladies for your delightful music, dance, and seraphic song.

Art Shows, BRC Activities

Sweet Sustenance

January 20, 2024

At the beginning of each new calendar year, the inaugural exhibit at the community art league gallery is themed on the subject of food. This January, the so-called food show is entitled “Devour” and focuses on artists` perceptions of appetites and favorite culinary delights. In February, this exhibit will host a yearly fund raising event called “Let Them Eat Art” which is catered by local restauranteurs in a competition to produce the most flavorful finger food and beverage as determined by the voting of gallery visitors. The BRC craftsman constructed the “Honey Bee” banjo for the juried art show.

The peghead and fretboard display the busy honey bee, its hive, the queen`s crown, a honey jar, and nectar-filled flowers. In scientific nomenclature, the honey bee belongs to the genus Apis of the bee clade. These industrious winged creatures came from Afro-Eurasia to North America in the early 17th century, and they are commercially valued producers of honey and wax. Honey bees sting usually in defense of themselves or their colony, and they are fated to succumb shortly after inflicting a sting.

At the gala food show opening reception on a wintry night, visitors closely study the Honey Bee which garnered  a ribbon in the adjudicated competition. During his initial decade of banjo building, the BRC craftsman installed only mother of pearl inlays; but in recent years, he has converted to laser-cut wood inlays made mostly of  birch.

Like all BRC 5-stringers, the heel of the neck on the Honey Bee bears special inlays for the eyes only of the musician. On the rim nearby is an inscription (inverted) indicating that this instrument is the 102nd banjo built in our shop. Since 2016, over forty BRC banjos have appeared in local art shows.

From the BRC: Enjoy the best of food and health in 2024.

Art Shows, BRC Activities

#100: The Humming Bird

November 4, 2023

The hummingbird is a familiar visitor to the BRC domicile, as red sweet water feeders are stationed on our upper deck every summer to attract these flighty avians. The below photo was taken with a cellphone by speedily photographing multiple images to capture a freeze-frame of the hyperkinetic fluttering of the bird`s wings.This autumn, a Humming Bird banjo was crafted in the BRC workshop for the 64th Annual Central Bank of Boone County Art Show. The peghead head featured feathery birds airily fluttering to and fro. In the scientific nomenclature, this specie is categorized as belonging to the Order of Apodiformes, the Suborder of Trochili, and the Family of Trochilidae.

Flowers appear on the truss rod cover and fretboard representing the vital food source of nectar that fuels the birds` high-powered energy requirements during flight. For the winter months, hummingbirds migrate south via a long airborne journey to Mexico or Central America.

BRC banjos feature an inlay on the heel of the neck for the eyes only of the musician. Adjacent to the below (inverted) flowery image appears an inscription indicating that the Humming Bird is the 100th banjo produced by the BRC workshop. Since the inception of the Banjo Rehabilitation Center in 2011, thirty-nine of its banjos have appeared in art shows.

On display below in the mirrored lobby, the Humming Bird banjo won a ribbon and was sold during the yearly weekend autumnal Boone County Bank Art Show. The BRC couple missed the awards ceremony, as they were away visiting grandkids in Texas.

When the grandparents returned from the Lone Star State, they were welcomed home with a spectacular rainbow that arched over their mid Missouri neighborhood. In a photograph from the upper deck above the BRC workshop, the colorful atmospheric phenomenon is admired by the banjo craftsman seen standing in the nearby shadows.

From the BRC:  Best Wishes to all for a lovely autumn season.

BRC Activities

Summer Falls to Autumn

September 23, 2023

A sunny lakeside photo of the BRC domicile taken from the opposite shoreline earlier this month shows our abode surrounded by leafy trees. The back door to the banjo workshop is seen on the ground level next to the shaded stairs. Despite the blue skies and a mirrored reflection on the still waters, close inspection of the trees shows several shades of fading greenery. Summer in the Heartland was on the wane.

Last winter, the “Snowy Owl” BRC banjo #94 was purchased by an out-of-town buyer during the annual Holiday exhibit at the local community art gallery. The new owner has local kinfolk, and he stopped-by the BRC workshop a few days ago to have his 5-stringer signed by its craftsman and to get a few tips on tuning and picking style. While visiting the BRC workshop, he purchased the “Peace Eagle” BRC banjo #99 which was then also signed.

A photo on the upper deck shows the customer with the banjo-builder. In the background appear the very early beginnings of autumnal coloring of the nearby valley where a previous BRC homestead was located years ago.

From the BRC: Have a colorful autumn season in your neck of the woods.